JAGUAR HERITAGE NEWS – February 2013 Report

JAGUAR HERITAGE NEWS – MARCH 2013 REPORT

All is revealed regarding the special event in Belgium mentioned in last month’s newsletter! The Jaguar Heritage team has been kept busy supporting and preparing for many other events as well.

Return to Jabbeke – March 2:

On the cold and blustery first day of March, the Jaguar Heritage team comprising technicians Richard Mason and Dave Withers, accompanied by Marketing and PR Manager Jonathan Partridge, set off on the first leg of a four day event that would take in Belgium, France and Switzerland. After a trouble free trip through the channel tunnel, first stop was the small town of Jabbeke in Belgium, about 10km from the ancient city of Bruges, known as the Venice of the North. A collection of interesting cars and famous people were assembling for an exciting event that was due to take place on the following day.

Jaguar has a long standing historical relationship with Jabbeke that began nearly sixty four years ago. In May 1949, Jaguar decided to demonstrate the newly launched XK120 roadster to the press on a stretch of straight high-speed autoroute between Jabbeke and Aeltre in Belgium. The road was closed for the occasion. The white left-hand drive car, chassis number 670002, was the second XK120 built.

Jaguar's development engineer Walter Hassan was to have driven the car but he fell ill, so Jaguar test-driver Ron "Soapy" Sutton substituted. With hood, sidescreens and windscreen removed and the addition of a full-length aluminium undertray, a metal airflow deflector fitted in front of the driver and a tonneau cover fastened over the passenger side of the cockpit, the Jaguar was timed through the flying mile by the Royal Automobile Club of Belgium at 132.596 mph (213.393 km/h). The XK120 was subsequently declared the fastest production car in the world.

This record held until September 1953 when Celso Fernández driving the new Z-102 Touring model from Spanish manufacturer Pegaso (better known for commercial vehicles), broke four official Royal Automobile Club of Belgium records. These included the flying-start kilometer which he covered at a speed of 151.042 mph (243.079 km/h).

On hearing this news, Jaguar Chairman William Lyons immediately called up Norman Dewis, by then Jaguar’s chief test engineer, and asked what he was going to do about it. Norman was doubtful there was much more to be had from the XK120, but the Jaguar team headed back to Jabbeke in October. The car they took was a rally prepared vehicle, registration MDU 254 which had undergone a number of subtle modifications to its powertrain and aerodynamics.

These included a higher compression ratio, close-ratio gearbox and heavy duty prop shaft, a full undershield, removal of the side and rear lights, a metal tonneau cover and streamlined headlamps. Perhaps the most remarkable feature was a Perspex ‘bubble’ cockpit canopy which was bolted down once Norman was in the car – something that also necessitated removal of the driver’s seat leaving just a thin piece of foam as Norman’s only support! The car had nearly slick tyres with just 2mm of rubber left on them, inflated to 50psi to further reduce drag – judged to be safe because the road was completely straight!

Much to everyone’s amazement, Norman smashed the Pegaso record with a top speed of 172.412 mph (277.47 km/h) verified by the Royal Automobile Club of Belgium, bringing the laurels back to Jaguar. The XK120 was once again the fastest car in the world! This feat was commemorated on its 50th anniversary in 2003 by the erection of a plaque near to the Jabbeke highway.

In celebration of the events 60 years earlier, Jaguar returned to Jabbeke on Saturday 2 March for another sprint test, this time with the new Jaguar F-TYPE V8S and 1988 Le Mans 24 hour race-winning driver Andy Wallace. The original road used in the fifties is now a full blown autoroute, but the Jabbeke District Council and Police kindly agreed to close a dual carriageway section of the nearby N377 main road for the sprint test to take place. With just two miles available to Wallace to explore the F-TYPE's straight-line speed from a standing start, and bring it to a stop again, the car hit almost 180 mph and achieved 0-62 mph in an impressive 4.2 seconds.

