SV8

Super-car for Fiesta money

This 4.2 supercharged Jaguar is the best kept secret of super-cars. They didn't make many and only the odd one turns up at Jaguar dealers infrequently. However, you get a "fully loaded" car with a list too long to repeat here, the car also comes with a host of safety features like emergency brake assist. Most come with DAB, reverse camera and the biggest waste of time - a TV! You also get a car that isn't all boy racer style and it looks the same as every other XF but, with 420 BHP to take you from 0 to no licence quicker than you can say - 'sorry officer.' It can be ferocious or tranquil - you decide choosing one of three modes - normal, sport or track.

I've only ever driven mine in normal mode and that can be very unnerving without pushing the pedal to the floor. Goodness knows what it would do in track mode. It'll waft along almost silently and return around 26mpg if you resit the temptation to engage huge amounts of power.

The best bit is the current price - less than a Fiesta. Mine came with a full years Jaguar warranty too. The reason is that the car has been overshadowed by the XF R with even more power and five litres. Now that a new XF is on the horizon there should be some excellent deals around. However, I do concede that it's probably not the car for every-day use. But it's a good value super-car.

Three years later it still puts a smile on my face. Servicing is reasonably economic at my local independent Jaguar specialist. Costing less to service than my runabout Vauxhall Agila. And it's a whole 4 tenths of a second slower than the XF R!

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