Spyshots: Jaguar XKR-S Convertible

Jaguar officially unveiled the hardcore XKR-S at the Geneva Motor Show. We were thoroughly impressed with its aggressive looks and monumental exhaust note. Some might say that sacrificing comfort and refinement is not the Jaguar way, but this is more of a “what if?” sort of monster.

While we’re on the subject, and taking into account the fact that the XK was designed from the ground up to keep it rigidity in convertible form: What if we cut the roof off and make the XKR-S a convertible? You can stop asking that question now, as such a car is already being put through its paces and has been spotted by our dedicated team of spy photographers.

The mental 5.0-litre supercharged V8 engine from the coupe will be dropped inside the convertible, and even with no roof over your head, you can expect this to be a true performance machine. This means that your right foot will have 550-horses and 680Nm (501 lb-ft) of peak torque to play with, an increase of 40HP and 70Nm over the standard R.

That level of power is enough to push the coupe version to a top speed of 186mph (300km/h), though the convertible will be ever so slightly slower.

As you can see from these spyshots, the changes to the body over the regular XK Convertible include a more aggressive-looking front bumper, re-profiled side skirts, additional air vents on the hood and bumpers, a large rear wing and a redesigned rear bumper housing a diffuser and four exhaust tips.

When it will be revealed at next year’s Geneva Motor Show, the XKR-S Convertible should have a price tag of over £100,000, given that the Coupe costs £97,000 in Britain.