Lancaster Insurance Classic Motor Show 2015 Jaguar XJ220 12

Bridgestone And Don Law Jaguar XJ220 Making Progress

A new Generation of Tyres for the Legendary Jaguar XJ220

Bridgestone and Don Law have great news for the Jaguar XJ220 model. The XJ220 has been on track near Rome, on Bridgestone proving ground, testing the new generation of tyres. And the continuous road testing is going superbly. The main goal is to provide the perfect new generation of tyres to match the original performance from the early 1990’s. But this time, the new hand-made tyres are using all the modern technology available at its hands. So it’s very likely that the new tyres will perform better than the ones from 27 years ago.

If you look at the numbers, the Jaguar XJ220 was ahead of its time in the early 90’s. It was the fastest car in production for 7 years and had the record of Nurburgring for 10 years. Plus it was able to go from 0-60 in 3.6 seconds, hitting 220 mph. Those were astonishing numbers back then, in fact, although the Ferrari F40 was the first car to hit 200 mph, the XJ220 went even further, hitting 220 mph.

This great performance was possible thanks to the 549 hp and 644 Nm of torque. The 3.5 twin-turbo V6, which replaced the big V12 with a 5-speed manual gearbox, made it all happen. That went well until years ago when the special tyres for the XJ220 went out of production.

The Legend Will Continue Where it Belongs – the Road

But the solution for this problem came in 2016, when Don Law Racing and Bridgestone announced the development of a new generation of tyres for the Jaguar XJ220. They formed a team which included the original test driver, the chief of development engineer and the chassis number 004 pre-production model. The Jaguar will continue on the road.

A wise man once said the only thing that will remain after we’re gone is our legacy, and that applies to cars such as the Jaguar XJ220. Ever since its production started in 1992, the legendary Jaguar XJ220 gathered enthusiasts all around the world. Many people started saying that the XJ220 disappointed its debut. The bad reception even made Jaguar abandon its production, but Don Law Racing decided to keep the XJ220 alive. He did it very well, because the XJ220 continues on the road, conquering a legion of fans, and living on.

Photos via: Don Law Racing

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