Reviewed: Jaguar XKR Speed Pack

We all know that Jaguar's XKR is a stunning car, especially with their most recent 5.0 litre supercharged AJ-V8 GEN III R engine. But what happens if you take the XKR, and tweak it a bit? The result is this, the Jaguar XKR Speed Pack- 510 horsepowers of supercharged beast. Jaguar have succeeded in creating a version of a car that is oh -so desirable; not that the normal XKR isn't of course! But you can't help get the feeling that when placed next to the Speed, its just a tad slow. The normal XKR is electronically limited to a meagre 155mph, so Jaguar have removed this which results in the XKR Speed Pack being able to roar its way up to a claimed 174mph- a considerable difference.
Having ridden in the car, I can safely say that it is fantastic. Despite its side decals and monstrous, glossy black 20in wheels, the car still retains a slight sense of subtlety about it, like it isn't bothered about being powerful and fast. The car is supremely comfortable- you get soft, heated leather seats(fully electronically adjustable), a B&W stereo system, sat-nav, air conditioning, CD player, and all other mod-cons that you would probably expect from a car more like the XJ. But this car really goes. Feather the accelerator, and you can hear the engine growl with delight-it wants to go fast. My favourite feature on the car, however, is a little button that looks like a chequered flag on the centre console. If you ever happen to be lucky enough to drive or ride in the car, please do not hesitate to press it. Its function is to open up the exhaust valves fully, so the raw noise and power of the engine can be unleashed. However, the best bit about the car is its speed and acceleration. Nail the throttle, and the car rockets forward, with the engine roaring beautifully loudly. Jaguar's claimed 0-60 time for the car is 4.6 seconds, but when you're in the car, it feels so much faster. Before you know it, you will be cruising north of 100mph in no time at all. As well as this, if you have children, you can bring them with you, as the XKR is arranged in a 2+2 layout, with adequate room for your offspring to relax to their favourite songs through the B&W speaker about 5cm away from them. But despite all the hype about its power and speed, it functions excellently as a run-around car- the ride is not harsh,you have all the equipment you'll ever need, and you'll feel special. Its a fantastic car to be in when you're late for work.