Once a year, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) round up the UK press offices and a selection of their fleet cars for a one-day event at the Millbrook Proving Ground. It's a chance to catch up on colleagues and new personnel as well as an opportunity to drive some of the latest vehicles on the high-speed bowl and entertaining 'Hill Route'.

Some outlets write full 'road tests' from the day's activities, though time in each car is fairly limited. This year I got behind the wheel of no less than 25 different cars, which goes to show perhaps how little time I did spend in each, though that included at least one lap of the challenging Hill Route in each car. There are so many new cars being launched this year that we thought it would be worth compiling my first impressions on these cars. Many we will test in depth at a later date.

Jaguar XK
Model tested: Jaguar XK Coupe
Price: £59,000 on-the-road.
0-62mph: 6.2 seconds
Top speed: 155mph
Combined economy: 25mpg
Kerb weight: 1595kg
Relevant links: All Jaguar road tests.

The outgoing Jaguar XK could never claim to be a real sportscar. Even the impressively quick XKR version is better on fast sweeping roads laid with smooth tarmac than it is on a bucking B-road, or track for that matter. But that's ok; Jaguar is about sophistication, class and comfort. However, the company was in danger of extinction along with its generally elderly customers, so it was time for a change and the new XK we drove in Millbrook is just the start.

Though we had not yet sat behind the stylish steering wheel of the new XK, reports were that it has more in common with the (more expensive) Aston Martin V8 Vantage than it does with the previous XK. So it proved. The interior is classy and feels well made and all contact surfaces are tactile, as you would hope. The V8 engine is not all that different from the outgoing car's, but its voice has been freed up and the new XK sounds absolutely bloody fantastic! The gearbox is a gem too, and though there is no manual option available as yet, the auto 'box does a good job, with paddles behind the steering wheel allowing the driver to override the 'box's calibration if required.

Thanks to the use of lightweight materials (mainly aluminium), the new XK is lighter than the old car despite the addition of more equipment and a much more rigid platform. This inherent stiffness provides a superb basis on which to develop a chassis that is both comfortable and fun. First impressions suggest that the Jaguar boys have hit a sweet spot on the ride/handling compromise curve. We look forward to more time in the car on public roads to give a more detailed summary.

Shane O' Donoghue - 8 Jun 2006