For several weeks now, the weather outside has been abnormally hot, and the fierce sun is mercilessly melting the asphalt, which means only one thing - it's time to stop sweating in metal boxes, it's convertible season.
Two weeks ago, a colleague brought back from Crimea a wealth of impressions from a test drive of the Mazda MX-5 along the local serpentine roads, and I, in the meantime, no more, no less, decided to take one of the most "hot" convertibles on the Russian market - the Jaguar XKR.
History of speed
Jaguar has always been famous for its sports cars, and it can be said that the roots of our XKR lead to the SS90 car, released in 1935 by the English brand SS Cars, founded a year earlier, which in 1945 successfully renamed itself to Jaguar Cars. After the SS, the sports niche of the brand was taken over by cars with the already familiar letters XK, produced from 1948 to 1961. And in 1961, the most significant model, in my opinion, in Jaguar's sports history appeared - the legendary "grand tourer" E-Type (called XK-E on the American market), which the modern XK even resembles in appearance. Then in 1975, the E-Type was replaced by the less successful XJ-S, and after that came the current XK.
Jaguar XKR and the second-generation E-Type model. Find the similarities. Photo: Avtour© , Autowp
An educated contemporary
As I already said, the XKR has retained some features of its legendary relatives in appearance, which, of course, adds grace and majesty to its image. In principle, this similarity is not accidental; the designers really had the task of creating a convertible that would resemble the iconic E-Type. It must be said, they did a good job - the car looks very modern, but at the same time, its entire appearance reminds that the XKR is not a hastily created convertible, but a car with a long and rich genealogy.
What should you expect from a Grand Turismo class car? First, it's good to determine what this Italian phrase means. All technical dictionaries interpret the two cherished letters GT the same way - "A class of 'luxury' cars designed for high-speed long-distance driving, with increased comfort and high operational and driving characteristics."
So, the XKR is created for comfortable and fast long-distance trips. Of course, the word "long-distance" implies more the "Marseille - Monaco" route or a day around Le Mans, rather than the "Moscow-Vladimir" or "Piter-Vyshny Volochek" roads.
The car looks very modern, but at the same time, its entire appearance reminds that the XKR is not a hastily created convertible, but a car with a long and rich genealogy
Perhaps it would be somewhat incorrect to test a car of this class for the capacity of the rear seats and trunk, but it's worth trying. The fact that there is a rear row is already good, and the fact that two adults can fit there is simply great. True, if there are four people in the car, then everyone becomes a bit cramped. By the way, when people get out of the rear seats, it's very hard to believe that anyone bigger than a child and heavier than a travel bag could fit there. As for the trunk, its volume is 330 liters, which, you'll agree, is not so little, and the folded roof "eats" only 130 liters. So if you're going on a trip in this car, a couple of Louis Vuitton bags will fit in the trunk in any case.
Almost Bond... Almost James Bond
This car has a lot in common with Bond's Aston Martin DB. First, the latest generations were designed by one person - British designer Ian Callum, who has almost the entire new Jaguar model range under his belt, and second, the modern XK and DB share the same platform. And in general, it's easy to imagine that if Jaguar's PR people had been more proactive, Q could have offered James Bond the E-Type instead of the DB5 back in the day. But that didn't happen, and the role of the secret agent's car was assigned to the "Aston." However, when you get behind the wheel of the XKR, you still feel like an agent, and if not MI-6, then, for example, MI-5.
Jaguar XKR has a lot in common with Bond's Aston Martin DB
We've got a tail, shake them off, James!
Given that the XKR is rear-wheel drive, during a sharp start, the front of the car characteristically lifts. Well, as for dynamics, it's certainly breathtaking. I get on the highway, switch to dynamic mode, and press the main pedal - the car picks up my impulse, the supercharger spins up, and the car shoots forward! The roar of the engine is exciting, and the rumble of the exhaust system is hard to describe in words; it's incredibly invigorating. The manufacturer claims that the XKR accelerates to 100 km/h in 4.8 seconds, and I readily believe it.