Speaking after the sprint test, Wallace said: "I was delighted to be invited by Jaguar to be the first to undertake a public sprint test in the new F-TYPE. Our result today is amazing considering the original sprint test road was five miles in length and today we had less than half that to achieve 179 mph. The car was still accelerating toward its top speed when I had to brake." To see a video of Andy Wallace in action, click here.

Prior to the sprint test, a civic celebration was held in the new Jabbeke sports and cultural centre where Norman Dewis and Jaguar PR executives were welcomed by the mayor and senior members of the local council. Following an entertaining speech recalling the events of 1953 with amazing clarity, Norman presented the mayor with a framed print depicting the famous ‘bubble’ XK120. This was followed by a lunch kindly provided by the Jabbeke Council whose warmth and hospitality towards all the Jaguar visitors was remarkable. They had even produced a special celebratory cake depicting the events of 60 years earlier and Norman was invited to make the first slice (carefully avoiding himself or the car)!

To provide an appropriate backdrop and historical context for the new F-TYPE, four classic Jaguars had also been assembled for this event including Jaguar Heritage’s 1956 long nose D-type 393RW, which won its maiden race outing in the 12 hour race at Reims and also finished 6th at Le Mans. The other cars included an original 1949 XK120 belonging to John Burton, the fabulous 1952 C-type chassis XKC-004 (still regularly raced by owner Nigel Webb) and an immaculate 1961 E-type owned by CMC boss Peter Neumark, believed to be the first right hand drive Series 1 car sold.

The old and the new – XK120, C-type, D -type and E-type line-up alongside three of the new F-TYPEs outside the Jabbeke Sports and Cultural centre

Jabbeke to Geneva – March 2 – 4:

The celebrations in Jabbeke marked the beginning of an epic drive event in which the classic Jaguar vehicles joined the new 495 PS F-TYPE in a 'Jaguar Bloodline' sports car convoy en route to Geneva, Switzerland, prior to this year's Salon d'Auto motorshow, where the new F- TYPE took pride of place on the Jaguar stand. A number of automotive journalists had been invited along and were offered the chance for passenger rides in the F-TYPE (still under embargo for driving) and also the chance to ride in, or in some cases drive, the classic cars (courtesy of their owners). Competition for the places was fierce, with the most prized being the passenger seat alongside Andy Wallace in the D-type, which he had kindly agreed to pilot all the way to Geneva!

The first destination was Reims where, after an overnight stop at the luxurious Hostellerie La Briqueterie near Epernay, the convoy had the opportunity to take in the old grand prix circuit.

This provided a great photo opportunity marred only by the fact that a visiting group from the Ford Mustang owners club of France had taken up residence outside the old Jaguar pit! From there, the convoy continued on the long journey to Geneva, arriving at the famous Parc des Eaux Vives in the early evening.

The four classic cars performed nearly flawlessly (just a minor electrical problem on the XK120 that was soon fixed) and kept pace with the new F-TYPEs throughout the journey. Andy Wallace seemed to have a big smile on his face throughout, despite the cold weather conditions, and commented on how well the D-type had been prepared for the event and what a great experience it had been to drive it – high praise from such a Le Mans veteran!

On the Monday, Jaguar Land Rover used the historic surroundings of the Parc des Eaux Vives and its famous restaurant to host a preview event for journalists arriving for the motorshow the following day. Jaguar was showing the new XFR-S for the first time in Europe and Land Rover was demonstrating new technologies including the Journey’s end – The D-type with Andy Wallace and the Heritage support team world’s first 9 speed automatic transmission and an Electric Defender research vehicle.

Farewell to Ratan Tata:

A special retirement dinner was hosted in late January by the Jaguar Land Rover Executive Committee to pay tribute to Mr Ratan N. Tata and to show their deep appreciation of his commitment to the company during his leadership of the Tata Group.

