I came across this 4 year old comparison on another forum from a guy who was considering buying an Aston or the Maserati but ended up with an XKR. It's from a consumer's point of view not really a car magazine's, and I found it quite interesting and still apropos. What do you think?

my new XKR - and why! | Jaguar | Page 1 | Owners Forum | Australia

 

Thanks for digging this article up. I could not agree more. Hands down the XKR is the best GT built. Until you drive a Jaguar XKR you will never know just how good of an all around GT the car is.

 

I agree it is an outstanding GT. If I could only have one thing, I wish it were offered in a three-pedal version.

I miss driving a stick so much I am seriously considering selling my pristine RS. Never thought it would come to that but I guess it is getting close. My other option is to add a second garage to the right side of my house and buy a manual to get my fix and still keep the Jag.

 

Yeah, I love the XKR and I'll keep it but every so often I think I'd consider a manual f-type when they come out. But if that thought nags at me too much I'll just borrow a manual and go into peak hour traffic. I figure that an hour of sitting on the clutch in first will cure me of the manual romance!

 

KEEP THE JAG!!!! Buy another Garage and put a used DBS in it - Manual.

 

Each car has merit. Want a manual? Buy the Aston. Want sexy motor and real back seat? Buy the Maserati. Want somewhere in between, buy the XK.

Aston's finishes are way beyond Maserati and Jag; they are another league. Jaguar has more compelling manufacture and more leather than Maserati. Maserati sound and looks are hard to beat.

 

Matt, I am with you. I keep my modded XKR because it's a great ride, and the wife digs it. But I can't drive it too often without yearning for that third pedal. Luckily, I have a couple of those lying around, too...

 

Bruce and Matt,
It's so funny how it's what you're used to that colors desire. I have had my 2010 XKR about a month and have become addicted to the paddle shifters and the rev matching, and I can't help but drive it like a stick. On my Pantera, when I drive it on the track (which is about the only time I drive it now), I drive it as an automatic. I get it into 3rd gear as soon as possible and then use it's torque to drive it all the way around the track. The shifter is so notchy and so unsmooth and trying to slide it in a hurry into the Ferrari style gate is simply not possible without both eyes and nearly both hands involved.

Now, having driven my partner's Audi S5-6speed extensively both on the track and off, it is simply the best shifter/clutch combo I have ever driven and is just a pleasure to pilot. But, the traffic in Los Angeles is now at a point where you would rarely have the ability to get out of second gear on most streets and most of the time on the freeways. My 7 mile commute from the San Fernando Valley over the Santa Monica Mountains into Beverly Hills this morning took me an hour, and I never got past 2nd with my paddles.

I find the XKR to be a happy medium, although I do enjoy a high quality manual like the Audi's on a good ole back road run.

 

At first I was very happy with the paddles. In fact I never drive my car in auto mode...never. As soon as I get in I push the dynamic button and put the gear selector into S mode. I use the paddles exclusively and its a habit. Thankfully the ZF is a sweet transmission or I might not have even lasted this long.

Anyway, this might be my last week with the RS...we shall see. I did have some fun last night driving my friends supercharged BRZ. His car is a ton of fun and the short throw shifter he has in that thing is crazy. Shortest and smoothest shifts I think I've ever experienced. Literally flick of the wrist.

I was extremely disappointed when I looked into the Astons in a manual. For the price to performance ratio I just couldn't justify it. Also, I dislike the looks of their center console stack and the way the nav screen is setup like a cheap jack-in-the-box. Not very fond of the backwards tachometer either.

 

Speaking of BRZ's, my mum's got a Toyota 86 (red, manual - go Mum!). The standard manual is pretty notchy, I thought. The upholstery is pretty awful and is pilling at about 2 years old, and that is probably the highlight of an otherwise awful interior. The car is too low so you fell like your **** is dragging along the ground, the suspension is hard, the speedo is ridiculous because you cant see how fast you are going unless it is well over the legal limit, and to get in and out you pretty much have to open the door the whole way which means it is hopeless in parking spaces or the garage. But the steering is lovely and direct and it sounds good giving it some boot in second. It is also great value - here you could buy 7 of them for the price of a new XKR.


Compared to the Jag, a very hard car to live with, even if you supercharged it.


But I'm over 40 now, so those little comfort things make a difference to me. But it wouldn't stop me borrowing mum's car to take it for a run into the hills. As long as I didn't have to leave her the keys to mine. At 70 something, she still has a bit of a lead foot.

 

That's pretty cool that your Mom has a BRZ. They are fun cars for sure. I wonder what seats she has as I haven't heard of too many issues. My friend got one of the first ones and his cloth seats are holding up well but I think the limited version has different seats. Also there is a MPH digital readout in the center of the tach here on the U.S. cars. No problem seeing your speed.

Either way a BRZ will not be replacing my RS, but I wouldn't mind borrowing my friends every now and then. Also there are two companies now in the U.S. that are dropping in LS2/LS3 V8's with 430hp into them. That is some crazy stuff!

I'm not sure what I will get but I am looking to downgrade since my wife recently quit teaching and I would like to put some money back into the bank. As for bang for the buck, its hard to not look at the '13/'14 GT500 w/ 662hp. I think I may drive one this weekend.

 

Oh, over here we have the Toyota 86 in 2 equipment levels, essentially "basic" and "not quite as basic". The "not quite as basic" is equivalent to the BRZ level. Unfortunately Mum (and you'll see we spell that the english way!) got the "basic" (GT) which has no parking sensors, the interior and dash is more spartan (no digital speedo). I'd find it hard to live with, but it is fun to borrow every so often and have some fun. The steering in particular is pretty much as good as anything I've driven.

And it's too bad your RS has the steering wheel on the left. That would be a $200K car here, even second hand...

 

I went through the same thing last year, and ended up trading it for a Viper TA with a stick this year. The XKR is such an outstanding GT, but for some you just can't beat a stick in a high performance car to provide a more engaging and rewarding driver experience. That is what the XKE was all about, and I'm still disappointed that Jaguar didn't design that into the F-type that they'd like us to think is its successor.