Jaguar has a storied history of building sporting convertibles of exquisite taste and refinement — lovely motorcars like the 1936 SS100, the 1961 E-Type Roadster, and the 1988 XJS Convertible. But there have been one or two outliers along the way — angry, noisy open-top cars like the singular 1966 XJ13 Le Mans racer and the fearsome 1957 XKSS, a barely muted roadgoing version of the D-Type endurance racer complete with a side-exit exhaust.

Top Gear's Stephen Dobie recently savoured some seat time in just such a Jaguar: the new F-Type SVR Convertible. His thoughts? "It’s sodding loud." With 567 horsepower from a 5-litre supercharged V8 and an eight-speed automatic transmission pushing that power through a rear-biased all-wheel-drive system, the open-top F-Type SVR will howl from zero to 60mph in 3.5 seconds and push on all the way to a top speed of 195mph. But more than a mere muscle car, this cat is is balanced and beautifully sorted. It is, says Dobie, "a properly talented sports car, perhaps the most competent Jaguar has ever made."

It's not perfect, of course. The engine is a bit too thirsty, the fuel tank is a bit too small, and the boot is too puny "for proper continent crossing." And yet, writes Dobie, "Nestled inside with the roof open, enjoying the sun or sheltering in the heated seat on a clear night, such sensible criticisms can be quickly shot down by the exhaust’s impish artillery fire."

On its sound and fury

The exhaust system differs over a standard V8-powered F-Type, which is hardly quiet in the first place. In detail terms, it’s made of titanium and Inconel and weighs 16kg less than the system in lesser Fs. More importantly, though, it’s sodding loud. You might wonder if it’s too loud, or if it’s even legal to make so much noise in a car. Then you pull yourself together, stop being such a grown up, and pull the left paddle for a gratuitous downchange just to provoke another round of pops and crackles.

On its road manners

It drives so much better than a standard F-Type. Much of this comes from the addition of all-wheel drive, which is available on far cheaper Fs, we’ll admit. But there are also other chassis tweaks, with stiffer suspension components at the rear and retuned power steering, torque vectoring and stability control settings. Overall weight is down a tad too. The result is a car that’s agile and trustworthy in a way F-Types have simply never been. The front tyres bite hard, and communicate what they’re doing reasonably well through the steering, while the rear axle never does anything naughty or unpredictable. It will still slide, but it does so entirely at the driver’s discretion, and only with the stability control loosened.

On its place in the Jaguar range

It’s a successful evolution of the F-Type, with small improvements adding up to a notable change in character. You might argue an SVR version should be a slightly unhinged RWD track special, but the alternative is a properly talented sports car, perhaps the most competent Jaguar has ever made.

On its place in the market

Choosing [a £130,000] F-Type over a bunch of junior supercars [such as the Audi R8 and the Porsche 911 Turbo] would be difficult. But it’s bigger hearted, and exudes a greater sense of mischief than all of them, with genuine talent to back it all up. That the daftest looking and most riotous sounding F-Type of the lot is also the most dynamically mature is a brilliant surprise.

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