Budget Supercar: Jaguar XKR

This is a large beautiful sleek Grand Turismo (GT) car, not really a "sports" car. It is often compared with the Porsche 911 but I think it is more like a traditional Aston Martin in character. It is smooth, very powerful and fast and extremely comfortable, if you are in the front. The rear seats are almost pointless, but look great, beautifully covered in expensive leather. I've never tried sitting in them, as I would probably never be able to get out again. Ideal for some luggage. The boot is big enough for a couple of fairly large sized suitcases. More than enough for a couple of weeks touring, which is what this car is so perfectly designed for. The interior is beautifully old-fashioned with wooden dashboard and lots of dials, although some cars have a sat-nav screen in the middle which doesn't look as good, in my opinion.



I have the supercharged XKR coupe version which has almost an extra 100 bhp more than the standard XK8 (about 380bhp) although I have driven both and even the standard one is a very desirable car. The convertible is also good, but didn't appear to handle quite as well, although has the advantage that you can hear that wonderful V8 engine. In the coupe you have to stick your head out of the window and drive like an idiot through a tunnel before you really get the full effect of the noise. The XKR has Computer Active Suspension (CATS) which makes it handle even better, and automatically tightens up the shock absorbers when you drive on twisty roads, although this is an option on the standard car as well. The handling and ride really are very good for such a big car.

The best thing about this car is the price. At £70K new with lots of extra options it seems rather pricey, but after just a few years the price drops quite dramatically. The oldest examples are well below £10,000 now, although could be an expensive nightmare in old age as with any old Jaguar, but a middle-aged low-mileage example in good condition could easily cost less than £15,000 to £20,000. I have read stories of expensive maintenance problems, but so far (touch wood) have had no problems at all with my 7-year-old in almost 3 years and 30,000 miles. Pre-2000 cars have cylinders lined with Nikasil which reacted with some kinds of high-sulphur petrol available at the time, causing many cars to need replacement engines due to excessive cylinder-liner wear, so extreme caution should be taken when considering such cars. All later cars will not have the problem and some of the older ones will have had a new engine anyway.



The running costs are high. Insurance is group 20 for the XKR and servicing at a Jaguar main dealer is expensive, although obviously less expensive if you use a independent specialist. My servicing costs have averaged £410 per 10,000 miles using an independent specialist, but I may have been lucky. Always budget for a possible very large bill. Fuel consumption however is perhaps not as bad as it could be at about 20 to 24 mpg which is better than some comparable cars, such as Maserati coupes, Astons etc. although with current fuel prices may still make you think twice before putting your foot down. Oil consumption on my car is negligible, so high oil consumption could indicate a potential problem. Tyres are big and quite expensive at about £150 each for the standard wheels.

Alternatively, if you need a bit more space try the Jaguar XJ12

Summary: Buy one

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