Jaguar reprises its historical national-record-setting XK-120 Jabbeke, Belgium speed run in an F-TYPE, and once again celebrates a Jaguar benchmark.
Sixty years after Jaguar’s legendary test driver Norman Dewis achieved a world record average Flying Mile speed of 172.4 mph in a modified XK 120, Jaguar returned to Jabbeke, Belgium for another sprint test. This past weekend they reprised the original 1953 run using new F-TYPEs and Norman Dewes was on hand to watch Andy Wallace, 1988 Le Mans 24-hour race-winning driver, make the runs. With just two miles available to Wallace to test the V8 F-TYPE’s performance from a standing start, the car hit almost 180 mph and achieved 0-62 mph in an impressive 4.2 seconds. The V8 F-TYPE is electronically limited at 186 mph.
The celebratory event marked the beginning of an epic drive event in which classic Jaguar XK 120, C-Type, D-Type and E-Type sports cars joined the new V8 F-TYPE in a convoy to Geneva, Switzerland and the 2013 Salon d’Auto, where the new F-TYPE will be showcased.
“Our result is amazing considering the original sprint test road was five miles in length and today we had less than half that to achieve 179 mph. The car was still accelerating toward its top speed when I had to brake,” said Wallace.
Marking the return of Jaguar to the Belgian “proving roads,” Adrian Hallmark, Jaguar Global Brand Director, said: “The original Jabbeke sprint runs marked the start of an exciting chapter
in our history. The XK-120, above, combined seductive design and innovative technologies with incredible sporting performance, as Norman Dewis, below with Andy Wallace, proved
on that famous day in 1953.”
“Those core elements of our DNA are embodied in the new Jaguar F-TYPE, and I can think of no more fitting way to pay tribute to the achievement of one of our most famous roadsters than to return to Jabbeke to celebrate the successful test and set a new Jaguar benchmark.”
Following the Jabbeke speed run, an identical V8 F-TYPE S was driven the 519-miles to Geneva by a frugally driving specialist, recording an impressive 35.6 mpg!
Check out this video from the Jabbeke run,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFc42QkiurE&feature=youtu.be
For more about the F-TYPE, please visit http://www.jaguarusa.com/models/f-type/overview/
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