Jaguar Land Rover’s Special Vehicle Operations (SVO) division has taken the wraps off the most powerful Jaguar road car ever. Say hello to the 320 km/h, 441 kW/700 N.m Jaguar XE SV Project 8 sedan.
The new model follows the F-Type Project 7 of 2014. The British automaker bills it as a hand-built four-door sedan “with supercar performance” (complete with a dedicated track mode). Just 300 examples will be produced at SVO’s Technical Centre in Coventry.
Unfortunately, Jaguar says Project 8 will be offered in left-hand drive configuration only…
Under the bonnet lurks a tuned version of Jaguar Land Rover’s familiar 5,0-litre supercharged V8 petrol engine, mated to a titanium variable active exhaust system, eight-speed Quickshift automatic transmission and all-wheel drive. Jaguar claims a top speed of a smidgen over 320 km/h and a claimed 0-100 km/h time of 3,7 seconds.
And it’ll be just as easy to spot as it will be to hear. The exterior gains a carbon-fibre front bumper with aggressive cooling ducts, a vented carbon-fibre bonnet, flared wheel arches, 20-inch forged aluminium alloys, an adjustable front splitter, a carbon-fibre rear bumper (with diffuser) and a prominent adjustable wing on the back.
Project 8 uses the XE’s double-wishbone front and integral link rear suspension but gains stiffer springs and manually adjustable continuously variable dampers, including a 15 mm ride height drop for track use. There’s also a new carbon ceramic braking system, silicon nitride ceramic wheel bearings (apparently derived from F1 technology) and a rear electronic active differential with oil cooler.
Inside, you’ll find some gloss carbon-fibre trim as well as plenty of Alcantara. Two specifications will be offered at launch: a standard four-seat model and an optional two-seat “Track Pack” that includes lightweight front carbon-fibre racing seats (with four-point harnesses) and a harness retention hoop in place of the rear bench.
