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28 LIFE&STYLE TUESDAY 4 APRIL 2017 CITYAM.COM MOTORING BY MOTORINGRESEARCH.COM FOR CITY A.M. : @city_am : @cityamlife The beast is back Tim Pitt drives Jaguar’s flagship V8 super saloon: the 550hp XJR The Jaguar XJR was a staple super saloon in the 1990s, but its star gradually faded, eclipsed by ever-faster rivals from Germany. Now this Brit bruiser is back, armed with a thunderous 5.0-litre V8 from the F-Type R. Time to get reacquainted. With subtle spoilers, quad tailpipes and 20-inch forged alloy wheels, the XJR is certainly menacing in the metal (lightweight aluminium, in case you’re asking). However, its styling remains divisive: the front end is generic modern Jag, while its elegant, coupe-like roofline is countered by an awkward-looking rear overhang. There’s little to complain about once cocooned in leather-lined luxury, though. Forget games of ‘spot the Ford switchgear’, the latest XJR has Jaguar’s new InControl Touch Pro media system, plus configurable TFT dials with the option of a widescreen map – just like Audi’s Virtual Cockpit. The burr walnut of yesteryear is banished, too, replaced by gloss-black veneers and understated ambient lighting. Fortunately, there’s nothing understated about the XJR’s performance. With 550 supercharged horses just an ankle-flex away, 0-62mph is dispatched in 4.6 seconds. Or at least, it is on dry tarmac. On rain-soaked March roads, the Jaguar spins its rear wheels with hilarious ease. Find an Autobahn, though, and you can leave those 155mph-limited Germans for dust, blasting all the way to 174mph. There’s no escaping the Jaguar’s JAGUAR XJR PRICE: £91,775 0-62MPH: 4.6 SECS TOP SPEED: 174MPH CO2 G/KM: 264G/KM MPG COMBINED: 25.4MPG sheer size (at 5,127mm, it’s longer than a Range Rover), but it changes direction like a hot hatch. The steering – 10 per cent quicker than standard – is nicely weighted, while adaptive suspension adjusts the damper settings up to 100 times per second, keeping it flat and composed – even when you unleash your inner hooligan. The downside to such agility is a rather brittle ride; the XJR thumps over speed humps and jitters on uneven surfaces. Frankly, I was having too much fun to care, but passengers would doubtless be happier in a lesser XJ. The fact you can’t opt for a limo-spec, long-wheelbase XJR only reinforces the impression that this car puts its driver first. It’s also a car defined by its engine. The supercharged V8 doesn’t deliver the aural fireworks of the F-Type R, but those attention-seeking snaps, crackles and pops would seem unbecoming in a luxury saloon. Instead, the XJR is mostly quite muted, certainly around town. Only when you put the hammer down does reserved rumble turn to red-blooded roar. Opportunities for full-bore acceleration are rare, particularly in the south-east of England on a damp day, but the almighty torque of that V8 makes for effortless progress. The XJR would make light work of a schlep to the south of France – provided you could stomach the fuel bills. Ah yes, there had to be a catch. Any petrol-powered super saloon has a healthy appetite for V-Power, and while Jaguar quotes 25.4mpg, I managed mid-teens on a drive through London’s suburbs and beyond into DESIGN PERFORMANCE PRACTICALITY VALUE THE VERDICT hhhhi hhhhi hhhii hhhhi Surrey. Then again, at £91,775, the XJR looks relatively good value against rivals from BMW and Mercedes-AMG – both of which cost well into six figures. Ultimately, the ageing XJ is outgunned by its German adversaries – particularly the new 7 Series and S- Class – yet that scarcely seems to matter. The line between flaws and character-defining quirks is a fine one in cars of this quality and many, myself included, will simply prefer the raffish charms of the Jag to its more austere (and more obvious) rivals. Jaguar’s own 340hp XJ R-Sport remains a better all-rounder. It’s £30k cheaper, rides more comfortably and is only 1.3 seconds slower to 62mph. But the XJR defies such rational logic. This Jekyll-and-Hyde machine seduces with luxury then startles with its performance. I’ll take mine in red with a company fuel card, please. Tim Pitt works for motoringresearch.com NOT CONVINCED? CHECK OUT THESE ALTERNATIVES... AUDI S8 BMW M760LI XDRIVE V12 MERCEDES-AMG S 63 L PRICE: £82,040 0-62MPH: 4.1 SECS TOP SPEED: 155MPH CO2 G/KM: 216G/KM MPG COMBINED: 30.1MPG THE VERDICT: DESIGN hhhii PERFORMANCE hhhhi PRACTICALITY hhhii VALUE hhhhi PRICE: £132,560 0-62MPH: 3.7 SECS TOP SPEED: 155MPH CO2 G/KM: 294G/KM MPG COMBINED: 22.1MPG THE VERDICT: DESIGN hhhii PERFORMANCE hhhii PRACTICALITY hhhii VALUE hhhii PRICE: £124,095 0-62MPH: 4.4 SECS TOP SPEED: 155MPH CO2 G/KM: 237G/KM MPG COMBINED: 28.0MPG THE VERDICT: DESIGN hhhhh PERFORMANCE hhhhi PRACTICALITY hhhii VALUE hhhii
