Thursday 21st May 2015

PH drives the Jaguar Heritage Challenge

Dan gets a lesson in historic racing in an XK120 in the Jaguar Heritage Challenge

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There's a reasonable argument that Jaguar has had its money's worth from past racingglories and really ought to invest in forging some new ones. F-Type in the N24? Yes please!

Beautiful looks, 300hp, c. 1,000kg - yes please!*

The power of those 50s and 60s glory days still resonates though, something brought home when I ring my dad to tell him I'm driving an XK120 in the pre-'66 Jaguar Heritage Challenge. He's not quite the car nut I am and usually maintains polite parental interest. But the "Oof, you lucky bugg..." is from the heart. Jag is never going to struggle with my dad's generation though. But can the Heritage Challenge help enthuse mine?

Reading up on XK120s I note the original road car's 160hp and c. 130mph top speed. A trio of utterly gorgeous XK120s - two roadsters and a coupe - greets me at Silverstone and I peer at the polished cam cover of the straight-six under the bonnet of 'mine' and ask Tester Racing's Iain Purves how much it's pushing out. "Oh, about 300hp," he says cheerfully. Weight? "1,000 kilos or so." Right.

Triple Webers, double the power of an original*

Cat-like reflexes
Dunlop disc brakes behind the wire wheels reassures; these weren't officially available until the later XK150 but Tester has fitted them, later rack and pinion steering gear and a synchro'd four-speed box too. The live axle has a Watt's linkage to tame tramp and the aluminium body saves significant weight. Clearly it's not a standard XK120 as they left the factory in the 50s. But the modifications are period sympathetic and much as any aspiring club racer might have added to his '120 to keep pace with the newer cars as they appeared. Tester's cars are based on originals but, in the modern terminology, "reimagined for the 21st century" and available as a turn-key car for anything from £150K upwards. Not cheap but, in the spirit of the original, a very appealing vehicle capable of a tour of country lanes with a picnic hamper and tartan rug in the boot. But also fitment of aero screens and a bit of club level motorsport too.

Tester Racing specialises in rebuilt XKs*

Which is exactly what the Heritage Challenge is all about. Up at the sharp end the E-Types and C-Types indulge in the seriously racy stuff; I'm hoping the XKs and MkIs and MkIIs cut a more gentlemanly dash. My car is a fresh rebuild, so fresh in fact it's only had a brief shakedown in practice. Pro driver Calum Lockie, who'll be in the coupe, offers some feedback. He warns rapid weight shifts - like Maggots/Becketts - can still unsettle the rear and that the brake pedal has a lot of travel but overall the car is fast and fun.

Looking back at the XK's competition history it's got some proper provenance in circuit racing and rallying. Stirling Moss enjoyed a breakthrough victory in an XK120 in the 1950 RAC Tourist Trophy at Dundrod, having been loaned the car by Daily Herald motoring correspondent Tommy Wisdom when Jaguar turned him down for lack of experience. The victory helped convince them he was worthy of a factory drive; Moss and the C-Type forged a winning relationship.

Quali first taste of car and cut rather short*

Lofty ambitions
Am I expecting similar recognition and a seat in that hoped for F-Type GT3 car if it ever happens? Hardly.

I'll have to qualify first. Literally my first drive in the car is the short hop from paddock to assembly area. Where I discover the clutch is bitey and the brakes ... long. The engine is beautiful though. The triple Webers sniff and chunter at low revs but it picks up instantly and feels massively strong with a fearsome bark through the side-exit exhaust. Lovely!

My first few laps are a case getting a feel for the car. The XK picks up speed just fine. Slowing it down is more of a challenge and there are a few ohmygawd approaches to fast corners and missed apices. For all its feline looks the XK isn't an especially delicate car to drive, feeling surprisingly big, solid and physically demanding. And I still can't decide whether it's better with my elbow in or outside of the cockpit.

Dan's thoughtful face ahead of the race*

Perhaps I should have more faith in the tyres too because the front end does follow the wheel's bidding and will turn over-optimistic entry speed into a four-wheel drift. I'm happier just pegging it back a little though, finally getting the apex at Copse, powering through and ... twang. Oh. No power. I trundle to an undignified halt and get towed back to the service area.

It's nothing more than a snapped throttle cable though, I've qualified and the team have time to fix it and re-bleed the brakes in an effort to give the pedal a bit more bite. I ponder the times and get some pre-race tips from Calum, mindful Jim Tester in the other roadster has put in a 2min 36.1sec to put him in the thick of the E-Types. In five laps the best I can manage is a 2min 50sec but there are at least four XKs behind me. So not last.

So much for pootling around at the back!

Old-school
I ask Jim why he enjoys racing historics over the Radicals and others he's also competed. He likes the way the cars drive, the sliding about and more involving nature of the racing, not to mention the challenge of mastering old technology. And just look at the things!

It's time to suit up. Somewhat bizarrely I find myself in the assembly area behind Andy Wallace in a MkI saloon. Door propped open the contrast between modern race clobber and a walnut-capped, leather lined interior seems almost comedic. And very Jaguar.

