Jaguar S-Type R 2003 Review

The quick Cat has a just-right combination of elegance, history and restrained menace.

It's not the quickest sports sedan in the world, but if Sean Connery were coming back as a car, he'd look good as an S-Type R.

The mid-sized Jaguar has taken over as the car of choice for driving enthusiasts who have to have a Cat.

It's the latest product to wear an R badge, the equivalent of an M car from BMW or a Benz AMG or an S-type Audi, and has taken over from the bigger and costlier XK and XJ coupe and sedan.

The S-Type R has the advantages of a newer and more nimble body, a cheaper bottom line – not that $162,500 is truly cheap – and a look that could only be a Jaguar.

We thoroughly enjoyed our time with the S-Type R – let's make it the STR to save space and complication – and it erased the less-than-best memories of the starting-price X-Type we tested last year.

The STR is bigger, bolder and a lot better.

It is built up from the S-Type body that joined the Jaguar fleet as a way of luring younger buyers. Jaguar being Jaguar, and using Ford funding, the car has a look that flips back to the '60s with four round headlamps in front of a sculpted bonnet, and a stubby tail with cut-down rear window line.

The R treatment goes well beyond the basic S-Type mechanical package, starting with a gutsy supercharged 4.2-litre V8 engine. It has 281kW of power, close to double the basic V6, and 553Nm of torque.

The engine does its business through the latest six-speed Jaguar automatic, complete with the signature `J-gate' shift.

There's 18-inch alloy wheels, sports suspension, bigger brakes, dynamic stability control and R sports bucket seats.

The mechanical changes are highlighted by a threatening new look that comes from the lowered body, a deeper front spoiler and a small aero blade across the boot, and traditional meshing inside the radiator intake.

It's a good look that has more personality than a BMW M5 or Mercedes E55, suggesting something special even to people who don't know much about cars.

On the road

JAGUAR says the STR is a real rival for the Merc E55 and the BMW M5. But it doesn't have the thump of the Benz or the manual gearbox and sweet chassis of the M5.

Still, you always know the STR is special, whether you're sitting at the wheel or just walking towards it in a car park. And we like that.

Turn the key and you know the engine room is filled with menace, though the supercharged V8 doesn't go all rowdy. It has a muscular idle and solid bottom-end thrust from the lights, but it's not until you hear the subdued scream from the supercharger – and feel it kick from 3000 revs – that you know just how fast the STR can go.

The shift response in the latest six-speeder is crisp and enjoyable, and the J-gate feels more precise and usable than earlier Jaguars we've driven.

The engine pulls hard all the way to the top end, and by then most people will have given up to protect their licence . . . even in second and third. It's a classic case of a big motor in a small car – and that means it will take something special to keep up.

Jaguar says it will get to 100km/h in just 5.6 seconds, and any car of any type that can run the benchmark sprint in better than six seconds is seriously quick. Particularly with an automatic gearbox and 1800kg to motivate. If you're interested, the top speed is limited at 250km/h.

The STR really gets going when you point it into the twisties, and Jaguar's engineers have made it drive like a sports car without turning it into a bucking bronco. The suspension is lowered and tightened, but the work has been done without compromising the ride comfort.

So you can hussle through corners without worrying about the car bouncing over the sort of bitumen acne that's splattered across most Australian roads. The handling balance is a little nose-heavy at first, but once you get it turning you can adjust the feel and attitude with the throttle.

It's not as brutally quick and challenging as an E55 or as refined and fast as an M5 but, once again, you'd only see the difference if you had all three cars in the same place at the same time. And that probably won't ever happen in the real world.

We liked the way the S-Type R isn't always on, always urging you to get into the action. It will go, and go hard, but you can also take things easy without feeling short-changed.

The R's cabin is still a real Jaguar, even with the latest touch-screen satnav in the centre of the dash. The leather, wood and deep-pile carpet are just what you'd expect from the British brand, and it also has new-age CD sound and seats which do a top job on support and comfort.

But the back seat is definitely only a two-place space, a shortcoming against its German rivals, and the headroom isn't great for anyone over about 170cm. Legroom can also get tight with big people in the front seats.

Still, Jaguar has done a good job on luggage space.

We really enjoyed our time with Jaguar's S-Type R. It has more space than a Maserati Coupe and more personality than the Audi S6 and is close enough to the benchmark Germans to make it a serious threat.