CITYAM.COM TUESDAY 4 APRIL 2017 SPORT 29 FOOTBALL Conte’s mistake has given Spurs fresh hope of catching Chelsea FOOTBALL COMMENT Trevor Steven ANTONIO Conte has made few mistakes in his first year at Chelsea, but something he said in the aftermath of last month’s win at Stoke may have sown the seeds of Saturday’s home defeat by Crystal Palace. Ten points clear with 10 games to play and seemingly bound for the Premier League title, Conte spoke for the first time about the number of points his team needed to clinch the trophy. I think the Italian was wrong to do that. The target should only ever be the next match, and it hinted at a lapse in focus that came home to roost when the Eagles visited Stamford Bridge at the weekend. Now we have a title race again. When you can see the finishing line, sometimes it can work against you. It can breed a little bit of complacency in teams, even if only on a subconscious level. I see a lot of parallels with the 1985- 86 season, when our Everton side led Liverpool by eight points in early March but wobbled slightly. In the end a Kenny Dalglish goal at Chelsea on the final Saturday of the season swung it Liverpool’s way. Chelsea’s lead is now down to seven points and it feels like a self-inflicted wound. The Palace game was one they should have won, but when they were asked the question they faltered. MOMENTUM Tottenham, mean- RUGBY UNION Wasps prove Aviva’s status as English bogey ground The Dublin Grand Slam graveyard was the ace up Leinster’s sleeve, writes Bob Baker THE FIRST half of Saturday’s European Champions Cup quarter-final at Dublin’s Aviva Stadium saw Wasps caught like rabbits in the headlights of Leinster’s express locomotive, before being struck 32-17. It is relatively inexplicable how a location can do so much to favour or work against a team, but credence must be given to the role that Ireland’s home ground played only a while, aren’t faltering at all, and momentum is everything at this time of the season. Spurs look like they they’ll win every time they take to the field at the moment. They’re the only team in the chasing pack with the necessary grit to catch Chelsea – and who seem to believe it can be done. They have kept their winning run going despite the injury to Harry Kane, which has proven to them that their form and conviction is not dependent on Conte (left) saw his Chelsea side lose at home to Palace (above) fortnight after England’s Grand Slam aspirations were extinguished on the same pitch. Leinster’s Ireland contingent would have drawn confidence from their recent experience while the likes of Joe Launchbury, Elliot Daly, James Haskell and Nathan Hughes returned to the scene of severe disappointment. With Wasps finding themselves on the receiving end of an unrelenting opening barrage, the men from Leinster ensured that any hopes of an English club creating a memory worthy of scrap-book inclusion were snuffed out. There was a sense that it was not going to be Wasps’ day, a sense that one player, even if he is their top scorer. Tottenham look better equipped to go the distance this season, having ultimately failed to sustain their pursuit of Leicester in the final weeks of last term. They have more experience as a result of that campaign, and they also have more depth to their squad, with fringe players such as Heung-Min Son showing they have the right mentality to come in and do a job. PIVOTAL Chelsea now face a pivotal spell, starting with the visit of Manchester City on Wednesday, and I fully expect them to drop more points during the next three games. While they also have to go to Manchester United later this month, Spurs Danny Cipriani was one of the Wasps stars to struggle in Dublin the men in black and gold