By the time the rolling start comes my heart is in my mouth but as I cross the line the motor is right in its sweet spot in third gear, the XK hoovering up the cars around like they're standing still. I make up significant ground round the outside of Copse, dice with a MkII and then concentrate on not losing the places I've just gained through Becketts. There's some to and fro but by the time things open up on the Hanger Straight the '120 is flying and clearly has the legs on most of the cars around me. Can I get it slowed down enough for Stowe though? Juuuuusst!

PH versus Le Mans winner Wallace (left, in MkI)

The bark of rung-out XK sixes surrounds me, E-Types slew around trailing smoke up ahead, MkIIs barge their way around - all that's missing is a sepia tinge to my glasses to complete the illusion. The engine is fabulous too, its best coming between 4,000rpm and the 5,500 limit I've been given. It's got a savage tone to it and a razor sharp throttle, meaning shifts need to be made quickly and cleanly to avoid the revs dropping. With the long brake pedal heel'n'toe downshifts require some proper contortions though, the lock-up when I miss one showing why it's necessary.

No time to dwell on it though, I've got ground to hold and - oh christ - corners to try and brake for. I manage to keep my nose clean and as the pack begins to spread out I can breathe again. Calum powers past and then I'm locked into a battle with - really - Andy Wallace and a wildly driven E-Type.

Big grids, beautiful cars, great racing - winner!

I find myself slinging it up the inside of Wallace on the approach to Brooklands, which is utterly bizarre. To those watching it probably looks like a heroic move under brakes, the truth being I don't have any. Somehow I hold it, placing me on the outside of the E-Type for Luffield but carrying more speed and in with a chance of making it stick. He sees it coming and firmly but fairly closes the door.

Thick of it
So much for pottering around at the back - I've somehow got into a scrap with a Le Mans winner and an E-Type! Eventually I get round both and a gap appears. And is then lost as I make a silly mistake exiting The Loop. I give myself a talking to, set about making the time up again and then, hang on, what's that smell? A belated look at the temperature gauge reveals that it's off the scale. Uh-oh. It's about time for my compulsory 60-second stop anyway but as I arrive in clouds of steam the guys take one look at the gauges and it's game over.

Can Jag still trade on past glories? Yup!*

As the XK gently boils in the pitlane I dejectedly join the Tester team on the pitwall. It's heartbreaking to watch the race you were involved in play out from the sidelines. It's doubly gutting when Jim and Calum come in fifth and eighth respectively, right in amongst the E-Types. I'm not kidding myself - they were at least 10 seconds a lap quicker than me - but I'd have been among the rest of the XKs.

The Heritage Challenge is certainly powerful demonstration of the emotional appeal of racing old Jags, the big grids and friendly atmosphere adding to the evocative feel. As modern racing cars become ever more complex and expensive there's an endearing honesty and charisma to these things, not to mention a sense of romance. The bloodline to the chaps who raced them of a Sunday afternoon around the perimeter tracks of wartime airfields like Silverstone is a direct one to the golden age of Britain's post-war motorsport boom too.

Sure, nostalgia is an easy sell. But one Jaguar can still trade on better than most.

Watch Dan's first lap here (with apologies for the terrible sound)
 

Photos: Lyndon McNeil/*Charles Ward

[Alicatt1]

Nice article, brought back some very happy memories for me.

My first run in a "race car" was Jamie Gibbon's modified XK120 roadster going to Rumster Hill Climb in the 1970s. It had a low ratio axle for the hill climb so the car red lined at about 105mph but my heavens it didn't half get there quickly with the around 370bhp from the 3.8l straight six. Jamie went on to take the class honours for the day.

Going home from the hill climb I went with my father's friend Alistair Kerr, at that time he was president of the Jaguars owners club and he drove an immaculate powder blue XK120 coupé it was a smooth refined drive back, especially compared with the trip down

[Itsallicanafford]

Ah, now I know, so this is how I would spend my time if I won the lottery...

[pauloroberto]

Saw this in the paddock with Dan's name on. Thought "that can't be the Pistonheads Dan Trent can it".

It was a great day at Silverstone with tickets costing just £5!

[Leithen]

A PH'er did the real thing 64 years ago.



No roll bars, helmets or seatbelts back then....

[Dan Trent]

Leithen said:

A PH'er did the real thing 64 years ago.

For real? This is a story we need to hear! Great pic regardless, thanks for sharing.

Dan

[griffdude]

My ex-Mrs' mum had an XK140 (roadster?) that she had from new as a 21st present. My memories are a fantastic noise, massive steeringwheel & rubbish brakes.

[flingstam]

"There's some to and fro but by the time things open up on the Hanger Straight the '120 is flying and clearly has the legs on most of the cars around me. Can I get it slowed down enough for Copse though?"

Pedant alert! The corner at the end of Hangar straight is Stowe. If you reach Copse, you're definitely going the wrong way...

[Dan Trent]

flingstam said:

"There's some to and fro but by the time things open up on the Hanger Straight the '120 is flying and clearly has the legs on most of the cars around me. Can I get it slowed down enough for Copse though?"

Pedant alert! The corner at the end of Hangar straight is Stowe. If you reach Copse, you're definitely going the wrong way...

Haha! Well spotted... Got me mucking corners fuddled there, apologies.

Thanks,

Dan

Edited by Dan Trent on Thursday 21st May 12:31