Jaguar XKR-S 5.0 Review - The most powerful XK of them all - Beards n Cars

Aside from the ultra rare XKRS GT, this 5.0 XKRS variant of the Jaguar XK could quite possibly be the ultimate incarnation of the Jaguar XK platform. Especially with the added allure of 540 bhp and the unicorn factor of these examples being so much rarer and more valuable than their already excellent 503 bhp XKR brethren.
But does the added shock and awe justify it being double the price in some cases? Let's take this example to the roads of Emsworth to find out...
Special thanks to Philip Raby Specialist Cars - Check them out HERE: philipraby.co.uk/
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#JaguarXKRS #BEARDSnCARS #CarReview #BeardsAndCars #HSGAutomotive #Jaguar #JaguarXK #JaguarXKR #XKR #XKRS #XKRSGT
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[@jaysonwebb]

I've had mine two years and have had two dynamic xkr’s - this car quite simple put has class 😎

[@chrisdaraujo]

Thanks for the Very professional & informative video
I have owned a 2014 XKR-S for 4 years and it has so far proved very reliable & relatively cheap to service at the UK Jaguar dealerships using their discounted fixed price servicing for cars over 3 years old. Add to this due its rarity, virtually no depreciation so far & this is proving the best value performance car I have owned. It’s a gentleman’s British muscle car, maybe a poor man’s Aston Martin Vantage & obviously not to everyone’s taste, but here’s my take on what’s good & bad!
GOOD -rarity/depreciation, classic GT shape, awesome GT ability & also fun (but heavy) track car, old fashioned fun handling, deceptively fast & torquey engine, spine tingling exhaust note (fun even when not breaking the speed limit!), supple chassis & quiet comfortable suspension even over poor roads, good luggage space (including using the near useless back seats), very comfortable & good looking cross stitched front seats, posh looking full leather interior, fully loaded spec as standard, Many parts relatively cheap when compared with comparable sports cars.
BAD -very dated clunky small screen infotainment system, steering a little vague, chassis can’t disguise the car’s heavy weight, definitely more GT than sports car (F typeR far more sporty), traction not great at times, Michelin PS4s a must otherwise twitchy handling, old fashioned interior, battery will often go flat if not used for 3 weeks CTEK essential, Jaguar an image problem to some.
Cars I tried before buying -Aston Martin Vantage, Mercedes C63, Audi RS5, Maserati GT, BMW M6 & Ford Mustang, all had their respective advantages & disadvantages so it’s just personal I guess!
In a couple of years I’ll fancy a change, & will be swapping for either a Mercedes AMG GT or a Lexus LC500 when they depreciate enough to be comfortably within my budget, as they both are again relatively rare, have far superior interiors, go well, & give me that all important aural V8 fix!

[@beardsncars]

Nice one! Glad to hear you're enjoying one of these beasts

[@adamjacobadamson]

It's a rare British muscle car!

[@mickt4343]

I couldn't agree more! This is the most wild Jag I've ever driven and yes, it's a supercar by all means!

[@ianharris2407]

Great video as always please keep the Jag content coming 👍🏻

[@f-u-nkyf-u-ntime]

There's no way a car like this is essential. It's desirable as hell but not essential. As far as reliability goes, you'd have to seriously consider getting it serviced every 3000 miles to keep the timing chain issues at bay. That would also solve the injector issues often suffered by the 5.0ltr engine because the service will come with a new fuel filter and fuel cleaner. I have the 3.0ltr supercharged XJ and this is how I look after mine.

[@lionyleftwich4418]

The 3.0L is the only engines you'll have that sort of trouble out of from what i heard

[@f-u-nkyf-u-ntime]

@lionyleftwich4418 The 3.0ltr supercharged and the 5.0ltr supercharged are the same engine. The 3.0ltr has two pistons blanked and a different piston throw. Any timing chain or injector issues are common to both.

[@lionyleftwich4418]

@@f-u-nkyf-u-ntime i can tell u like this,I have never had a problem with my 2012 XKR except the water pump going bad at around 30,000 miles ,but i got it fixed out of warranty.Other than that,im 80,000 miles with no issues.All i do is put fuel injector cleaner in it every 1000-2000 miles and my Jag is good and healthy.

[@f-u-nkyf-u-ntime]

@lionyleftwich4418 injector cleaner is definitely the way to go with these engines. I always use E5 petrol too.
Glad you're have a hassle free experience, the unreliability of Jaguar's is vastly overstated.

[@lionyleftwich4418]

@@f-u-nkyf-u-ntime the crazy thing is people want to think jags have unreliability when certain modern cars today are getting equiped with the same engine transmission the entire flag ship fleet of cars use under the brand these days that could be unreliable when Jaguar only had the unreliable problem with only their V12 engine that they never tried putting in other cars.That problem completely went away in the 90s when the XK came out which was good for the 4.0L for a while,but the thing is they used cheap parts under the hood where there had plastic chains inside the engines on the 4.0L that would melt or something and go bad which could have been caught in time under the warranty like any car if driven enough.But they fixed this problem with the 4.2L and made those engines bullet proof.Ever since then,if you have a 2012 or later,you good cause the tensioners would go bad in the 1st edition 5.0L from 2009-2011 but that was revised in the 2012 years after

[@pymt]

What might you suggest after a facelift XKR for a value conscious buyer? I have a stunning example with special midnight blue paint on ivory leather still with 40k mileage but feel like a change. Considering an M6, potentially an 997 turbo but then that’s quite a jump in price. Find the Maserati very attractive but assume high maintenance costs.

[@beardsncars]

An F13 shape M6 is a very strong choice, at least I'd guess given how much I've previously enjoyed the 640d and 650i (haven't reviewed an M6 yet though) And as a Maserati fan I'd naturally recommend trying out a GranTurismo. Find one with low miles and few owners and you'll love it. People are more scared of Maserati's than they should be. From my experience the part costs aren't too crazy, and most issues are small electrical gremlins like a fuel cap button, electric sun visor etc. I've had three Quattroporte's at this point (same platform as the GT) and the overall reliability has been better than my Flying Spur or XKR were in fact. On my current one for example, I needed a new fuel cap actuator and new telescopic headlamp washer unit. £135 all in for brand new parts and shipping. I don't think that's particularly bad for a four door Ferrari. Even servicing from a Maserati main dealer isn't that steep.
Performance wise, a GranTurismo definitely swings more to the supercar end of the spectrum than an XKR does. Higher revving, sharper steering, feels lighter on its feet despite being heavier than a Jag, and more weight over the rear which makes the handling pretty unique. Rear seats are also far more usable than the Jag.

[@pymt]

@@beardsncars thank you! I’ll take some time to research in the coming weeks whilst scouting out a GranTurismo at the right mileage and price to view. I like the experience with a low slung coupe, my only need for practicality is something I can road trip across Europe for a few days. My assumption was the GT’s were expensive to maintain.

[@h7pubg]

why did you sell your xkr? will you buy another XK generation in the future?

[@beardsncars]

I moved on from mine for two reasons. One, because I like changing things up pretty regularly to experience new cars anyway, plus in the case of the XKR the rear seats were just useless, and with my nephews, friends etc occasionally riding in the car it wasn't usable enough for a daily driver. If I ever did go for another Jag, it would most likely be either an XFR or X358 XJR

[@h7pubg]

@@beardsncars your video was one of the things that got us into buying a standard 08 X150, it has 108k miles and is in for a suspension rebuild soon which may be very expensive but the car has otherwise been a reliable daily driver for a year give or take some bits here and there