Jaguar Land Rover Special Vehicle Operations (SVO) has revealed the most powerful, agile and extreme performance Jaguar road car ever - the 320km/h, 592bhp XE SV Project 8 sedan. The second Collectors Edition by SVO, following the successful F-TYPE Project 7 of 2014, Project 8 is a hand-built four-door sedan with supercar performance - designed to thrill driving enthusiasts, with an extraordinary combination of explosive power, dynamic agility and all-wheel-drive traction. To ensure exclusivity, no more than 300 examples will be created, each assembled at SVO's Technical Centre in Coventry.
The Project 8 exclusively features the most highly tuned version of Jaguar Land Rovers 5.0-litre Supercharged V8 petrol powertrain. The 592bhp power unit, which has a Titanium Variable Active Exhaust, is complemented by Jaguars All-Wheel Drive (AWD) system and motorsport-derived aerodynamics to deliver a 320km/h top speed and 0-100km/h in 3.7 seconds, making Project 8 the fastest accelerating Jaguar yet.
Fundamental to the performance of the most track-focused car SVO has ever produced, the Project 8 features a number of purposeful modifications to the award-winning XEs lightweight aluminium body panels - carbon fibre bumper with enhanced cooling ducts, vented carbon fibre bonnet, flared bodywork covering 20-inch forged aluminium alloy wheels, adjustable front splitter, flat underbody, rear carbon fibre bumper, rear diffuser and adjustable rear aerodynamic wing. The Project 8 will be the lightest V8 sedan in the Jaguar range.
To ensure optimum performance on road or track, the Project 8 endows the XE's doublewishbone front and Integral Link rear suspension with stiffer springs and manually adjustable continuously variable dampers, debuts a new carbon ceramic braking system, an industry-first use of Formula 1-style silicon nitride ceramic wheel bearings on a road car, and incorporates a rear Electronic Active Differential (EAD) with oil cooler - a first for XE.
The high-performance theme continues inside, with subtle applications of Gloss Carbon Fibre trim as well as Alcantara, on the rim of the Project 8 Sport Steering Wheel, instrument binnacle and door cards. The eight-speed Quickshift transmission can either be operated by
aluminium paddle shifters behind the steering wheel or by a central Pistolshift lever - another first for XE. The Project 8 is also the first Jaguar to feature a dedicated Track Mode, which tailors driveline and stability control systems for circuit use, and sharpens both throttle and steering responses for ultimate precision and driver feedback.
The Project 8 will be available in two specifications at launch. The standard four-seat model features Jaguar's latest front Performance seats with magnesium frames, plus a more heavily contoured rear squab to maximise support. The optional two-seat Track Pack includes lightweight front carbon fibre racing seats with four-point harnesses fixed to a harness retention hoop in place of the rear seat. All Project 8s will be built in left-hand drive configuration only.
The Jaguar XE SV Project 8 will make its world debut at Goodwood Festival of Speed in West Sussex, U.K., which runs from 29th June - 2nd July. The Project 8 will make its dynamic world debut on the famous Goodwood Hill on Friday, 30th June.
