Skip advert
Advertisement

A-Z Supercars: Jaguar XJ220

Vilified at birth, Jaguar’s XJ220 is now recognised as one of the supercar greats

One of the most extraordinary and beautiful cars ever to reach production, the world’s first hypercar (hitting close to 220mph while the McLaren F1 was still climbing off the drawing board) was vilified at its birth in 1992 for not having the 500bhp V12 engine, four-wheel drive and scissor doors promised in the concept and, at nearly 7ft wide, being too big for British roads. 
That it ended up with an even more potent (542bhp) twin-turbo V6 and lighter, rear-drive powertrain didn’t cut much ice back then, though ironically the approach would have garnered more acceptance now. The XJ220 was regarded as something of an over-sized freak, an outsider that was never invited to join the cosy supercar cabal.

Advertisement - Article continues below

The child of a collaboration between Jaguar’s so-called ‘Saturday Club’ – an informal group of engineers, including engineering chief Jim Randle, who’d get together after hours to develop pet projects – and Tom Walkinshaw’s TWR Engineering, the genesis of the XJ220 formed around Randle’s idea to make a lightweight, mid-engined two-seat Jaguar that would eclipse the Ferrari F40 and Porsche 959. In the event, only 281 XJ220s were made between 1992 and 1994 against a projected production run of 350. The motoring press loved it, but commercially the XJ220 was a fiasco.

A lot of the blame was laid at its Metro 6R4-derived V6 – and its sheer girth. True, there were things you had to adjust to in the XJ220 – size, turbo lag, steering that initially seemed heavy and unresponsive, strong understeer in the tightest bends, brakes that weren’t really up to the job – but, learn its ways, and it was actually well poised, translating serious stonk into stunning speed across the ground through a polished fusion of grip, neutrality and benign adjustability. If only it hadn’t been so wide.

Specifications

Years made 1992-1994 Engine V6, 3498cc, twin-turbo Max power 542bhp @ 7200rpm Torque 475lb ft @ 4500rpm 0-60mph 3.7secMax speed 213mph Price £430,000 new, c£150-£250,000 today

Skip advert
Advertisement
Skip advert
Advertisement

Most Popular

Best cheap supercars – used exotics and rarities for less than a Porsche 911
Best cheap supercars
Best cars

Best cheap supercars – used exotics and rarities for less than a Porsche 911

New cars are more egregiously expensive than ever, making a silver-haired supercar for hot hatch money extraordinarily tempting
23 May 2025
The new BMW M2 CS is just around the corner: here’s everything we know
BMW M2 CS spy shot – front
News

The new BMW M2 CS is just around the corner: here’s everything we know

The G87 M2 is a strong performer in standard guise, but the CS treatment is set to bring more focus still to the hot coupe
22 May 2025
BMW might be about to revive the Z3 M Coupe ‘clownshoe’
BMW Z3 M Coupe teaser
News

BMW might be about to revive the Z3 M Coupe ‘clownshoe’

A new Z3 M-inspired shooting brake will be unveiled at Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este later this month – here’s a sneak peek
20 May 2025