1993 Jaguar XJ220 RM Auctions

Augustus 2011 - Als er een Jaguar XJ220 uit 1993 wordt geveild bij RM Auctions is dat best bijzonder. De Jaguar XJ220 is namelijk helemaal niet zo'n succesvolle auto. Je zou zelfs kunnen spreken van een regelrechte mislukking. Ondanks het feit dat er destijds  natuurlijk wel enkele prominente kopers waren, bleef Jaguar met een flink partijtje van het model zitten. Dit is er eentje. De foto's zijn natuurlijk de moeite waard, maar ze geven ook een beetje aan waarom de XJ220 - ondanks zijn uiterlijk en enkele racesuccessen - nooit de gehoopte eyecatcher is.  geworden. Het interieur heeft een zekere armoede en mist de klasse die nu eenmaal bij Jaguar hoort. 

Ooit had ik het genoegen om de auto te rijden. Het bleek een kanon, laat dat buiten kijf zijn. Maar als je je ogen door de cockpit laat wandelen, bekruipt je een gevoel van: is dit 'm nou? Wat mij betreft lijkt de XJ220 op een op een door enthousiaste doe-het-zelvers gebouwd kitcar. Als ik Jaguar-liefhebbers op de tenen ga staan, kan ik het echt niet helpen. Toen ik deze fotoserie onder ogen kreeg, was het gevoel na al die jaren precies hetzelfde. Desondanks verwachten ze bij RM Auctions nog een aardig bedrag voor de auto boven tafel te krijgen.

Ted Sluymer

RM Auctions - 1993 Jaguar XJ220

Estimate:
$170,000-$220,000 US
549 bhp, 3,498 cc 24-valve, twin-turbocharged, mid-mounted V-6 engine, five-speed manual gearbox in rear transaxle, four-wheel independent suspension, and four-wheel vented hydraulic disc brakes. Wheelbase: 103.9"

• One of only 281 examples built between 1992 and 1994
• Original paint finish; no accident history
• California emissions-certified in 2009
• Approximately 2,900 km from new

To celebrate its new era of motorsports excellence during the late 1980s, Jaguar’s spectacular XJ220 was unveiled in 1988 at the Birmingham Motor Show. Developed by Jaguar in conjunction with Tom Walkinshaw Racing, the XJ220 was an impressive statement of Jaguar’s considerable technical expertise and celebrated the marque’s legendary racing pedigree, past and present, which now included Le Mans victories under Walkinshaw’s guidance in 1988 and 1990.

The result of their labor was a twin-turbocharged V-6 engine with 542 brake horsepower and a five-speed transaxle built into a chassis made of aluminum-honeycomb with aluminum and composite bodywork. The XJ220 was, however, remarkably large. It weighed in at some 3,500 pounds and was over eight feet wide and 16 feet long. Yet, with the twin-turbocharged V-6 engine of the production version, performance was breathtaking, with zero to 60 mph achieved in just over four seconds. Formula 1 star Martin Brundle tested a lightly modified XJ220 and achieved in excess of 217 mph, a record that stood until the McLaren F1 of 1994. Initial XJ220 buyers included Sir Elton John and the Sultan of Brunei.

Jaguar and TWR also endeavored to take the XJ220 racing, hoping to prove its quality on the racetrack as well as on the road. Impressively, in 1993, they won the Le Mans GT class their first time out, but the title was revoked for the car’s lack of catalytic converters. Stateside, it caused quite a stir as well with the highly publicized “Fast Masters” series, wherein former racing drivers, all driving XJ220s, competed and often exchanged paint on the much-too-small Indianapolis Raceway Park.

The XJ220 presented here is finished in classic silver with a grey leather interior and currently shows approximately 2,900 original kilometers on its odometer. It retains the original paint finish and has no accident history. It was built in August 1993, and it is one of the group of 37 unsold XJ220s that were carefully stored, sparingly driven and serviced at the Jaguar factory in Coventry. It is also one of the group of 10 cars that were factory-fitted with power-brake boosters, and in September 1998, they were turned over by the factory to Grange Jaguar, a large dealer located east of London.

It was sold in 1999 to James Mills and David Sindelar of Bentley of St. Louis, located in St. Louis, Missouri. EPA approval work was performed by Wallace Environmental Testing in Houston, Texas, and then DOT “Show and Display” approval was achieved, with the car first registered on May 15, 2000. For the next seven years, it was properly stored and rarely used when it was acquired by the current owner in mid-September 2007 with just 909 kilometers. Work to obtain California smog certification was completed at great expense in May 2009, and in August that year, the fuel cell was replaced and a new fuel hose kit was installed. Complete with tools and books, California smog-compliant and blessed with known history from new, this XJ220 is unquestionably one of the best available examples of this stunning supercar.