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1985 Jaguar XJR-7 news, pictures, and information | ||
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 |  |  | Coupe Chassis Num: 001 |
The car is powered by a 6.0L, twin-overhead-cam, 590 horsepower, V12 engine coupled to a 5-speed gearbox. The car weighs about 2030 pounds and has a top speed of 205.
This car participated in 17 races from 1985 through 1988 and finished in the top ten in 11 of those races. It won the 3-hour West Palm Beach Grand Prix on June 21, 1987, with Hurley Haywood and John Morton at the wheel. Other drivers include Bob Tullius, Briand Redman and Chip Robinson.
A Jaguar XJR-7 Group 44 car still participated in Historic Sports Car races.
XJR-7 was designed by lee Dykstra, built by the Group 44 racing team of Bob Tullius, and sponsored by Jaguar. From 1985 to 1988 this race car participated in 17 races and finished in the top 10 in 11 of those races. It won the 3-hour West Palm Beach Grand Prix of 1987 with Hurley Haywood and John Morton driving; and beating ex-team mate Chip Robinson driving the Holbert Porsche. Other noted drivers included Bob Tullius, Brian Redman, and Chip Robinson.
The XJR-7 is powered by a 367.5 cubic-inch V12 flathead, dual overhead cam, fuel injected race engine that develops 632 horsepower.
From 1984 through 1993, Jaguar backed teams in both the World Sportscar Championship Group C and the IMSA Camel GTP competition with their Jaguar XJR Sportscar. The history of the project dates back to the early 1980s with Bob Tullius. He formed the Group 44 racing team in the early 1960s with partner Brian Feurstenau and campaigned his Jaguar E-Types for the following two decades. He also played a part with the Howmet gas turbine-engined LeMans car of 1968, which he drove in the 24-Hour race.
The Jaguar XJR-5 was designed primarily for competition in the IMSA's GTP class. Tullius was able to persuade Mike Dale of Jaguar Cars Inc. in New Jersey to fund this project. Designer Lee Dykstra was tasked with creating a car that could accept a Jaguar V12 racing engine. Group 44's previous four cars were the XJR 1 through 4. This new prototype racer was called the Jaguar XJR-5.
Dykstra used the twelve-cylinder engine as a stressed member of the chassis and bolted it directly to the aluminum monocoque. Four stiffening struts were bolted to the racers firewall and the rear suspension completed the ensemble. The monocoque chassis had honeycomb floor sections and tubular-reinforced steel bulkheads. Underneath the car was reserved for aerodynamics, of which Dykstra was an expert at designing and incorporating. Venturi tunnels extended from the flat-bottomed cockpit to the rear and exited beneath the full-width rear wing. The body was constructed of carbon fiber and Kevlar composite.
Aerodynamics and ground effects had gained in popularity. Lotus was one of the first to prove the benefits of ground effects and reducing the air pressure under the car. Low air-pressure was used to keep the car planted firmly on the track. The resulting design of the JXR-5 was put through tremendous testing in the Williams wind tunnel. After fine-tuning the design, two cars were produced. The first was a car that was intended for high speeds track, and had low drag and low downforce. The second car had high downforce and aimed at slower tracks. Testing at Summit Point began as early as June of 1982. A few months later, the car made its racing debut at Road America and was driven by Bob Tullius and Bill Adams. Two Porsche 935's secured the first two positions, but the XJR-5 manage to crack the top three and a class win the GTP class. The following races were not as fruitful for the car. Its first race victory came the following year, at the Road Atlanta 500km race. The car continued to compete, but was never a major contender for the championship.
Dykstra had continued the development of the XJR Sport Cars design. By 1985, a completely new car had been drawn. The 5.3-liter engine had grown in 1984 to a full six-liters and the twelve-cylinder engine was now using Lucas/Micos engine management systems.
Derek Bell tested one of the Group 44 team's XJR-5 car at Silverstone in 1983. Bell was pleased with the car and excited for its potential. This report stimulated Jaguar to back the Group 44's effort in competing at the LeMans 24 Hour endurance race. It had been twenty-two years since Jaguar competed at LeMans. Lancia and Porsche were too fast; the two Jaguar XJR 5s ran for fourteen hours before retiring from the race. They had been sitting in sixth and seventh position. The cars would return to LeMans, but a 13th overall and a win the GTP Category would be their best showing. 1985 would be Tullius's final racing appearance at LeMans.
