This year I was privileged to drive a wide array of machinery, from nippy city cars and sizzling hot hatches to a diesel luxury sedan and pickup truck, and even a few pre-production prototypes. But if I had to pick one that stood out above all the others, it surely was the Jaguar XFR-S Sportbrake.

Sadly unavailable (in wagon form at least) in North America – and otherwise available only with a diesel even in Europe – the XFR-S Sportbrake is everything an enthusiast could ask for: a 542-horsepower supercharged V8 and all the upgrades that go along with it, from the beefier suspension, rolling stock and brakes to the aero and interior enhancements. But it also packs all the cargo space you'd want in a crossover or SUV, without the added bulk. Think of it as a Mercedes E63 AMG Wagon or an Audi RS6 Avant, but without the turbo lag and all-wheel drive.

Of course the location at which I drove it didn't hurt, either. The Nürburgring Norschleife has what it takes to unveil the flaws in any chassis, but heavy as it is, the XFR-S Sportbrake didn't miss a beat – even compared to the lighter XJR, F-Type R and XFR-S sedan with which we alternated between hot laps of the most vaunted racing circuit ever devised.