The limited-edition road-going XJ220 supercar introduced in the early 1990s set new performance standards for Jaguar, but the fact that it was powered by a turbo-charged V6 and not Jaguar’s own V12 disappointed some. For this reason many Jaguar enthusiasts consider the even more exclusive V12-powered XJR-15 produced by Tom Walkinshaw’s JaguarSport organisation to be the charismatic Coventry marque’s ultimate expression.
Tom Walkinshaw Racing (TWR) built its endurance racing reputation through the 1980s with a succession of Jaguar XJR Coupés, before the foundation of the JaguarSport supercar-building organisation and the development of the XJ-220 and XJR-15 Coupés. TWR’s prototype Group C endurance racer was the Tony Southgate-designed, carbon-composite chassis XJR-6 of 1985-86, which the team campaigned with 6.2 and later 6.5-litre V12 engines. The Silverstone 1,000kms on 5th May 1986 provided the XJR-6’s maiden victory and marked the start of a new era of Jaguar endurance racing success.
The chassis was re-worked incorporating numerous detail changes to create the 7.0-litre V12-powered XJR-8 of 1987, with which the team achieved eight World Sports Prototype Championship race wins from ten starts that season, TWR-Jaguar becoming the Championship-winning team and Raoul Boesel Jaguar’s first World Champion Driver.
An up-dated XJR-9, still using the same basic monocoque, won the Le Mans 24-Hours Race in 1988 and added five other Championship victories that season, thus achieving back-to back Team Championship successes for TWR-Jaguar and bringing Martin Brundle the Drivers’ Championship in the category.
In American IMSA-GTP competition, 6.0-litre XJR-9s won the Daytona 24-Hours and at Del Mar and Tampa, while for 1989-90 a completely new composite-chassis XJR-10 with 3.0-litre twin-turbo-charged V6 engine won four times. The World Championship Group C version of the design - the XJR-11 - was powered by a 3.5-litre engine, winning at Silverstone in 1990, while a special endurance racing V12-powered XJR-12 was built for Daytona and Le Mans in 1990/1991. Using a 6.0-litre V12, these cars finished 1, 2 on their debut at Daytona in 1990 and a 7.0-litre version secured Jaguar’s remarkable seventh victory at Le Mans that same year.
It was during the 1991 season that Walkinshaw commenced manufacture of the strictly limited edition batch of 50 of these outstandingly beautiful XJR-15 6.0-litre V12-engined high performance coupés, like the one offered here, of which fewer than half were prepared for circuit racing. Although derived from the XJR-9 and XJR-12 Le Mans winners, the XJR-15 was completely re-engineered for road use and featured bodywork by Peter Stevens, an outstanding stylist responsible for many of the most exciting sports cars of recent years including the McLaren F1, Lamborghini Diablo and current Lotus Esprit.
Chassis number ‘022’ was one of 16 racing-specification XJR-15s built for the 1991 Intercontinental Challenge, a three-race series supporting Formula 1 Grands Prix, each of which commanded a purse of $1 million. ‘022’ was driven in the series by Ian Flux, the English driver’s best result being 3rd place at Silverstone. The car was sold to a Japanese collector in 1992 for £500,000 and purchased from long term storage in Japan by J D Classics in 2001. It was prepared and raced by J D Classics alongside their Jaguar XJR-11 in the Group C Series in 2002 and 2003, driven by Derek Hood, securing a class win at the Nurburgring and class runner-up finishes at Monza and Donington Park. Sold to a J D Classics’ client in 2004, it has been prepared for road use to the highest standard by J D C at a cost of £30,000 and road registered ‘G15 XJR’. Finished in opalescent blue with leather/carbon fibre interior, the car is offered with MoT to November 2005 and Swansea V5 registration document, and represents a rare opportunity to acquire one of the most beautiful supercars of recent times, descended directly for a famous Le Mans winner.