Jaguar unveils the XJR

Jaguar has unveiled the high performance XJR at the New York Motor Show. It's the first time that this generation of XJ has been given the R treatment and it has suitably impressive performance with a supercharged 5.0-litre V8 engine producing 550PS.

Along with the 680Nm of torque this gives the XJR a 0-62mph time of just 4.4 seconds while the top speed is electronically limited to 174mph. Transferring all that power to the rear wheels is an eight-speed automatic gearbox which comes with 'corner recognition', a system which senses when the car is negotiating a bend and will hold the correct gear for the exit.

The XJR comes with Adaptive Dynamic which controls body roll and pitch thanks to continuously variable dampers. There are different modes that will soften or firm up the damping rates depending so the XJR should still be able to deliver a comfortable ride on poor quality roads. The suspension has also been tuned and the XJR gets more responsive steering than the standard versions.

Despite all the power under the bonnet, the looks are fairly subtle. It gets a black mesh grille, side skirts and four exhaust pipes plus there is also rear spoiler on the boot and special bonnet louvres to air engine cooling. The stylish alloys and five-spoke 20-inch 'Farallon' forged wheels which come in silver or grey.

The XJR is due to go on sale in the summer, with a starting price of £92,500.