Jaguar is reportedly planning a high performance, sort of road racing, version of the F-Type sports car, and it could be shown as a concept at this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed. It uses the same recipe as the recently revealed XKR-S GT, and will be powered by a 600 horsepower supercharged V8.
It is the same 5.0 liter unit that powers Jag’s “R” family, but in the hard-core F-Type it gains an extra 50 horsepower. This was achieved by Jaguar’s engineers during the testing of the XKR-S. These limited edition, hotted-up models are not commercially viable for Jaguar – as they only make 30 to 50 units of them – but from a technical point of view, they are great testbeds for new technologies that can be used in future production models.
If green lit, Jaguar F-Type GT will be launched in 2016. But that is not the only high-performance version of the car in the works. There will also be an F-Type R, which will not be as hard-edged as the GT model, but sportier than the V8S.
Jaguar boss Adrian Hallmark commented: “Many customers are demanding more in terms of individuality and exclusivity, and we are well placed to deliver that. Our performance heritage is well known, and we have designers within the division who are there to work on customer-led projects. Our role is to consider anything that stays within the values of the brands we represent.”
Read More: Autocar