Jaguar XJ220C
Car

Jaguar XJ220C

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The Jaguar XJ220-C was a racing version of the Jaguar XJ220 supercar, introduced at the 1993 Autosport International motor show. It was developed by Tom Walkinshaw Racing (TWR) to compete in FISA GT racing. The XJ220-C won its debut race, a round of the BRDC National Sports GT Challenge at Silverstone, driven by Win Percy.

Three works XJ220-Cs were entered in the newly created Grand Touring class at the 1993 24 Hours of Le Mans. The car driven by John Nielsen, David Brabham, and David Coulthard won the GT class by two laps over Porsche. The other two XJ220-Cs retired due to engine failures. The class victory was later revoked. The Jaguar cars had passed initial scrutiny and the first day of qualifying, but senior steward Alain Bertaut raised concerns that they were not running catalytic converters. The cars were entered under the IMSA GT category, and Bertaut claimed catalysts were required. The XJ220-Cs raced under appeal. Officials from the International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) confirmed to the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO), organizers of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, that the XJ220-Cs complied with IMSA rules. However, the ACO upheld the disqualification, stating that the appeal had not been lodged in time.

Four XJ220-Cs were entered in the GT1 class at the 1995 24 Hours of Le Mans by PC Automotive Jaguar and Chamberlain Engineering. Neither team had factory or TWR support. Both of PC Automotive's cars were outpaced by the new McLaren F1 GTR. The lead PC Automotive car, driven by Richard Piper, Tiff Needell, and James Weaver, held fourth place before an engine failure during the night ended their race. The second XJ220-C retired after leaving the road.

A lightly modified road-going XJ220 was entered in the Italian GT Championship in 1993, without factory support, racing in Martini livery. The XJ220-C was also promoted in the United States in the made-for-TV "Fast Masters" racing series at Indianapolis Raceway Park, airing on ESPN in the summer of 1993. This competition featured invited drivers over 50 years old in an elimination format. The series faced issues as the cars' viscous Limited-slip differentials were ill-suited for the oval track, leading to handling problems and several crashes.

TWR developed six additional road cars known as the XJ220-S. These models featured one-piece carbon-fibre-reinforced polymer front and rear bodywork and had their engines tuned to 700 PS (515 kW; 690 hp). The XJ220-S models replaced the original's hidden headlamps with perspex-covered lights. Essentially road-going versions of the XJ220-C race car, they featured a simpler, race-oriented interior with kevlar seats and no leather trim. Colin Goodwin, a writer for Autocar, tested an XJ220-S in June 1995 at Millbrook Proving Ground and set a lap record with an average speed of 180.4 mph (290.3 km/h).

This article is based solely on the supplied corpus. No external sources were consulted; claims that could not be substantiated against the corpus were omitted under the drop-the-claim rule.

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