The new "track-focused" Jaguar XKR-S.
You better look quick. Jaguar is billing its new XKR-S GT as its fastest production model ever – and with only a handful planned to roll off the British maker’s assembly line, it doesn’t expect them to be around for long.
“This is our most track-focused car yet,” engineering director Pete Simkin pronounced during a media sneak peek prior to the official unveiling of the super-coupe at the New York International Auto Show this week.
The Jaguar XKR-S GT starts out as the maker’s big sports coupe but undergoes a number of modifications designed to boost both performance and handling. And while that includes a number of body modifications, Simkin stresses that “every exterior element has a function.”
All exterior changes are functional, according to Jaguar engineers, including the chin spoiler and dive planes.
At the heart of this “beast” is a supercharged 5.0-liter V-8 upgraded to make a tire-spinning 550 horsepower and 502 pound-feet of torque. That is enough to propel the Jaguar XKR-S GT from 0 to 60 in 3.9 seconds.
But this machine is meant to deliver more than just straight line acceleration. And among the steps taken to improve track performance, the XKR-S gets:
- Unique front splitters to improve underbody airflow;
- Carbon fiber wheel arch extensions;
- Dive planes at the base of the front fenders; and
- An oversized rear wing.
All told, the various aerodynamic enhancements not only make the car more slippery but add 320 pavement-gripping pounds of downforce.
The XKR-S GT gets a large rear wing.
Even the black hood stripes are integrated into the car’s special cooling system, which includes large hood vents.
The suspension of the Jaguar XKR-S undergoes “extensive” modifications, according to Simkin, including the use of special Eibach racing springs and ride height-adjustable dampers. The front track, meanwhile, has been widened by two inches, while the coupe rides on special 20-inch forged alloy wheels shod in track-tuned rubber.
The XKR-S also becomes the first Jaguar ever to be outfitted with special carbon-ceramic brakes, here developed for the maker by Brembo. The special brakes are designed to be fade resistant – but they also trim off 46 pounds of unsprung mass.
At 186 miles per hour, this is the fastest production Jaguar ever – unless you consider the maker’s limited-run XJ220 supercar of some years back.
Then again, the XKR-S GT won’t exactly be offered in high numbers, Jaguar planning to produce a total of 30 of them. That includes 25 bound for the U.S. and another five for Canada. The price tag in the States is set at $174,000 which, with the exception of the XJ220, also marks a new price record for the Indian-owned automaker.
The launch of the new XKR-S GT coincides with the NY roll-out of Jaguar’s new flagship sedan, the XJR. Together, they bring a 50% increase in the number of “R-Line” model offered by Jaguar, which now grows to six.
(For more on the 2014 Jaguar XJR, Click Here.)