By Gary Anderson
Road Test
The 2003 S-Type R boasts power, superior handling
Two signs that the new Europe is alive and well: the new European currency my wife Genie and I used on a recent trip to Spain’s Costa Brava and the 2003 Jaguar S-Type R we drove there.
This Jaguar is built to appeal to drivers across a united and prosperous European economy.
Not that we Americans won’t enjoy the powerful S-Type R - which went on sale in March - with its new supercharged 4.2 liter, V-8 engine and sport suspension.
Like the exuberance of Barcelona and the posh holiday resorts of Spain’s Mediterranean seaside, the Europeans will be happy to share the elegant new cat from Jaguar with us.
It’s just that the pleasures of driving behind the distinctive new mesh grille weren’t developed with Americans in mind.
Certainly Americans have happily accepted the S-Type with its slightly retro oval grille and curvaceous styling.
Last year, Jaguar sold 135,000 of these middle-of-the-line cars, doubling the company’s total sales from the year before.
But when Jaguar increased the capacity of their AJ V-8 engine, then put the supercharger on it from the top-of-the-line XKR and XJR, they had European drivers in mind.
On the narrow roads in the small towns and rolling countryside between the seaside and the Pyrenees, we could see the wisdom of a smaller car than Jaguar’s premier sedan.
On the other hand, to hold our own on the thruways with BMWs and Mercedes, while avoiding the huge trucks that move goods between Spain’s new industrial plants and the markets of France and Germany, driving performance was critical.
The new S-type R is the answer. The enhanced AJ V-8 engine with its supercharger produces 400 horsepower and 408 pound-feet of torque, making it the most powerful engine in Jaguar’s line.
As we confirmed, it will go from zero to 60 in 5.3 seconds, and top out confidently at over an electronically limited 155 mph.
Just as important, acceleration capability is on tap at all speeds, providing maneuvering confidence under all traffic conditions.
A new six-speed ZF automatic transmission provides velvet-smooth shifts as speed changes, adding to the road-going comfort that is as much Jaguar’s hallmark as its sporting performance.
This performance is coupled with an improved Computer Active Technology Suspension (CATS) that varies shock absorber reactions as speed changes.
At slower speeds in the fog on the narrow mountain roads, the car turned quickly without fuss. At the normal European cruising speed of over 100 mph, steering and handling felt rock-solid.
With the CATS system, excellent aerodynamics, and body structure 10 percent stiffer than previous S-Types, even high crosswinds that were blowing trucks around didn’t upset the car’s equanimity.
Fortunately, we didn’t have to test the safety systems now standard on all S-types.
This includes Active Stability Control, which modulates braking at any spinning wheel if the car should start to slide.
A new Adaptive Restraint Technology System adjusts reaction of the front and side airbags and the new side curtain airbags, depending on severity and direction of impact and weight and position of driver and passenger.
This mid-sized four-door rocket sells for just over $62,000, complete with enhanced stereo, GPS locator and DVD navigation system.
It’s worth comparing to the BMW M5, selling for $10,000 more. If the top-of-the-line model doesn’t appeal to you, there are other offerings in the expanded S-Type line that you might like.
On all the models, Jaguar has responded to some criticism that on the interior its S-Types looked, well, a little like Fords.
The facia has been completely redesigned, with bird’s-eye maple across the dash and accenting the doors in a honey color on the regular S-types and in a gray stain on the R model. Some subtle exterior changes in chrome trim and feature lines have also been made on the new models.
The full line now includes a normally-aspirated 4.2 liter V-8, as well as an upgraded 3.0 liter engine. Even the three-liter offers 240 horsepower, with zero-60 performance of 7.3 seconds and a top speed of 130 mph.
Now available in the U.S. with a five-speed manual transmission and sport suspension, this version offers an edge that should appeal to younger performance-seeking drivers.
Prices start at $42,500 for the base S-Type with the sport package adding $2,000.
It may have taken the prospering economy of the new Europe to justify introduction of the S-Type R, with its ripple effects through the entire S-Type line.
Nevertheless, we think there will be some American drivers who will prefer the combination of size and performance of the new R model.
Regardless, you can count on Jaguar to continue offering the particular appeal it calls “sporting elegance.”
Anderson is editor and publisher of British Car Magazine, published bimonthly and distributed internationally from offices in Los Altos (949-9680; www.britishcar.com).
