"R" Performance Driving School!
 

I had the opportunity to attend the last Jaguar "R" Performance Driving School at the Homestead Miami Speedway last Friday.

I had previously attended Dodge's equivalent, the SRT Track Experience, but honestly the two can't compare. Dodge did the best with the vehicles they had at their disposal, but with the exception of the SRT Vipers, there just can't be any comparison between their fleet and Jaguar's in regards to performance and pure driving pleasure.

First off, let me say that the instructors are beyond compare! I was expecting a host of professional track drivers, however I was not expecting the caliber of drivers that were there. You'll recognize some of these names!

• Davy Jones
• Roberto Guerrero
• Chris Munro
• Adam Andretti
• Morgan Kavanaugh
• Mike Finch
• Wes Hill

Fortunately for me, there were a lot of no-shows at the last minute, and at the end of the day there were only six drivers including myself, which translated into tons of seat time throughout the day!

The day started out with a bit of classroom time where they reviewed the fundamentals of racing. Straight line braking, driver awareness, smooth controls, traction, steering... all the basics of what is needed for safe driving, even in normal driving.

From there we headed out to see where we were all at without instruction. We did a short autocross course in our choice of the XFR or XKR. These times were recorded and compared against our times at the end of the day.

We then moved next door and hit the oval course, practicing straight line braking, keeping our eyes ahead of our path, and smooth acceleration. Being able to drive each of the two cars side by side was a great way to compare, and I'm personally happy to say that the XFR is every bit the performance car that the smaller and lighter K version is. Its a bit longer and heavier, but that actually helped keep the car smooth and predictable during all of our activities. One is not better than the other, they just handle things differently.

We next headed right next door to the "figure 8" track, where the instructors evaluated confidence, acceleration and braking. Once they were satisfied with the student's abilities, they let us get on the gas at the apex of the turns, getting the tires burning and throwing the cars into (mostly) controlled drifts around each corner. I'm happy to say that my time in the snowy winters of Canada helped me immensely and I had the most fun of the day doing power drifts around the course.

We then headed to the road course and ran some follow-lead exercises at lower speeds to get a feel for the course and car's abilities at higher speeds. The Homestead course is great and offered a lot of different challenges. We used the extended course that included the oval corners 3 and 4, and gave us a taste of NASCAR!

Lunch followed and we all found that the heat of the day and the physical and mental exertion of driving cars at the edge of their abilities were taking their toll. Quite a few people ended up with their heads on the tables for at least a few minutes!

After lunch, we headed back to the track for more intense laps, including more lead-follow and some time with the instructors in the cars with us. There was no shortage of seat time, and they encouraged as much driving as possible for everyone.

At the end of the day, we headed back to the autocross course and re-ran our times. Everyone improved dramatically, dropping at least one full second off of this very short course. I was a half second off of the "course record" which was achieved by Bill here in Naples! Great job, Bill!

We got some great takaways, the best of which was a photo of each of us individually with each of the drivers that we later got autographed by the entire team.

It was really a chance of a lifetime and I highly recommend it for anyone. If we required people to take these courses in order to get licenses, we'd have much safer roads (and much happier drivers!).

I'll be putting together some video in the next few days. I'll post up the link here for everyone once I do!

I really want to go on this, but my dealer is holding out on giving me the PIN to register. I am the first owner of my car but it was a demo car and hence I haven't paid new price - so I have some doubt as to whether I am eligible or not. Sounds like a fabulous day, thanks for the report!

I agree!
 

No attendees over in our XKR forum, so thought I would promote in both places as the XF people has a strong showing:

Although their website left much to be desired (like where to actually meet at the track) R Performance Academy - THE PROGRAM ROCKS - Wow, what a great deal of seat time (they herald as the most by far, this was my first) The instructors rock, great personality, great instruction, great cars (though the tires got fairly used by the afternoon) - 8:30-9am basic instruction - Chris Munro kept it informative and fun - then off to 3 tracks - a small road course, a figure 8 to work on drift, and an oval to work on lines - 6 people to a group -

18 overall (we had 17) and 2 cars on each of the 3 tracks at a time. Refreshment stations set up at each track - and a good, instructional fun time had for ! 2 hours - then over to the big track for a few laps with all of us (we were at Homestead in Miami) - Speeds roughly up to 8-100MPH in the XKR's and XFR's - we were there for ~ 40 min, then a nice catered lunch, then back to the tracks where we let it all go - 130MPH or so for 40 min +/- :

Then we went to the small track to get our new times using all we had learned - then an hour or so with the instructors taking us around for hot laps with them driving - Whoa did I learn what braking was! Track speeds were ~ 150MPH or so -

Nice gift back with a polo shirt, a hat, a pick with the blue XKR-S and the instructors. What made this experience? Instructors and drive time - 50/50 - Both components were awesome. Instructors (as noted above) were Chris Munro, Davy Jones, Michael Finch, Wes Hill, Morgan Kavanaugh, Roberto Guerrero, and Adam Andretti - All a class act and a little different to pair up well with the broad range of student personalities. I will definitely shell out $2500 for Level 2 school when they come back! The fact that this was free with the purchase of XKR (of XFR) made it a huge sales feature that my sales person never told me about.