Factory funding later switched to Tom Walkinshaw's TWR cars. The XJR-6 shared a similar engine with the XJR-5, but little else. Tony Southgate had been tasked with creating the design. He used a carbon fibre monocoque and plenty of ground effect tunnels and aerodynamics. TWR worked closely with Zytek to form a new fuel injection system for the V12 engine and allowed them to extract as much horsepower as possible while retaining as much fuel economy as possible. Group C had fuel restrictions which all teams had to abide by. The result of the work on the engine was a 6.5-liter unit in naturally aspirated form that was capable of producing 650 horsepower.
Three cars were constructed in 1985 and made their racing debut the following year. Their immediate Achilles' heal was their weight, which caused the engine to work harder and decreased fuel efficiency. The teams had no recourse except to run the engines at lower horsepower to increase fuel efficiency and to satisfy fuel economy regulations. Three more cars were created and scored a victory at the Silverstone 1000 km race. At LeMans, the cars failed to finish and the glory days of Jaguar racing were still allusive.
Further development of the racers, with over sixty changes being made, resulted in the XJR-8. The car competing in Group 44's IMSA GTP Competition had used the XJR-7 naming scheme.
The Jaguar XJR-8 was powered by a seven-liter engine which had a maximum horsepower rating of 720. This massive boost in power was what the team needed to win eight of the ten races in the World Championship. Development continued for suitable LeMans cars, which could take advantage of the high speed track. The cars featured low drag bodies, but it would not be enough for Jaguar to clinch a victory at LeMans. One of the XJR-8 was poised for a positive finish, but a gearbox problem changed its fortunes. Porsche went on to win the race and their fifth straight LeMans victory.
The next iteration of the TWR racer was the XJR-9, which was intended for IMSA GTP competition in 1988. The Group 44 efforts had begun to fade near the close of the 1987, and TWR stepped in to boost their efforts. The XJR-9 was a mildly revised version of its predecessors and continued the winning tradition, and dominated the World Championship.
For LeMans, Jaguar played the odds by fielding five cars. One of the cars ran eight hours before a transmission problem sidelined it prematurely. A second car had a head gasket fail in the eleventh hour and it joined the first car. The three remaining cars were able to complete the race. Jan Lammers drove one of the Jaguar entries and was nearly sidelined by transmission issues. The problem was spotted in time, resulting in Lammers not able to shift and had to remain in fourth gear. The car limped along, still with a two minute lead over a Porsche, and secured Jaguars long sought goal to re-capture a victory at LeMans. Had Lammers shifted, his car would have suffered the same fate as the first car.
For 1989, TWR developed two near cars, the XJR-10 and the XJR-11 for IMSA and Group C competition. The XJR-10 was intended for the IMSA, while the XJR-11 was developed for Group C. These cars differed greatly from their predecessors, as they were powered by turbocharged V6 engines. Displacement size was 3- and 3.5-liters. Both cars did not enjoy the same success as the XJR-9, though some success was had. The V6 engine was not as durable as the twelve-cylinder unit, and later the six was replaced with the twelve. The resulting car was dubbed the XJR-12. At LeMans, the car scored another victory for Jaguar. Rules changes persuaded Jaguar to withdrawal from competition.
By Daniel Vaughan | May 2011
For more information and related vehicles, click hereThe Jaguar XJR-5 was designed primarily for competition in the IMSA's GTP class. Tullius was able to persuade Mike Dale of Jaguar Cars Inc. in New Jersey to fund this project. Designer Lee Dykstra was tasked with creating a car that could accept a Jaguar V12 racing engine. Group 44's previous four cars were the XJR 1 through 4. This new prototype racer was called the Jaguar XJR-5.
Dykstra used the twelve-cylinder engine as a stressed member of the chassis and bolted it directly to the aluminum monocoque. Four stiffening struts were bolted to the racers firewall and the rear suspension completed the ensemble. The monocoque chassis had honeycomb floor sections and tubular-reinforced steel bulkheads. Underneath the car was reserved for aerodynamics, of which Dykstra was an expert at designing and incorporating. Venturi tunnels extended from the flat-bottomed cockpit to the rear and exited beneath the full-width rear wing. The body was constructed of carbon fiber and Kevlar composite.
Aerodynamics and ground effects had gained in popularity. Lotus was one of the first to prove the benefits of ground effects and reducing the air pressure under the car. Low air-pressure was used to keep the car planted firmly on the track. The resulting design of the JXR-5 was put through tremendous testing in the Williams wind tunnel. After fine-tuning the design, two cars were produced. The first was a car that was intended for high speeds track, and had low drag and low downforce. The second car had high downforce and aimed at slower tracks. Testing at Summit Point began as early as June of 1982. A few months later, the car made its racing debut at Road America and was driven by Bob Tullius and Bill Adams. Two Porsche 935's secured the first two positions, but the XJR-5 manage to crack the top three and a class win the GTP class. The following races were not as fruitful for the car. Its first race victory came the following year, at the Road Atlanta 500km race. The car continued to compete, but was never a major contender for the championship.
