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Ah,
the Jaguar XK8.
Sigh. This
is the one that gets us weak in the knees, all starry-eyed, overcome with hormone-ridden
biases that all but spew our credibility as journalists right out the window.
If you're looking for unbiased journalism, scroll to another entry, because that
is something we're completely incapable of when we think of the luscious Jaguar
XK8. What
is it about Jaguars? Is it that something mysterious in its determined gaze? Is
it that something feline in its carefully sculpted sheet metal? Is it that promise
of pure speed and unflappable grace that its muscular contours suggest? All rhetorical
questions, certainly, answerable only in part by spending time with one. See,
we've spent countless torturous hours and days with Jaguar's mouth-watering XK8
coupes and convertibles and come to the realization that there is no tangible
answer to those questions. Jaguars are just Jaguars, period. And the XK8 is perhaps
the most "Jaguar" of them all. Sitting
in the XK8 is like being lovingly placed into a jewelry box. Snug and tight (no
Jaguar has been accused of being too spacious inside), the XK8's interior coddles
its two lucky occupants with leather so soft and aromatic that you have to question
its bovine origins (two more can fit inside, technically, but we'd stop short
of calling them lucky). Similarly, the wood plank also known as the dashboard
is lustrous to the point of appearing backlit. Twist
the key and this sexy kitty comes to life, and cajoling its 290 well-tamed horses
into full gallop redefines the word "joy." The supercharged XKR crowds
another 80 (!) horses into the stable, making full gallop seem more like takeoff.
Some of us prefer the coupe's complex curves to the more ovalesque convertible,
but around here, no one complains when any XK8 comes our way. We just wipe off
the drool and hit the road.
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