Jaguar's supercharged 4.2 litre XKR sports car

Another separate characteristic that the XK has been praised for is its acoustic quality, remaining unobtrusive and relaxed at modest speeds but producing an unmistakeable V8 ‘soundtrack’ when worked hard. On the XKR, the presence of supercharger whine threatened to dominate the acoustic character and mask the underlying sound quality. However, through enhancements to the vehicle acoustic pack, the supercharger noise has been reduced by 5dB compared to the previous XKR eliminating any potential issue.

This approach to acoustics allowed engineers to concentrate on using the exhaust system to deliver the best possible sound quality character. This was accomplished through the use of the XKR’s Active Exhaust which varies the flow of exhaust gases through the main silencer box to ensure that the XKR remains quiet at cruising speeds but delivers a substantially more purposeful V8 roar under hard acceleration.

Transmission

Jaguar Sequential Shift combines all the speed and involvement of a sequential manual gearbox with the comfort and convenience of a full automatic. The system consists of steering wheel-mounted paddles and a conventional automatic gearlever, allowing the driver to switch between three automatic or paddle-operated transmission modes.

Whereas an automated manual gearbox interrupts the flow of torque during the gearchange – while the clutch is disengaged – Jaguar's transmission maintains the flow of torque throughout the shifting process. This results in gearchanges that are not only very quick, but also remarkably smooth. Gearshifts are achieved in less than 600 milliseconds, from the point at which the driver operates the shift paddle to the point at which the shift is completed.

In fact, during development, comparison tests between Jaguar Sequential Shift and rival automatic transmissions in the class showed the transmission to be the fastest system of all, changing gear at least 400 milliseconds faster than a standard automatic and 100 milliseconds faster than the best automated manual system.

The three gearbox modes give the driver total flexibility to use the transmission to match whatever driving style he or she chooses. In Drive mode, the gearbox behaves as a conventional automatic, with the software optimised for everyday driving conditions and providing all the benefits of a best-in-class automatic transmission.

In Sport mode, the gearbox's adaptive software becomes more prevalent, adapting and reacting more dynamically to demanding conditions. This software takes account of the prevailing road conditions and driver's inputs and adapts accordingly. For example, it recognises when the car is negotiating a curve, and holds the gear accordingly; Hill Recognition enables the XKR to choose the ratios to optimise the ascent or descent of a hill; the gearbox’s software will also match the engine speed precisely to the engine and road speeds, ‘blipping’ the throttle during rapid downshifts.

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