Sign me up! Great time!
:icon_playing:

And, my time on the second lap was 17.90 seconds :) Morning attempt was 19.31

Great reviews guys! Driving on a race track is the most fun you can have with your clothes on with your high performance car. The tires sure take a beating, as do the brake pads, but unless you're into stop light drag races it's about the only way to appreciate these R models. And with an extra set of inexpensive track wheels and tires you can do it the odd time with a club!

Bruce

Here's a hotlap - Lots of fun! Mike Finch lap of Homestead in 2012 Jaguar XK-R - YouTube

How can us guys w/ XF NA or S/C cars go!!! Is there any way to pay for this?

Go to their website https://www.jaguarperformanceacademy.com or call please contact the Jaguar Concierge at (866) 513-7200. and ask if you can pay instead

Go to the driving website, get their phone number and call them. I did. They gave me my PIN. Got nothing from the dealer (Houston North Jaguar).

We were all, instructors included, shocked that the dealers / salespeople don't talk about this - If I had not read about it in the XKR forum, I would have missed it - and the website / phone support is weak for the school as well. All negative vibes go away at the school however

I just got back from the R Academy held at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. It was all the above posters said and more! This is by far the best driving event I've ever attended, including the Race Course at Skip Barber!

The instructors were fabulous. Although I've heard a version of the driving basics instruction lecture a few times, Chris Munro's was the best delivered. I didn't get around to all the instructors throughout the day but the ones I sat with were among the best ever. I think I was fastest and learned the most with Wes Hill. But all of them were patient and gave me a lot of pointers and help. Even though my already fast "base lap" only improved by 1.0 sec. by the end of the day, like many of the others, it was mostly because I was exhausted! I also felt - no, knew - I was a better driver after all the instruction and seat time.

Speaking of seat time, they had a whole lot of cars on hand, enough that we had plenty to cover all the participants and thus were driving around in cars almost the entire day.

The facilities at LVMS were top notch and the track was great; a nice combination of a few fast straights and high speed turns, combined with a number of S turns and tight hairpins. The only thing missing was elevation changes, but the course was plenty challenging.

One thing not commented upon much by the other attendees above is the AMAZING capability of the cars. They were bone-stock and yet held up all day to the abuse of students and instructors. Although I feel the brakes are a bit over-boosted in my '11 XFR, making them a bit tough to modulate in ordinary street driving, they were nothing short of fantastic on the track cars (all '12s). Heavy repeated use from high speeds did not induce any fade or boiling fluid. They were powerful and predictable.

The transmissions in Sport/Dynamic/TracDSC mode were amazing, too. It seems like the transmission always selected the right gear for you, and the TracDSC intervened only when you truly blew it and then only enough to allow you to recover. We were allowed to use the paddles but for most of us, we were faster with the car shifting for us. And like the brakes, the transmissions and the engines held up to huge abuse. Once we got the feel of the track and for the cars in the handling exercises in the morning, we routinely floored the accelerators down the straights and stood on the brakes at the end to slow for the turns. Not a single failure or limp mode.

On such heavy cars, the tires also held up remarkably well. They wore, but wore evenly and never chunked or shredded - a testiment to suspension tuning and balance.

And then there were the hot laps with an instructor. I got to ride with Davy Jones in a '12 XKR with (I think) dynamic pack and the performance active exhaust. What a ride! Davy was in another league entirely. During our laps, he caught up to two of the other instructors, driving basically "identical" cars. (Well, it turned out they weren't quite identical. The XKRs were slightly faster than the XFRs, and some XKRs had the dynamic pack and performance active exhaust, and others did not, but the differences were not large (the performance exhaust sounded much better, though - well worth the money for that option.)

Finally, there was the company and camaraderie of the other owners. In my group, it seemed the XKR owners easily outnumbered the XFR owners, but all were simply the nicest, most accomplished people you could ever meet, from all over the U.S. One had been to similar Porsche and BMW schools and explained how they didn't hold a candle to the R Performance Academy. According to him, both of the other manufacturers held the students to relatively low speeds, did not allow trac mode use and didn't allow nearly as much seat time as we got.

Overall, the combination of excellent instructors, awesome cars, a high percentage of seat time, course curriculum, facilities and the other participants added up to an immensely educational and enjoyable experience. It's almost reason alone to buy one of the "R" cars. But the cars are fantastic, and if you have one, you owe it to yourself to take the time to attend the R Academy. I know I have a new appreciation for my car's capabilities as a result.

(Sorry I don't have many pics. I brought my gear but we had so little time not driving I didn't really get much opportunity to take many! Well, here are a couple.)

