Jaguar supercars

Tue, 29 Jul 2008

By Tim Pollard

29 July 2008 09:00

Luxury saloon specialist Jaguar has one genuine supercar contender under its belt, CAR would postulate. The XJ220 was born at the height of the supercar boom – but suffered the market collapse, and never really received the recognition it deserves. An interesting curio, nevertheless

Make and model

Year

Price

Engine

0-60mph

Top speed

1992

£415,000

3498cc V6, 542bhp, 475lb ft

3.9sec

217mph

For

Held the production-car speed record for a couple of years
at 217mph

Against

Like the Diablo, never gained much credibility. Elton John
had one

Verdict

Bold styling but timid thinking

Jaguar's only supercar had a fraught life. First shown with four-wheel drive and a Jag V12, it made production at much higher price with rear-drive and the blown V6 from the Metro 6R4. Disappointment and the recession kippered sales