Jaguar XFR-S Revealed: This Big Cat Has 550HP Claws
Jaguar has pulled the wraps off of its XFR-S sports sedan, the big cat company's 186mph take on tightening up the luxobarge until your passengers squeak like field-mice. Teased last week as the fastest and most powerful four-door from Jaguar ever, the XFR-S made its debut at the LA Auto Show 2012, using a 5-liter supercharged V8 engine with 550PS good for a 0-60mph dash in 4.4s. However, Jaguar also says the XFR-S shouldn't make too great an impact in your eco-credentials, with the new car putting out the same emissions and fuel consumption figures as its XRF sibling.
Of course, when you're basing your numbers on what's already an impressive sports sedan, we're not talking tree-hugging territory. The XFR-S puts out 270g/km in CO2 emissions and manages 18mpg (US), the price you pay for pushing 502lb/ft of torque through an 8-speed Quickshift auto transmission and down through wider 20-inch forged alloy wheels with bespoke Pirelli tires.
That means not only will the XFR-S go in a straight line very, very fast, but it can deliver some drifting-style entertainment in the corners, as Jaguar's official video shows. New suspension makes for a 30-percent increase in steering precision, and there's an electronic differential and reprogrammed Dynamic Stability Control to deliver more of the road sensation to the driver. Corner Recognition can track when you're cornering and make sure you're in the right gear for the best exit, and 380mm front/376mm rear disc brakes bring things to a halt.
Jaguar XFR-S video:
Lashings of carbon fiber both outside and in, extended side sills, aeroblade moldings behind the front wheels, and a bootlid spoiler help distinguish the XFR-S' appearance, along with gloss black trim replacing what would be chrome on the regular car. Lift is reduced by 68-percent, helped by new air channeling underneath. Jaguar will offer five color options: blue, white, grey, red, and black.
Inside, there's charcoal leather with carbon-effect leather highlights exclusive to the R-S range, along with actual carbon fiber detailing and dark aluminum trim. A 380W Meridian 12-speaker audio system is standard, but can be upgraded to an 18-speaker, 825W system.
Unsurprisingly, this sort of performance doesn't come cheap, though our initial guesstimates were happily too far on the rich side. Jaguar will offer just 100 of the 2014 XFR-S in the US come the summer of 2013, priced from $99,000, while the car will be from £79,995 in the UK.
