Have a good long look at your screen. Familiarise yourself with every detail
of the Jaguar XJR100 because if you ever find yourself lined up against one,
you’d better not count on this being a mild-mannered luxury saloon.
This big cat will chase you down and eat you up!
A big luxury car it may be, but the XJR100 is officially listed as having a
5.3-second 0 – 100 km/h – quick enough to toast a WRX and pretty well
anything else on the road.
Open the bonnet and you’ll find a pearl of an engine. The XJR100 is kicked
along by a supercharged and twin intercooled version of the AJ 4-litre V8 which
is found in the XJ8. The all-alloy bent eight employs DOHC,
4-valve-per-cylinder heads with variable inlet cam timing. But stir in an Eaton
supercharger and twin water-to-air intercoolers (which are said to reduce
charge-air temps from around 160 to 60 degrees Celsius) and you’ve got a window-rattling 525Nm of torque and 276kW.
Such numbers are m-i-g-h-t-y impressive from a vehicle that’s supposedly all
about luxury...
The huge grunt of the supercharged V8 is channelled through a 5-speed ZF
automatic transmission which is remarkably smooth – rarely does such a
heavy-duty driveline feel so refined. The transmission also offers a J-gate
arrangement that allows the driver to switch from auto to manual mode – it works
okay, but we’d prefer the now common +/- style sequential shifter. A button on
the console also allows you to put the transmission into ‘S mode’ where it will
start off in first gear.
With a mountain of torque and a sophisticated transmission, the XJR100 is
simply explosive in normal driving. Explosive!
Ease down the throttle and the blown V8 hustles the big Jag to the speed limit
without a noise. But give it a decent prod, the trans shifts back and - BANG –
you’re gone! The nose lifts heavenward and the outside scenery becomes an
abstract blur. Interestingly, top-end performance feels slightly strangled - but
it can’t be too bad when you look at the acceleration figures... The factory
claims 5.3 second 0 – 100 km/h, 13.5 second 0 – 162 km/h (100 mph) and a top
speed limited to 250 km/h. We achieved a 6.0 second 0 – 100 km/h run with the
air con switched on, two people onboard and a relatively gentle launch.
The XRJ100 also manages to get its power down remarkably well. The traction
control system does a great job of trimming excess torque without killing all
the fun and, even when switched off, the chassis remains very stable.
Throw the XRJ100 through corners and it gets the job done with tremendous
grip and poise. The standard 255/35 19 tyres (Michelin Pilot Sports in our drive
car) provide a huge amount of cornering adhesion and, when they do finally let
go, the chassis remains quite balanced – the traction control system preventing
you from killing yourself with all the under-foot torque. This is a very safe
and easy car to drive fast.
The variable ratio power steering is quite suitable for a performance saloon
but it does feel slightly unusual because it’s relatively light and indirect
when manoeuvring but it firms up at speed. It takes a little bit of getting
used to. The brakes are well up to the performance requirements of this big
saloon. The XJR100 boasts bigger brakes than found on the regular XJ8 – you’ll
find cross-drilled 325mm front and 203mm rear discs with big Brembo calipers.
Pedal feel is light and progressive – as you’d expect in a sporting saloon.
The 2002-built XJR100 puts to use the last of the XJ series body.
Despite its size, the classic shape XJ has relatively poor interior space -
rear legroom is similar to a conventional Australian family car, the low roof
line reduces rear headroom and there’s not a lot of sprawling room in the front.
This is a cabin that cocoons you.
There’s plenty of standard equipment with the XJR100 distinguished by its coloured timber and alloy trim, charcoal leather, Recaro
seats with red stitching (which is also applied throughout the rest of the
cabin), a R performance leather wheel and Momo gear knob. The sound system is
also upgraded and uses Alpine speakers. The XJR100’s instruments, controls and
dashboard have a traditional Jaguar appearance – there’s plenty of heritage on
display.
Using active damper control, the ride is very comfortable and, aside from a
distant blower whine, the car offers total refinement. Our drive car was fitted
with a custom exhaust system which increased noise considerably – fortunately,
that supercharged V8 makes a noise that you really do want to
hear.
Visually, the XJR100 has a presence that’s lacking in most of today’s luxury
saloons. The long XJ body has a fluid combination of curved lines and proudly
wears styling cues from previous models - such as the twin headlight nose, roof
gutters and splashes of chrome. The beautiful panels are covered in Anthracite
metallic paintwork, and the XJR is set apart by its twin mesh grilles and 19 inch
BBS wheels.
Released in 2002, the XJR100 was built to celebrate the 100th
anniversary of the birth of Jaguar founder, Sir William Lyons. This is a very rare vehicle
with just 500 built and ten imported to Australia. And the new price? On the
expensive side of 200 grand...
Today, a second-hand XRJ100 can be picked up from AID$103,000 - $120,000 depending on kilometres. The owner of this vehicle – Paul (aka Q) –
says he was in the market for a powerful comfy saloon and, after assessing the
BMW 540i and M5 as well as the latest locally-built offerings, he opted for the
Jag. But finding one took 18 months...
Paul is very happy with the car and says it’s the perfect companion to one of
his other cars – a Ferrari 575 M. The only modification to date is a custom
modified exhaust that, although there are no conclusive dyno figures, is said to
improve response considerably. The top-end still feels a bit strangled (perhaps
due to the small cross sectional area of the airbox intake snorkel) and so a custom
air intake is on the agenda.
Paul remains impressed with the build quality (which Ford had a hand in), the
character and the performance of the big cat. Fuel economy varies depending on
conditions but typically averages around 14.9 litres per 100km. On the other
hand, Paul has also seen a low of 10.9 litres per 100km on an interstate
cruise. It’s never going to be frugal – but you soon forget about that when you
start having some fun behind the wheel!
It’s bold, brutally quick, comfy and well built – a car most of us should
keep an eye on if it drops a few more tens of thousand dollars...
Let’s call it an aspirational vehicle!
Thanks
Thank you to Paul (Q) for graciously lending his XJR100 for this article.
Paul’s website (which includes the rest of the cars in his garage) can be found
at www.qplanet.org
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