"Fuck the fuel economy" - sometimes I see such stickers on big American SUVs. It must be said, this sticker would also suit the "Jaguar." In dynamic mode, the car really loves gasoline - at some point, the average fuel consumption reached 40 liters per 100 km. Although, with calm driving, consumption varies around 24 liters!
The XKR is not a wild sports car like most of its competitors. It is very fast and beautiful, but despite its sporty past and present, the production XKR, in general, is hard to call a sports car; it's too comfortable and soft, and the car enters corners too non-sportily. Also, there's a good six-speed "automatic" here, which shifts gears quickly and smoothly. This car would better compete with ocean yachts than sports cars, only in its case, instead of water, there would be melting asphalt, and road irregularities and speed bumps would replace waves.
Despite its aggressive look, the XKR is hard to call a sports car; it's too comfortable and soft
Pure exclusivity
In the first half of the year, 390 Jaguar cars were sold in Russia. For comparison, over the same period, Mercedes-Benz sold 7,675 cars, and BMW - 9,718 units. Of course, the Germans cannot be compared with the British in terms of total sales, primarily because of the completely incomparable number of cars in the model range. But the numbers speak for themselves. As for the XK and XKR models, in the first six months of 2010, a total of 23 units were purchased.
Thanks to not the most active sales, the XKR is rarely seen in the city, especially the convertible. For example, I saw the same one only in the parking lot of a Jaguar dealership when I came to return the car. There are slightly more regular XKs, i.e., in coupe body and with a naturally aspirated engine, but they also look extremely distinctive on the road; this is not a BMW 6 Series or Mercedes CL, whose concentration in the Central Administrative District of Moscow may exceed some representatives of the domestic auto industry.
And, of course, that's why absolutely everyone pays attention to the XKR Convertible. And many are also tempted to compliment the car or ask the driver some question.
"Oh, what a beauty, and I was wondering who had come to us!" - a sweet grandmother said to me in the morning on a bench near the entrance of friends I had dropped by at night.
When I was getting into the car another time, a man in a business suit approached me:
-Tell me, how many liters?
-Five liters, 510 horsepower, supercharger, and V8.
-How I envy you!
In a traffic jam, the following dialogue happened:
-Young man! (I turned around and saw a man sticking his head out of the window of a black SUV and addressing me)
-Young man, tell me, how much does it cost?
-Six point two.
-I see, thanks.
Yes, this exclusive costs 6 million 200 thousand rubles. By the way, the same amount would cost a 5-liter Mercedes-Benz CL V8, which, however, cannot compare with the "hot" Jaguar in power (the base German has 388 "horses" under the hood). But 6 million - that's just for the most impractical version of the XKR with a supercharger and no roof. For example, the same XKR coupe already costs 5,750 thousand rubles, and the most affordable (if you can say so) XK, in coupe body with Luxury trim, Russian dealers give on average for 4,750 thousand rubles, well, just a mere trifle!
I agree that a sports convertible is not the most practical car: the interior gets dirty, and the leather ages faster, both your own and on the seats. But after all, exclusive Berluti shoes are not worn every day, but are worn exactly at the moment when you need to add some chic. Yes, this car is not suitable for daily commutes to work, and we must not forget that we live in a country where winter rules the weather for seven months. But when the first warm sun peeks out - you so want an XKR like this to be in the garage, where you can lower the roof, turn on your favorite music, press the gas, and drive towards the horizon, squinting from the bright rays.
Author's ratings on a five-point scale:
Engine: 5
Exterior: 5
Interior: 5
Capacity: 3
Handling: 4
Visibility: 4
Fuel consumption: 3
Suspension: 5
Automatic transmission operation: 5
Price: 4
Average score: 4.3
We thank the company Jaguar Land Rover Russia represented by Dmitry Kolchanov for providing the car.
This and other Jaguar cars can be purchased from official dealers!
Grigory Nemirovsky