SCALEXTRIC JAGUAR XKRS

Review by Taxi

It seems to be a good year for fans of modern British cars. First we had the Aston Martins and now we have this new model from Scalextric, the Jaguar XKRS.

Powered by a 650bhp V8, the XKRS has campaigned successfully in the American Trans-Am series. Racing against 'muscle' cars like Mustangs, Camaros and Corvettes, the big Jag has flexed its own muscles, winning the series in 2004 and 2005.

The Scalextric car looks good, long, low and wide. Paintwork and tampo printing are to their usual very high standards. The tampo remains solid over panel lines and even on the complex shape of the sill extensions. The level of detail is very good, and a couple of photo-etched parts are included - front grill, exhaust surround and B-pillar detail. One detail I particularly like is the lifting ring on the roof, which looks like it's part of the internal roll cage (it isn't, but it looks effective). How long it will last when racing is another matter. The aerial and mirrors should survive though, they're soft and flexible. The rear wing is solidly mounted and looks strong enough to survive.

Overall fit and finish is very good, but I did find just a hint of moulding lines on the rear of the car. 

The interior is great, though it looks like the racers don't get the traditional Jaguar leather and wood! Unlike some previous models, everything is painted and there's even a legible rev-counter decal! Scalextric have obviously gone to a lot of effort to produce a complete and realistic interior, and the effort has paid off. There's a slight weight penalty with something like this, but I like it and think it adds to the character of the car. The interior tub is clipped in place inside the body, so it's relatively easy to remove.

Six screws hold secure the body to the chassis. The middle two fit into the interior tub and I usually discard these. The chassis looks almost bare, especially as no lights are fitted (the real racers don't have lights either). It looks fairly beefy with large strengthening ribs. The motor is a standard Mabuchi type mounted as a sidewinder, and driving the rear axle through 12:36 gearing. Gears and bearings are plastic. One of the bearings was slightly loose in its mount so I took the precaution of gluing the bearings and motor in place. The axle had several mm of lateral play so I fitted a small spacer as well. The usual strong bar magnet is fitted, and there's an alternative mount further forward. The guide is the standard Scalextric item, and behind it are the mounting points for a digital chip and LED. The front axle is mounted directly in the chassis, and has no vertical or lateral play. The wheels are nicely made and attractive, and appear true, but the rear tyres had a noticeably high centre and needed a fair amount of sanding to get them flat across their width.

A point to note when re-assembling the car. There's a channel in the interior tub to accommodate the motor wires. Make sure the wires are correctly positioned to fit in it. Mine weren't, so the body to chassis fit was slightly distorted.

Scalextric track test. This was done slightly differently. I used a small oval of Scalextric Sport track, two 180 degree radius 2 curves connected by one straight on each side. Power is standard Scalextric and I used a Red Fox 45 ohm controller. Timing was done with a Carrera timer, with the cars running on the inner lane only..

The cars are box stock except for tyre sanding, lubrication and axle spacers if needed. The only exception is the Ninco Mosler which has a rear chassis brace fitted. 

Here are the times: -

Running the car on my routed track confirmed the first impressions. It's surprisingly quick, and almost silent. Braking is fairly sharp, and I found the car consistent and predictable to drive.

The Jag is a long car (151mm, excluding rear wing) with a comparatively short (81mm) wheelbase. It has quite a long rear overhang, so you'd expect it to be a little tail-happy. The tail will come round, especially if you're brutal with the throttle, but the sidewinder layout and wide rear tyres keep it under control. 

With all the grip and weight at the rear of the car, it can cause the nose to lift. The XKRS is set up with the weight on the front tyres, not the guide, so any bumps on the track can cause the front to lift and a possible de-slot. I'm experimenting with weight at the front. There's room in the front arches to raise the front axle without having to resort to skinny front tyres, so that may be an option and preserve the car's appearance.

Don't let this put you off though. I ran the Jag against some potential rivals on my routed track. Each car ran two ten-lap heats, and I recorded the fastest lap for each car. Here are the times:-

So the Jag certainly didn't disgrace itself. At this point it was running box stock apart from sanded tyres and a spacer on the rear axle, so I think there's room for improvement.

I must admit I like this car. To me at least, it looks absolutely fantastic. I love all the detail work, especially as it hasn't compromised the performance. The car is competitive straight out of the box, but has potential for tuning too.

I'm pretty sure you won't be disappointed!

PS: A second livery is due for release in time for Christmas.

- Taxi, November 2006