The JLR ECM gathered together with Mr Tata and his successor Mr Cyrus P. Mistry at the Heritage Motor Centre, where the Jaguar Heritage gallery area had been chosen as the venue for the reception and dinner. Some iconic Land Rover products had been moved into the gallery alongside the Jaguars to create an impressive display of heritage vehicles – a combination of brands and models that provided the foundations for decades of innovation in the automotive industry. The informal event included speeches from Mr Ratan Tata, Mr Cyrus Mistry and JLR CEO, Dr Ralf Speth. Dr Speth also presented Mr Tata with a commemorative gift of a very special limited-edition, and framed, Jaguar E-Type steering wheel which had been organised by Jaguar Heritage.

At the event, Dr Ralf Speth said: “Without Ratan Tata, JLR would not exist today. He saw the potential of our two brands, and through the worst storms of the economic downturn he was personally responsible for injecting investment into Jaguar Land Rover. We thank Mr Tata for his forward-looking vision and personal commitment to our business, his trust and massive contribution to our growing success and innovation. Mr Ratan Tata retires with the respect and gratitude of each and every one of us - we owe much to his Dr Ralf Speth, JLR CEO, presenting Mr Ratan Tata with the E-type steering wheel in the Jaguar Heritage gallery thoughtful and inspirational leadership."

Goodwood Press Day – March 20:

The annual press day for the Goodwood Festival of Speed and Revival took place on March 20 in the grounds of Goodwood House. The Festival of Speed (that will take place from 12-14 July) is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year and the event will focus on highlights from its glittering history. In the words of the press release “The biggest, best, fastest, loudest and most outrageous vehicles of all time will be invited back to West Sussex in July for a weekend not to be missed!”.

Other celebrations that will be incorporated in the overall theme are the 90th anniversary of Le Mans, 60 years of the World Sportscar Championship and 50th anniversaries for Lamborghini, McLaren Racing and for the Porsche 911 (Porsche will also be the featured marque this year).

Dinner display – D-type, Ferrari 250GTO and others!

Jaguar Heritage was asked to bring along Andrew Frankel getting ready for his run its 1954 D-type prototype, chassis XKC-401, as one of the press day demonstrator vehicles and it was given pride of place outside Goodwood House for a special VIP reception and dinner that was held on the prior evening. On the day itself, two well-known journalists – Andrew Frankel, who is a regular contributor to Autocar, and Charlie Turner of Top Gear Magazine – were both given the opportunity to drive OVC 501 up the Goodwood hill, in each case accompanied by another member of the assembled media who were keen to secure a ride in this unique vehicle.

Jaguar Cars had brought along the new XFR-S to Charlie Turner in action make its first dynamic public outing, and Andy

Wallace was once again enlisted to do the demonstration drives. One of the more light- hearted awards made each year at the press day is for “the most spirited getaway”. The award, a special TAG Heuer watch, is given to the driver judged to have made the most enthusiastic, crowd-pleasing departure up the notorious 1.16-mile Goodwood Hill. Last year it was won by Alex Buncombe driving the JD Classics 1984 TWR XJS and this year, maintaining something of a Jaguar tradition, it was won by Andy Wallace!

Andy Wallace in action in the new XFR-S and receiving the ‘spirited getaway’ award from Lord March

Lord March had once again invited a number of celebrity drivers along for the day – some who were put through their paces on the hill and others who were just there to soak up the atmosphere and enjoy the stunning display of classic sports cars and modern super cars.

Photo call for the celebrity drivers and 20th anniversary cake cutting in period style!

Jaguar ‘R’ anniversary:

Another anniversary that is being celebrated this year is 25 years of Jaguar ‘R’ products. It was back in May 1988 that Jaguar teamed up with Tom Walkinshaw Racing (TWR) to create JaguarSport – building on the long standing motorsport relationship between the two companies that had led to European Touring Car Championship success with the XJS and a return to Le Mans (culminating with victory in the June 1988 race).

