Those new breezy 'Montreal' wheels look even bigger than the Silverstone edition's 20-inchers and give the XKR 100 an even more aggressive appearance. Rims and special badges apart, there's little else special on the outside. Ah, but on the inside...

Smoked grey 'bird's-eye' maple veneer we've seen before, but the inviting Recaros are new, as is the steering wheel, gear lever and various flashes of aluminium trim. Those chunkily sculpted Recaros don't disappoint; they're firm and more supportive than the XK's regular chairs, and they go together with the new wheel very nicely, thank you. There's no maker's signature on the rim but it's a beaut; quite plain looking but just about perfect in your hands, with a lovely, smooth yet grippy leather texture.

Jaguar's new 'R' branding (denoting R Performance) appears subtly on the wheel boss and the collar of the gear lever. We're told there's some R Performance work in the chassis, too, which suggests that it has been influenced by the fabulous XKR-R Evo featured in evo 28.

Certainly feels like it. The extensive tweaking runs to recalibrated adaptive damping, stiffer springs and anti-roll bars, and retuned steering. That's not all. Turn the key and the 4-litre V8 growls. We don't remember the Silverstone sounding as gritty as this. It's as if some underbonnet sound deadening has been removed. Thankfully, Jaguar's engineers haven't strayed into original DB7 territory where the awful grinding of the supercharger overwhelmed the natural pulse of the engine when you put your foot down. Stretch this engine and you find its muted V8 rumble merely lightly garnished with a dry sizzle of 'charger whine.
It's not actually any quicker. That said, its gearbox feels better than other Jaguar autos we've tried recently and that new lever slips around the gate with more precision and with the weight and tactility of a paper guillotine.

Chassis-wise, the 100 rides like it looks - like a car with wide, shallow-shouldered tyres. It's actually quite choppy and reactionary on our favourite B-road, which must be a first for a production Jag. Question is: does it benefit the handling and poise at speed on faster roads? The answer's yes; it feels confident and calm. The steering is wonderfully weighted, too, though we did have a nagging feeling that it was just a fraction slow, just a teensy bit behind the chassis in terms of response. It's not the last word in feel, either. Rough the XKR up a bit and you can get the front tyres squealing without really sensing just how hard you're pushing them. These are mere details, though.

The XKR 100 is a devastatingly rapid car cross-country. In the dry it's got more than enough pure grip for most drivers and astounding traction. Add in terrific seats, a superb steering wheel and great looks inside and out and it has enough appeal to justify its ΂£70K price.

But if Jaguar really wants to appeal to hardcore enthusiasts like you and me, it should produce an 'RS' version using the XKR-R Evo as a template: lower, carbon-backed seats; no rears; less sound deadening; aluminium bonnet, boot and doors; lower suspension (though not much harder); a touch more grunt and an exhaust noise to die for. Oh go aaaarn!