2010 Jaguar XFR

First Test: 2010 Jaguar XFR
One Bad Cat: Just How Fast Is Jaguar's 510-Horsepower XFR?
By Edward Loh
Photography by Brian Vance
Check Dealer Pricing On a New Jaguar XF!
Back in January, we fleshed out the specs on Coventry's latest super sports sedan, the Jaguar XFR. One month later, we gave you a cockpit play-by-play at the XFR's launch in Seville, Spain. Now it's time to get down to the business of Racepaks and VBOXes to answer the question: Just how does Jaguar's bad little kitty measure up at the test track?
First let's look at what was promised. At launch, Jaguar claimed the XFR could hit 60 mph in 4.7 seconds and the quarter mile in 13.1 seconds, which, if possible, would indeed make this 4300-pound, leather-swathed sport sedan one quick feline. Too bad Coventry lies.
Our 2010 XFR shaved three tenths off the official 0-60 claim, even on the dusty tarmac of our El Toro testing facility. The 510-horse Jaguar also displayed more top-end speed than advertised, blitzing through the quarter mile in a mere 12.7 seconds at 114.1 mph. Meeeewow.
To put those numbers into perspective, let's compare them with a Jag we're intimately familiar with -- our long-term XF Supercharged. With it's 4.2-liter blown V-8 making 420 horsepower and 413 pound-feet of torque, that car also puts down some serious numbers; 60 mph arrives in just 4.9 seconds, the quarter mile in 13.4 (at 106.9 mph). Not quite the accelerative equal of the $15,000 more expensive XFR, but it is surprising in other situations.
Perhaps because it is lighter by roughly 175 pounds, our XF S/C posts slightly better braking and handling numbers. From 60 mph, the XFR requires 109 feet to stop, the XF S/C just 105 feet. Though statistically a dead heat, it's a bit surprising given the XFR's much larger brakes and wider, stickier tires. The S/C continues to shine on the skidpad, pulling 0.90 g laterally compared with 0.87 of the XFR. In dynamic handling, the XFR manages to best its little brother; at 25.9 seconds at 0.74 g, the XFR is a tenth of a second quicker than S/C (26.0 seconds at 0.70 g) on our patented MT figure eight. Nothing shocking so far as the XFR should be the fastest cat in the XF den, but how does it stack up against a Bavarian benchmark like the BMW M5?