TWR had been marketing some cosmetic and mechanical modifications for both XJ saloon and XJS sports models since 1983 under the TWR JaguarSport banner, but these products were not endorsed by Jaguar Cars. The new JaguarSport business was a 50/50 joint venture between TWR and Jaguar, and brought the talents of TWR and Jaguar Engineering together to create some dedicated sports models that were distinguished by carrying the ‘R’ designation.

The first products launched in 1988 were the XJR 3.6 saloon and the XJR-S 5.3 V12 sports car – the first 100 of which were limited edition models to celebrate the Le Mans victory. The products were produced

6 at a new JaguarSport facility at Bloxham near Banbury that went on in subsequent years to be the manufacturing location for the XJ220 supercar. Further models followed with an XJR 4.0 and XJR-S 6.0 V12 but Jaguar decided to bring production fully in house with the launch of the 1995 X300 XJR model with its supercharged version of the 4.0 litre AJ16 engine - and the JaguarSport name and the joint venture with TWR were discontinued.

In the subsequent years, Jaguar has maintained this strategy and produced a number of great flagship sports models bearing the R designation, distinguished by outstanding dynamic performance, exciting design detailing and supercharged engines.

To create some publicity materials to celebrate the 25th anniversary, the Jaguar PR department recently arranged a photo shoot for a selection of ten R products ranging from a 1988 XJR-S up to the present day with the current XKR, XFR and the just announced new XJR model that will be making its full debut at the New York motor show on March 27. Jaguar Heritage provided three R models from its collection to support this shoot, including an S-TYPE R, XKR (X100 model) and XJR (X350 model).

The ‘R’ photo shoot taking place – with the Preview image of the new XJR issued by Jaguar latest XFR in the frame Cars – full details released at New York show

Further shots showing the full ten car ‘R’ product line-up will be included in next month’s newsletter. For more information on the new XJR model and to download a hi-res image, visit the Jaguar Media Centre by clicking here.

Mystery Car….

Another photo shoot took place recently that featured a rarely seen car from the Jaguar Heritage collection. A full report will be included in a future newsletter, but here is a teaser shot to keep you all guessing!

Forthcoming Events:

The famous Series 1 E-type 77RW that is on permanent loan to Jaguar Heritage (courtesy of its owner Mr Michael Kilgannon), has now arrived in South Korea where it will be taking pride of place on the Jaguar stand at the forthcoming Seoul Motor Show alongside the new F- TYPE which is making its market debut. After the show, 77RW will also be displayed for two weeks in the showroom at the Jaguar Land Rover headquarters building.

The Jaguar Heritage team will be attending the International Jaguar Spares Day at the Stoneleigh showground near Coventry on March 24 with the merchandise trailer, from which they will be selling the normal range of products and artefacts.

The two cars Jaguar Heritage are providing for the ‘bloodline’ display at the Shanghai Motor Show, which takes place from April 21 to 29, are being readied for collection in early April. As mentioned last month, these cars are the short E-type 77RW being unwrapped from its special nose D-type OVC 501 and also the immaculate KLM crate at Seoul airport Series 1 E-type OTS 4 BXV belonging to Mr. George Missetzis. A full report will be included in next month’s issue.

Other forthcoming events where there will be a chance to see vehicles from the Jaguar Heritage collection were detailed in last month’s newsletter (click here to view). However, there were a couple of omissions – both events in the local area coming up in May. These are the Coventry Festival of Motoring Press Launch which is happening in Millenium Square outside the Coventry Transport Museum on May 11; the other is Super Cars Sunday which will once again be taking place in Kenilworth town centre (outside the Almanack) on May 12 and which will be raising funds for Macmillan Cancer Support. The Heritage cars that will be displayed or demonstrated at these events have not yet been decided – look out for details in next month’s newsletter.

Contact Reminder:

For further information on any of these items, please contact: Jonathan Partridge on +44 (0) 24 76 564431 or e-mail [email protected]

Please attribute any images used to 'Jaguar Heritage' except where indicated otherwise.

Watermark: Jaguar at the 1948 London Motor Show where the XK120 made its debut