Jaguar's Powerful New Sedan Is Like No Car It Has Ever Made Before [PHOTOS]

Alex Davies / Business Insider

A year ago at the Los Angeles Auto Show, Jaguar introduced a car that was unlike anything we were expecting. We know and love Jaguar for sleek, low cars that exude sex appeal.

Then we saw the XFR-S.

Compared to its siblings, it's rather stubby, and it's got a big wing stuck on the back of it. But a peek under the hood reveals that the XFR-S isn't an abomination, it's just something new. Something very powerful, and very fast.

Over the weekend, we had the chance to spend a few days with the 550-horsepower, four-door, five-seat sedan. We took it out of Manhattan, up to Bear Mountain, where the roads all curve and the engine can do its thing.

That's where it all clicked. The XFR-S is no joy to look at. But it's a terrific performance car.

The XFR-S starts for $99,000. The version we tested cost $105,770.

Let's start with a quick look back at Jaguar's past. 

The brand makes fantastically sleek cars, like the

 iconic E-Type.

Wikimedia Commons

The newly debuted F-Type Coupe is just drop-dead

 gorgeous.

Newspress USA

They're not lying. The XFR-S is uglier than the F-Type,

 but it's really, gloriously, fast.

Alex Davies / Business Insider