1976 Jaguar XJS by Hyper

For sale by auction on Saturday 07 March 2015 with Historics at Brooklands. Brooklands Motor Racing Circuit. Weybridge. Surrey. Call 01753 639170
Launched in 1975 the Jaguar XJ-S had quite a mountain to climb. br/>following the hugely popular E-Type. However. in reality. the car
was never envisaged as a direct replacement for the E-Type. being
more of a Grand Tourer. Largely designed by Jaguar's legendary
Malcolm Sayer. the XJ-S had a top speed of 150mph and 0-60 time of
under 8 seconds; it slipped through the air far more efficiently
than the E-Type and its excellent ride. comfort and handling were
justly praised by the motoring press of the time. The car had its
critics. although everyone agreed that as a high speed tourer the
new XJ-S had few rivals. but many agreed that it lacked something
dramatic in its styling and some say that it drove too soft - not
like the proper sports car Jaguar used to manufacturer. These
shortcomings were soon picked up by sports car conversion
specialists. At the end of 1984 Tom Walkinshaw Racing (TWR)
announced their intention to build a range of special XJ-S coupés
calling them the XJR-S. Upgrades included body kits. interior kits
and modification to suspension. increased output from the 3. 6 and
the 5. 3 engines along with a 6 litre engine. These cars were a
private offering without the backing of Jaguar. However this was to
change in 1988 when a new company. Jaguar Sport. was formed which
was a 50/50 split with Jaguar and TWR. The idea was that cars were
part built at the factory then shipped to the TWR facility in
Kidlington. Oxford and latterly Jaguar Sport at Bloxham. where the
custom finish ordered through Jaguar dealers was added before the
finished car delivered to the respective dealer. The XJR-S sold
around 300 units which was fairly respectable but. to many. the
looks of the car were too tame and not distinctive enough from the
standard XJ-S. This was addressed by one of the most renowned names
in sports car racing history; Lister. The Lister Jaguar added
engine modifications and a full body kit. although for some it was
felt that there was still room for improvement.

Hyper Engineering is owned by Paul Hands and in the best
traditions of those before him when it comes to modifying Jaguars. br/>cut his teeth on the race track. In the business of building racing
Jaguars for years he began modifying the XJ-S for road use in the
late eighties. Body. interior. road wheels and mechanical upgrades
were available to transform a standard every day XJ-S into a sleek
Hyper XJ-S. The Mk III package offered the Mk II body kit and in
addition wider wings made from high-quality impact-resistant
fibre-glass. These bigger wings. 4" wider at the rear and 3" wider
at the front. allowed the fitment of very wide wheels and tyres to
enhance the look and performance even further. The package also
included a unique three piece rear boot spoiler and a modification
that extended the rear windows rearward. further improving the
slick look. Mechanical upgrades were available to the suspension as
were a manual five or even six speed gearbox or the Hyper drive
'clutchless manual' gear box. Steering. manifold. exhaust 'Hyper
brakes' and 'Hyper cool' - oil cooler were also available. The wide
bodied Hyper Sport XJ-S Mk III was much acclaimed by the motoring
press in the early nineties after they tested a purpose built steel
bodied press car. Sadly this car. number 001. was written off in
the nineties. Only one other steel bodied Hyper Mk III was ever
built. car number 002. which was to serve as the prototype from
which the mouldings were made for the fibreglass wide body versions
that were to follow.

JAG 63L was first registered in June 1976. It was at the time a
standard 5. 3 V12 XJ-S with one of the last of the factory fitted
Jaguar close ratio manual gearboxes. which it retains today.
Believed to have first been a demonstrator. the car later went on
to be registered by a business man based in Jersey who regularly
travelled on German Autobahns. After deciding that he really needed
a little more power and a little higher top speed for these
journeys. he took JAG 63L to Forward Engineering. the company
formed in the 60's by Ron Beaty. Jaguar's competition department's
experimental engineer for the V12. In the early eighties the 5. 3
engine was rebuilt by Forward Engineering and bored out to 6
litres. In 1987 the owner of JAG 63L (then on Jersey plates) traded
the car in for a new Lister Jaguar. The car was then acquired from
Lister by Paul Hands of Hyper Engineering. Work began on
transforming JAG 63L into the steel bodied prototype (002) for the
Glass Fibre winged Hyper Sport Mk III. The BLE under bumper body
kit was removed and replaced with Hyper sport front dam and rear
body kit with provision for front and rear fog lamps. Hyper side
skirts were also fitted. Following a design created by Paul that
gave a more sweep.

Also published at eBay.co.uk

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