2002 Jaguar XKR

History

Thinking about a fine Jaguar, an enthusiasts’ mind naturally wanders to legendary vehicles like the XKSS and E-Type. Those cars are a British tradition, true automotive art and the same can be said of the car up for auction today.

With a nameplate reaching pack to the famed XK120 of the mid-twentieth century, Jaguar had big shoes to fill when they unveiled the XK100 series in 1996. Sharing a platform with Aston Martin’s DB7 and draped in the most incredibly sinuous sheet metal, there’s no denying the folks at Jag more than met the mark.

Featuring an all-new V8, the XK100 series was launched by the XK8 however, it was the arrival of the XKR factory hot rod that took things to another level of automotive envy.

Assembled in Coventry, England, the XKR boasted a 2.0L Roots-style blower from Eaton running 11.6 pounds of boost to kick up 370 horses. Car and Driver noted the thrust was akin to an old-school big block muscle car but with the refinement you would expect from Jaguar.

That same magazine described these cars as “supercharged eroticism”, which would have likely raised the eyebrows of Sir William Lyons, while simultaneously leaving him grinning from ear-to-ear knowing the company he founded turned out such an incredible machine.