Showing posts with label xj220. Show all posts
Showing posts with label xj220. Show all posts

Saturday, February 3, 2018

Forza Motorsport 7: The unsung speed demons

With the topic of how much improvements supercars had made over the past few decades, I went to the Top Gear Test Track to sample out the unsung heroes of the supercar realm in the 90's on Forza Motorsport 7.





It was the early 90s when I was born, Mount Pinatubo erupted in a cataclysmic matter, the Gulf War reached its climax, Bill Clinton rose to power, and most importantly, the stock market crash, Bugatti brought us the EB110 and Jaguar brought us the XJ220. Emerging from the dark days of the last decade of the 20th century, these speed demons have been overlooked by many but their speed is beyond comparison to today's supercars and frightening indeed when you take them out for a spin.





The EB110 wasn't much of a problem to drive because it is four-wheel drive but the XJ220 is frightening indeed because with no driver aids, no TCS, and no ABS, it's all up to the skill of the driver to survive the intimidating speed and dynamics this Jag delivers and between a rock and a hard place, the XJ220 really is both so you'd better watch out if you're behind the wheel of this Jag.

Anyway, now that I got my taste with the most vicious supercars of the 90s that are forgettable by some but remain quicker by modern standards, something not ever today's supercars can possess, how about a little one-lap battle between these two? This is going to be good...



Anyway, let's check out the times...

EB110 - 1:20.741
XJ220 - 1:21.588

Another day, another close-call comparison between the two cars. Sounds idiotic but seems that the Bugatti that was forged before its financial woes and takeover by VW was the poster supercar and to date, only a handful of supercars can go quicker than that. That's on the straights but on the racetrack, it's everyone's game, to be honest.



It's hard to fathom that there are some cars, despite their age, can go quicker than today's cars because as cars went softer and softer, they're not reaching the full reach that their ancestors possess and it's a pity that with supercars like these, looks like the best have done nothing to be like these cars. And that is the bottom line.

Friday, August 10, 2012

Welcome Back: 1993 Jaguar XJ220

The battle of the fastest Jags

The XJ220 is the Jaguar's first, and the last, mid-engine supercar ever made and it was made in collaboration with Tom Walkinshaw Racing between 1992 and 1994, with 281 units built. The concept version though has a 6.2L V12 engine derived from the XJR-9 Race Car and it comes with the all-wheel drive system produced by FF developments. The production version though, it looks nearly identical at the concept form but it's a mid-engined rear wheel drive exotic that comes witht eh 3.5L V6 biturbo engine that produces about 542 bhp (404 kW; 550 PS) of maximum power at 7000 rpm and 476 lb·ft (645 N·m) of torque at 4500 rpm.

British car magazine Autocar once said that what really liked about this car is its ability to provide such performance in a way that it never, ever intimidates.

In 1992, this was the fastest production car in the world courtesy of Martin Brundle maxed the XJ220 at Nardo, although some tweaks were done on this car, in 217.1 mph (349.4 km/h). It even set a Nurburgring lap time of 7:46.37, by John Nielsen.

Production of the XJ220 ended in 1994.

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

2012 is Jaguar XJ220's 20th Anniversary

1992 Jaguar XJ220


Last year, we said happy 50th anniversary to the groovy Jaguary E-Type. Now, in 2012, we say 20th anniversary to Jaguar's first and memorable supercar, the XJ220. This car was produced in 1992 and it ended in 1994, about 281 units were produced, which sounds pretty rare to see Jaguar's memorable midship exotic roaring around in the streets of Los Angeles, London, Tokyo, Barcelona, Dubai, Moscow, and others. Numerous video games featured this car and this one's an icon. This car set the Nurburgring lap time of 7:47:37, making it the fastest Jaguar ever built.