Here are some of the cars we drove:

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1...D720/ry%3D480/

This silver XKR looks like it has the dynamic/black pack and performance active exhaust.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1...D720/ry%3D480/

Our tremendous instructors.


http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1...D720/ry%3D480/

On the major track next door, these guys were practicing while we were having lunch.

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1...D720/ry%3D480/

http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a1...D720/ry%3D480/

wow! is all I can say. one of these days.......

Need4spd - What date was the class you took? I was actually going to attend the Las Vegas class when it was scheduled for last Sunday November 6th but at some point the website indicated that the class was changed to today - the 9th. I'm so confused now!

At any rate, being from Seattle I will definitely be taking the class in Las Vegas rather than in Miami. I'm anxiously waiting for the 2012 schedule to come out so that I can start planning my class.

I'm curious - were there any women who attended your class in Vegas? I'm just wondering if I'll be the only one?

thanks,
Sandy

It was last Sunday, Nov. 6 in Las Vegas. Yes, there were several women in my class. You will love it, even if you are the only one, so don't let that stop you. People were from all over. At least one was from the Pacific Northwest. Others from as far away as Chicago, Oklahoma City and Washington, DC. Many never had been on a track, and a few had, but by the end of the day everyone was pretty close in competency and better than they had been coming in. I think some couples either had bought two cars or they paid for the other spouse to participate (not just spectate). My wife could not attend due to a last minute emergency. She had been signed up as a spectator, but in hindsight, it would have been good to have her participate as well even though the fee is significant (absent the emergency that kept her from attending at all).

There is no doubt that I'll do the class - the trick is to find a date that will work with my schedule. I really can't wait!! I'm inclined to wait until next spring though so that when I get back to the Northwest, I'll actually be able to practice some of my newly learned skills when the roads are less likely to be rainy and wet.

Are there any tips that you learned that you can pass along to us? I had read about hand position on the wheel and that most people hold the steering wheel all wrong. I'm so happy that you had a great experience. My husband is a Porsche owner and I think it might make more sense to have him take this class with me even though we'll have to pay for him to do it rather than taking the Porsche class. This is great feedback!!

Sandy

9 and 3! We were taught that the 10 and 2 was all wrong.

At 9 and 3 you get best access to your paddle shifters as well. They commented that unlike some million dollar exotics, Jaguar got it right by mounting the paddles to the wheel rather than the column, which means your shifter stays with your hands as you move the wheel.

I don't want to spoil the experience, and it's really better coming from the instructors, so I won't reveal too much. Also a disclaimer that this is from memory and I may not have it 100% correct, and you all do this at your own risk!

As for driving position, you are correct that most people have it wrong. You need to position seat close enough to the pedals so that when you apply full pressure to the brakes, you still have a partially bent knee. That ensures that you have enough leverage to apply the brakes full force, as in doing so, remember that the soft seats absorb some of that pressure. Most people sit too far back.

After getting the seat close enough, you want to position your seat back so as to as to comfortably be able to put both wrists, where they break for the hands, draped over the wheel at the 12 o'clock position. This is to ensure you have enough leverage on the wheel when holding it with both hands, at the 9 and 3 o'clock positions. Ideally you should be able to twist the wheel 180 degrees left and right while keeping both hands on the wheel and not lifting your shoulders from the seat back. Again, many people recline the back too far.

9 and 3 o'clock with both hands is what they teach and insist on. It gives you the best leverage and scope of movement. While you will need to shuffle your hands to take really tight turns as on an autocross, 180 degree movement should be plenty for most driving, especially high speed, or freeway.

The only other tip I will pass along is to be smooth. They give you a timed autocross lap at the beginning of the day and one at the end. In my end of day lap, I felt like I was going slower than before, but I was much smoother. To my surprise (but not my instructor's), my end of day time was faster even though it felt slower.

FWIW, one of the participants I spoke with said they don't give you nearly the same amount of seat time or range of instruction at any of the Porsche events he's been to, so I think it's well worth paying to have your husband participate (and then you get to tease him about your autocross lap times being faster than his).

That's so cool!! I naturally drive at 9 and 3 and for years have been trying to get myself to 10 and 2 but it never felt quite right. Maybe this will get me to use my paddle shifters more often. I still miss driving a manual transmission. :(

Good info!

I will definitely check my seat position when I drive home this afternoon. I'm short (5'3") but I have longer legs so I think I probably do sit back further than I should be.

Re lap times - I'm super competitive and so is my husband so it's a little scary to think about which of us might come out ahead!!

Thanks so much for the great information!! I'm sure if anyone was wavering on whether or not to attend, your information and encouragement is bound to push them over the edge. I can't wait for them to release the 2012 dates!!

Sandy

Go to the website. Call them. They will call back. Ask for PIN. They may ask for S/N. They will give you PIN. End of story.