48 EDITION 198 JAGUAR MAGAZINE
01 Project 8 number one powers into Hungr y passing the timing tower, demonstrating its
performance stance and stabilit y. 02 Interesting pose - huge wheel arches, vented bonnet
and fully trimmed interior. 03/04 A working wing and no rear seat - but a roll cage.01 02
03 04
measuring 265/35R-20 are up front, mated to 305/30
Michelins and 15.6 inch brakes at the rear. Wheels are
offsets, measuring 11 inches wide at the rear. There is
no shortage of tyres or brakes.
The wing’s angle of attack can be fine-tuned either to
reduce drag or maximise downforce - producing up to
122 kg of downforce once. The eight speed auto gearbox
shifts in just 0.2 of a second; faster than a blink!
Independent writers who have measured its
performance on the track, albeit their's was the garden
variety road version, found the all-wheel-drive Project
8 clocked an impressive 3.5 seconds 0-100 kmh sprint
time and blasted through the standing quarter mile in
11.8 seconds with a fastest speed of 195 kph (121 mph).
While that's sensationally quick for a two ton car, it trails
Jaguar's quoted time of 3.3 seconds in the spec of car we
were about to sample.
Lakeside may be a short track, but it throws everythingat a car - a fast straight with a high speed bend in the
middle, a number of fast off-camber bends and hills
with steep contours and subsequent drops.
This first Project 8 officially built is so precious just
four fast runs per session are conducted, after which it
is carefully cooled down.
Our own experience was an incredibly thrilling
privilege. We were about to sample it at full blur.
Race refined within an inch of its life, but with carpets
on the floor, I was carefully buckled in by Jaguar engineer
Marc Gammage, and noted the four-point harness
fastened to the rear roll cage which was anchored to the
floor in place of a seat! A fire extinguisher 'bomb' was
bolted there too - just in case of an emergency!
The car moved straight onto the track before all hell
broke loose - and that was the warm-up lap! Suddenly
there was a mighty shove in the back as we poured onto
the main straight for what was going to be the ride