The latest iteration of Jaguar's XKR is a fantastic car to drive, but we've had a few complaints about the quality of some of the car's smaller parts and materials. The Portfolio package aims to remedy some of those issues, and add a bit of performance at the same time, albeit at a price even higher above the XKR's already-hefty window sticker.
From the outside, every XKR Portfolio will look the same. The only paint color available (unless you're in the UK or Switzerland) is celestial black paint, and each will be dressed up with polished aluminum side vents and with twenty-inch Cremona wheels. Behind the front wheels lie six-piston brake calipers badged with a large, red "R" that squeeze down on the biggest brakes in Jaguar history. At 15.7 inches at the front, the XKR Portfolio's discs are 1.7 inches in diameter larger than the regular XKR. Four piston calipers pinch 13.8 inch discs in the rear. The new system was developed at Jaguar's specialist engineering center at the Nrburgring. The XKR's 420 horsepower, 4.2-liter supercharged V-8 is unchanged (does it really need changing?)
Inside the cabin, the Portfolio option brings a new shift knob and door handles, contrast stitching, and leather-trimmed floormats. Two new veneers, engine-spun aluminum and American walnut, are offered. This is also Jaguar's first production application of a Bowers & Wilkins speaker system, following on the heels of a similar system in the C-XF concept car. The 525 watt system uses Dolby Pro Logic II surround sound and Kevlar mid-range speakers designed specifically for the XK's cabin. The XKR Porfolio is available from the end of March 2007.