The Jaguar XJ220 almost gains mythical status among Jaguar fans, though not for right reason. It should have been the peak of the road car series, but it never met its potential.
The original prototype drew much wider attention when it was uncovered at the British Motor Show in 1988. Incredible V12 engine, race-inspired aerodynamics and ground-hugging shape were all checked when scrolling down the supercar boxes. The spec list even stimulates curiosity even further, when the automaker promised to apply four-wheel drive system and adaptive suspension. All combination blends to send order to jaguar for the £290,000 vehicle for 350 requests. Success is guaranteed to appear.
Problem appeared when putting this one off machine into production. The task of producing the Jaguar XJ220 to reality was trusted to race specialist TWR. When the final details were validated, the proposed 6.2-liter V12 had been substituted by a less attractive 3.5-liter twin turbo V6, and the car came out as rear wheel drive. It came out on a deep economic recession, which was worried to make many would-be buyers to back out of the deal.
Finally, the automaker built 281 samples only, but the Jaguar XJ220 still represented a bona fide supercar presenting 500bhp that could reach 213 mph top speed. The figure made it the fastest finished good model in the world at that time. The XJ220 would feel heavy and cumbersome when driving at low speeds, but a flex of the right foot set free the epic straight line speed. The XJ220 remains the fastest Jaguar production ever, yet it has to miss that opportunity.