Big cat rescue: Recommissioned Jaguar XJ220 up for auction

A 1992 Jaguar XJ220, fresh from an $85,000 service, is going under the gavel on April 17. The car is number 97 out of the 281 built by TWR and Jaguar Sport, and has covered 14,100 miles.

Originally delivered to a Belgian Jag fan it is now for sale in the U.K. at Historics Auctioneers upcoming Ascot Auction. The car underwent a major recommission by XJ220 expert Don Law in December 2020, including the fitment of new timing belts, all seals and gaskets, and a brake overhaul, with seemingly no expense spared.

The metallic green supercar with light tan leather interior is now said to be in first-class condition, and is estimated to fetch $450,000–$515,000.

The story of the Jaguar XJ220 is one of inspiration, perspiration and litigation. Jaguar’s head of engineering Professor Jim Randle is said to have first had the idea for the car during a Christmas break in 1987. The car was to be powered by a V-12 driving all four wheels, and clothed in aerodynamic bodywork with an underbody that used ground effects to suck the car onto the asphalt. Jaguar designer Keith Helfet’s design was picked to go for forward.

Randle and his colleagues worked out of hours on the car in a group known as “The Saturday Club” and a concept car was ready to unveil at the 1988 Birmingham Motor Show. With its 48-valve 537 hp V-12 mounted amidships, all-wheel drive and spaceship styling, the XJ220 looked like it was going 220 mph even when parked. No wonder the order books quickly filled up, and the £50,000 deposits (around $190,000 today) rolled in.

Actually building the XJ220 was not so simple. Jaguar didn’t have the facilities at its Browns Lane factory, so enlisted TWR to fully develop and construct the car. Over the next four years the recipe changed significantly. The V-12 was swapped for a more compact twin-turbo V-6 that had been developed for the MG Metro 6R4 Group B rally car, while the four-wheel-drive system was also dropped to save cost and complexity.

Despite the changes, the price of the car rose from the originally-advertised £290,000 to almost £490,000 (an equivalent of $840,000 today). Customers who placed their early deposits where not happy and took legal action. Jaguar won in court but the car’s reputation was tainted. Having planned to build 350 cars, only 281 were sold.