Dykstra had continued the development of the XJR Sport Cars design. By 1985, a completely new car had been drawn. The 5.3-liter engine had grown in 1984 to a full six-liters and the twelve-cylinder engine was now using Lucas/Micos engine management systems.
Derek Bell tested one of the Group 44 team's XJR-5 car at Silverstone in 1983. Bell was pleased with the car and excited for its potential. This report stimulated Jaguar to back the Group 44's effort in competing at the LeMans 24 Hour endurance race. It had been twenty-two years since Jaguar competed at LeMans. Lancia and Porsche were too fast; the two Jaguar XJR 5s ran for fourteen hours before retiring from the race. They had been sitting in sixth and seventh position. The cars would return to LeMans, but a 13th overall and a win the GTP Category would be their best showing. 1985 would be Tullius's final racing appearance at LeMans.
Factory funding later switched to Tom Walkinshaw's TWR cars. The XJR-6 shared a similar engine with the XJR-5, but little else. Tony Southgate had been tasked with creating the design. He used a carbon fibre monocoque and plenty of ground effect tunnels and aerodynamics. TWR worked closely with Zytek to form a new fuel injection system for the V12 engine and allowed them to extract as much horsepower as possible while retaining as much fuel economy as possible. Group C had fuel restrictions which all teams had to abide by. The result of the work on the engine was a 6.5-liter unit in naturally aspirated form that was capable of producing 650 horsepower.
Three cars were constructed in 1985 and made their racing debut the following year. Their immediate Achilles' heal was their weight, which caused the engine to work harder and decreased fuel efficiency. The teams had no recourse except to run the engines at lower horsepower to increase fuel efficiency and to satisfy fuel economy regulations. Three more cars were created and scored a victory at the Silverstone 1000 km race. At LeMans, the cars failed to finish and the glory days of Jaguar racing were still allusive.
Further development of the racers, with over sixty changes being made, resulted in the XJR-8. The car competing in Group 44's IMSA GTP Competition had used the XJR-7 naming scheme.
The Jaguar XJR-8 was powered by a seven-liter engine which had a maximum horsepower rating of 720. This massive boost in power was what the team needed to win eight of the ten races in the World Championship. Development continued for suitable LeMans cars, which could take advantage of the high speed track. The cars featured low drag bodies, but it would not be enough for Jaguar to clinch a victory at LeMans. One of the XJR-8 was poised for a positive finish, but a gearbox problem changed its fortunes. Porsche went on to win the race and their fifth straight LeMans victory.
The next iteration of the TWR racer was the XJR-9, which was intended for IMSA GTP competition in 1988. The Group 44 efforts had begun to fade near the close of the 1987, and TWR stepped in to boost their efforts. The XJR-9 was a mildly revised version of its predecessors and continued the winning tradition, and dominated the World Championship.
For LeMans, Jaguar played the odds by fielding five cars. One of the cars ran eight hours before a transmission problem sidelined it prematurely. A second car had a head gasket fail in the eleventh hour and it joined the first car. The three remaining cars were able to complete the race. Jan Lammers drove one of the Jaguar entries and was nearly sidelined by transmission issues. The problem was spotted in time, resulting in Lammers not able to shift and had to remain in fourth gear. The car limped along, still with a two minute lead over a Porsche, and secured Jaguars long sought goal to re-capture a victory at LeMans. Had Lammers shifted, his car would have suffered the same fate as the first car.
For 1989, TWR developed two near cars, the XJR-10 and the XJR-11 for IMSA and Group C competition. The XJR-10 was intended for the IMSA, while the XJR-11 was developed for Group C. These cars differed greatly from their predecessors, as they were powered by turbocharged V6 engines. Displacement size was 3- and 3.5-liters. Both cars did not enjoy the same success as the XJR-9, though some success was had. The V6 engine was not as durable as the twelve-cylinder unit, and later the six was replaced with the twelve. The resulting car was dubbed the XJR-12. At LeMans, the car scored another victory for Jaguar. Rules changes persuaded Jaguar to withdrawal from competition.
By Daniel Vaughan | May 2011
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| 1.5 Litre C-Type D-Type E-Series | Mark Mark IV Mark IX Mark V | Mark VII Mark X S-Type SS 100 | SS II X-Type XF XJ | XJ-S XJ220 XJR Group 44, IMSA, and Group C XK | XK Series XKSS |