unfortunately seemed to have bought into relatively early in proceedings. A number of champagne players including Danny Cipriani resembled a sickly prosecco, justifying their noninclusion in the national squad and similarly their likely omission from a tour with the British and Irish Lions this summer. Wasps’ best performers were those with no meaningful negative associations between place and past performance. have a trio of winnable games ahead against Swansea, Watford and Bournemouth. City remain a work in progress and defensively suspect but they have enough threat to pose problems for Conte’s men and they’ll be desperate for all three points, having only drawn at Arsenal on Sunday. Chelsea really need to win to steady the ship; if they were to lose two fixtures at Stamford Bridge in the space of five days they could be completely punctured. How they respond will tell us an awful lot about them. But if I was betting man, with the odds as they are, I’d be more inclined to take a punt on Tottenham. Trevor Steven is a former England footballer who has played at two World Cups and two European Championships. @TrevorSteven63 Kurtley Beale was phenomenal, and for all of the Wallabies’ trips to Ireland, Australian Beale has only been involved once, and in only a bench-warming capacity at that. Hooker Tommy Taylor, who travelled as a reserve with England, tackled admirably and toiled with vigour while Jimmy Gopperth, who himself used to wear the colours of Leinster, executed a fine individual try, reaching behind his head to dot down from the unorthodox inverted turtle position. The arena will face a stern test later this month when Saracens take on Munster in the Champions Cup semi-final. For now, Dublin’s Aviva continues to commendably serve its purpose for both province and country in being the bogiest of grounds for its Anglo-Saxon visitors. @bobbaker1989 RESULTS FOOTBALL VANARAMA NATIONAL LEAGUE Lincoln City ...........(0) 2 Dag & Red ..................(0) 0 Whitehouse 47 Rhead 68 Att: 7,173 P W D L F A GD Pts Lincoln City ...................39 25 7 7 74 36 38 82 Tranmere ........................39 24 7 8 58 32 26 79 Forest Green ................40 22 9 9 80 50 30 75 Dag & Red .....................41 23 4 14 68 48 20 73 Aldershot .......................41 20 11 10 57 34 23 71 Dover ................................40 21 6 13 74 60 14 69 Barrow ............................41 18 14 9 62 43 19 68 Gateshead .....................41 18 13 10 66 42 24 67 Macclesfld .....................38 18 6 14 54 44 10 60 Wrexham .......................41 14 12 15 39 51 -12 54 Eastleigh ........................41 13 14 14 52 56 -4 53 Boreham Wood ..........41 13 13 15 42 38 4 52 Chester FC ....................40 14 10 16 59 56 3 52 Sutton Utd ....................40 13 10 17 47 54 -7 49 Guiseley ..........................41 13 10 18 47 60 -13 49 Bromley ..........................40 14 7 19 45 61 -16 49 Solihull Moors .............41 13 9 19 55 62 -7 48 Maidstone Utd ............39 13 8 18 51 67 -16 47 Braintree Town ...........41 12 9 20 47 67 -20 45 Woking ............................41 12 8 21 58 74 -16 44 Torquay ...........................41 11 10 20 45 56 -11 43 York...................................40 9 15 16 47 61 -14 42 N Ferriby Utd ...............41 11 3 27 27 69 -42 36 Southport ......................40 9 7 24 45 85 -40 34 CRICKET MCC UNIVERSITY MATCHES—Lancashire v Cambridge MCCU (Fenner’s): Lancashire 338-6dec. (88.0 overs; A L Davies 80, S J Croft 78, J Clark 64, D J Vilas 58) and 120-7dec. (32.0 overs; A L Davies 50no; A P Barton 5-31). Cambridge MCCU 62 (43.0 overs; J M Anderson 5-10) and 56 (37.4 overs). . MCC UNIVERSITY MATCHES—Essex v Durham MCCU (Chelmsford): Essex 333 (85.4 overs; A J Wheater 102, N L J Browne 66, A P Beard 58no). and 203-2 (42.0 overs; N L J Browne 113no) Durham MCCU 187 (76.1 overs; J A Porter 4-35). MCC UNIVERSITY MATCHES—Hampshire v Cardiff MCCU (The Ageas Bowl): Hampshire 289 (63.3 overs; M A Carberry 100, S M Ervine 58). and 271-6 (66.0 overs; J M Vince 90, T P Alsop 62) Cardiff MCCU 98 (36.3 overs). MCC UNIVERSITY MATCHES—Northamptonshire v Loughborough MCCU (Northampton): Northamptonshire 435-6dec. (83.0 overs; R I Newton 166, A M Rossington 117, J J Cobb 63no). Loughborough MCCU 468-7 (116.0 overs; N R Kumar 141, C O Thurston 126, S T Evans 69no, R G White 69, Saif Zaib 4-110). MCC UNIVERSITY MATCHES—Warwickshire v Oxford MCCU (The Parks): Warwickshire 285-4dec. (86.0 overs; I J L Trott 130, W T S Porterfield 89). and 109-1 (37.0 overs) Oxford MCCU 215 (67.4 overs). MCC UNIVERSITY MATCHES—Leeds/Bradford MCCU v Yorkshire (Headingley Carnegie): Leeds/Bradford MCCU 137 (64.1 overs). and 40-0 (11.0 overs) Yorkshire 543-5dec. (120.0 overs; A Lyth 194, A Z Lees 100, G S Ballance 72, J A Leaning 64no). NETBALL VITALITY SUPERLGE: Celtic Dragons 45 Loughborough Lightning 65, Manchester Thunder 59 Hertfordshire 50. SPEEDWAY SGB Premiership: Wolverhampton 45 Leicester 44 TENNIS WTA TOUR FAMILY CIRCLE CUP (Charleston, South Carolina, USA)—Women’s Singles 1st rnd: N Osaka (Jpn) bt J Larsson (Swe) 6-7 (4-7) 6-4 6-2, K Bondarenko (Ukr) bt E Rodina (Rus) 6-4 7-5, J Ostapenko (Lat) bt A Bogdan (Rom) 6-4 6-2, A Petkovic (Ger) bt L Arruabarrena (Spa) 7-5 6-2, O Jabeur (Tun) bt M Erakovic (Nzl) 6-4 6-1,M Puig (Pur) bt (16) K Siniakova (Cze) 4-6 6-2 4-1 ret, A Riske (USA) bt K Day (USA) 7-5 4-6 6-0. WTA ABIERTO GNP SEGUROS (Monterrey, Mexico)— Women’s Singles 1st rnd: D Vekic (Cro) leads P Maria Tig (Rom) 6-4 5-1, J Boserup (USA) bt N Hibino (Jpn) 6-0 6-2, R Zarazua (Mex) leads (3) C Garcia (Fra) 6-4 1-2, N Broady (Gbr) bt C Cartan Bellis (USA) 7-6 (9-7) 6-4. TODAY’S DIARY (7.45pm unless stated) Premier League Burnley v Stoke .................................................................................................. Leicester v Sunderland.................................................................................... Man Utd v Everton (8pm) .............................................................................. Watford v West Brom ..................................................................................... Sky Bet Championship Aston Villa v QPR .............................................................................................. Barnsley v Cardiff ............................................................................................. Brentford v Leeds .............................................................................................. Brighton v Birmingham ................................................................................... Derby v Fulham ................................................................................................... Ipswich v Wigan ................................................................................................ Preston North End v Bristol City ................................................................ Reading v Blackburn (8pm) .......................................................................... Rotherham v Sheffield Wednesday ........................................................... Wolverhampton v Nottingham Forest ...................................................... Sky Bet League One Charlton v Milton Keynes Dons ................................................................... Rochdale v Port Vale ........................................................................................ Shrewsbury v Millwall ..................................................................................... Southend v Bolton ............................................................................................ Ladbrokes Scottish Premiership Aberdeen v Inverness CT ............................................................................... Ross County v Dundee ..................................................................................... Ladbrokes Scottish League One Albion v Queen’s Park ...................................................................................... Vanarama National League: Southport v Macclesfield, Tranmere v Sutton Utd, York v Bromley. Vanarama National League North: Alfreton Tn v Stalybridge, Brackley v FC Halifax, Nuneaton v Gloucester. Vanarama National League South: Poole Tn v Hungerford Tn. CRICKET First Twenty20 International: Sri Lanka v Bangladesh (Colombo, 2.30). TENNIS WTA Abierto GNP Seguros (Monterrey, Mexico). WTA Tour Family Circle Cup (Charleston, South Carolina, United States of America).
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