After an extended period in the doldrums, an injection of money from Tata has given Jaguar newfound purpose. Having established its range of garden-variety sedans and wagons, the storied marque has set about restoring its credentials as a genuine challenger in the performance car market. Step one was the F-Type Project 7, but that pales in comparison to the prototype you see here. Meet the XE SV Project 8, the most powerful production Jaguar ever.
At the moment, the Project 8 is at the prototype phase, as you can probably tell from the camouflage paint job. Details are thin on the ground, but the tidbits Jaguar has shared suggest it will be a serious piece of kit. It will be the second Collector's Edition vehicle from Jaguar Land Rover's Special Vehicle Operations (SVO) division in Coventry after the aforementioned Project 7, with power coming from a highly-tuned 441-kW (591-hp) 5.0-liter supercharged V8.
Although it will likely share its basic engine layout with other speedy Jaguars, the super XE will be more powerful than any performance Big Cat before it. Not only is 441 kW more than you get from the F-Type SVO or Project 7, it's more than the unloved XJ220 produced when Jag set its sights on creating the world's fastest car. Not bad for a car that at it's heart is a compact family sedan.
"Our clients worldwide were thrilled by the F-Type Project 7," says John Edwards, Managing Director of Jaguar Special Operations. "The new XE SV Project 8 takes aerodynamics and performance engineering to another level – it is conceived for enthusiasts and the most discerning collectors. The price for such an extreme performance sports car available in strictly limited numbers will reflect that."
Full details about the XE SV Project 8 will be released on June 28, ahead of the Goodwood Festival of Speed. Expect its debut run up Lord March's driveway to be loud and smoky. Pricing information hasn't been announced, but based on Edwards' comments above, it isn't likely to be cheap.
You can watch the Project 8 take on a test run at the Nürburgring Nordschleife in the video below.
Source: Jaguar Land Rover