RE: Showpiece of the Week: Spectre Jaguar C-X75
Discussion
what happened to the running car that was 95% complete?
the original one
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqqJs0mqH9M
the original one
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqqJs0mqH9M
350Matt said:
what happened to the running car that was 95% complete?
the original one
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqqJs0mqH9M
4 of them still exist but they're all hidden away....and very much none road legal. Whilst the proper prototypes (with all the hybrid gubbins) work, they had basically no development work at all. So they require a team of engineers with a lot of knowledge to keep running.the original one
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqqJs0mqH9M
Sadly, what people often don't remember, is that Jaguar were probably right to can it. Whilst the 918 did eventually sell, Porsche were (at one point) giving away a free allocation for the GT3 RS to try and sell them all. I believe someone I know had to be persuaded by them to buy the car (nice position to be in) for list. It's only afterwards that the market went crazy for them.
As for the CX-75....there was a genuine fear that it just wouldn't sell. The idea of a turbo 4 banger (no matter how special that was) with a load of heavy hybrid stuff seemed potentially unappealing to many.....and quite a few deposit holders I believe cancelled after the initial buzz died down. It would have more than likely been a very big sales flop which perhaps only really attained cult status once people started to sell them on, and the 918 wasn't even announced until a year after the CX-75. Absolutely no one even knew if any customers would buy a hybrid supercar.
I was lucky enough to see the original prototypes running, and a colleague did quite a bit of the development driving in it. Having driven a Veyron, he said that realistically (in it's un-calibrated form) wasn't really in the same league, and with a single clutch automated manual it was a bit old school in feel, however the engine was really special and having heard it on the track revving out to 12,000rpm, I can't disagree even when judged against the V8 or V12 in the 918 and LaF. If you can imagine something between a silenced F1 car and a superbike, you're somewhere there. You got a bit of whine from the supercharger and then a hardening of induction as the turbo spooled up.
Edited by RacerMike on Monday 5th November 12:25
RacerMike said:
As for the CX-75....there was a genuine fear that it just wouldn't sell. The idea of a turbo 4 banger (no matter how special that was) with a load of heavy hybrid stuff seemed potentially unappealing to many.....and quite a few deposit holders I believe cancelled after the initial buzz died down. It would have more than likely been a very big sales flop which perhaps only really attained cult status once people started to sell them on, and the 918 wasn't even announced until a year after the CX-75. Absolutely no one even knew if any customers would buy a hybrid supercar.
That, plus the bad memory of the XJ220 sales fiasco still haunting them.thegreenhell said:
RacerMike said:
As for the CX-75....there was a genuine fear that it just wouldn't sell. The idea of a turbo 4 banger (no matter how special that was) with a load of heavy hybrid stuff seemed potentially unappealing to many.....and quite a few deposit holders I believe cancelled after the initial buzz died down. It would have more than likely been a very big sales flop which perhaps only really attained cult status once people started to sell them on, and the 918 wasn't even announced until a year after the CX-75. Absolutely no one even knew if any customers would buy a hybrid supercar.
That, plus the bad memory of the XJ220 sales fiasco still haunting them.Shakermaker said:
I thought Jaguar made this car with some kind of turbine engine, but clearly, I was mistaken
Yes, I remember them saying it had 2Nr Gas turbines. Guess that was quickly dropped and someone said that what your typical Billionaire really wants is a 1.6 4 cylinder engine with a couple batteries attached.Funny how McLaren, Porsche, Ferrari, an Bugatti didn't think the same. Maybe they're not as in tune with their potential customers like jaguar are?
Just like when they thought no one would mind if they swapped the V12 for a Turbo V6 in the XJ220.
450Nick said:
I preferred the version powered by a jet engine. Wasn't it jet-electric hybrid? Much more like it!
That was just the original concept car. I think it was intended to have EV propulsion with the gas turbines simply as electricity-generating range extenders. I'm not sure if it ever actually ran though.The 1.6 litre 4 cylinder engine that was used in the running prototypes was based on Cosworth's stillborn hybrid F1 engine, which they'd started developing before Ferrari persuaded the FIA to mandate the V6 engines that we have now.
thegreenhell said:
The 1.6 litre 4 cylinder engine that was used in the running prototypes was based on Cosworth's stillborn hybrid F1 engine, which they'd started developing before Ferrari persuaded the FIA to mandate the V6 engines that we have now.
And what shame that was. Ironically the 4 pots would have had considerably more character than the V6s....Here's a clip of it running on the dyno
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zN5blCukeWw
The Article said:
When all power sources were driving together, power peaked at more than 800hp. Even now, to reliably produce that number from such a compact powertrain seems unbelievable. Formula 1 cars, with their similarly advanced 1.6 V6 powerplants, have illustrated just how difficult managing such a system is.
This is lazy journalism. First, Formula 1 cars would be putting out double that with their current powerplants if they weren't restricted on both fuel and electrical energy flow rates. Second, F1 hybrid systems aren't particularly advanced by the standards of modern hybrid engines - far less so than the systems used in WEC, for instance. And third, in what way do F1 engines demonstrate that it's difficult to manage these systems? Yes, you get the occasional failure, but the power units are now used for multiple races and we still see fewer cars retiring than we did 20 years ago when teams would routinely replace engines between qualifying and the race.On topic, I can't for the life of me work out why Jaguar didn't put this into production. Maybe there were still people around who remembered how they struggled to shift XJ220s following the recession of the early 90s, but in hindsight and with the holy trinity passing into legend, this seems like a bit of a misjudgement. Such a shame.
spikyone said:
On topic, I can't for the life of me work out why Jaguar didn't put this into production. Maybe there were still people around who remembered how they struggled to shift XJ220s following the recession of the early 90s, but in hindsight and with the holy trinity passing into legend, this seems like a bit of a misjudgement. Such a shame.
I wish they'd put it into production just so we wouldn't have that awful 'holy trinity' phrase. What would you call them if there were four vehicles in that class?Lazadude said:
Wasn't the CX75 originally designed for and powered by Gas Turbines?
Fully electric (Motor at each wheel), making 700+ bhp with a range of 600 miles?
Why isnt that mentioned, its why its a much more interesting car design than just a charged 4 pot.
Because that didn't get past the concept stage. The actual "production" engine was a 4-pot turbo....but it is a very interesting 4-pot turbo. Basically an F1 car engine. Red line 10,000rpm.Fully electric (Motor at each wheel), making 700+ bhp with a range of 600 miles?
Why isnt that mentioned, its why its a much more interesting car design than just a charged 4 pot.
Edited by Lazadude on Monday 5th November 08:01
Slippydiff said:
NJJ said:
All the more why they should have sold it with the s/c V8 and had it as a run out edition for that engine. No hybrid just as lightweight as possible with a thumping great engine in the middle.
This ^Edited by Nerdherder on Monday 5th November 18:11
Just a superb looking car even now.
The original was going to use a pair of turbines fromanother British company.
Shame they did not have the confidence to produce it, given the success of the P1 etc.
Two versions, one with the supercharged V8 and the other the hybrid drive. Certain it would have sold well.
Looked the dogs in Spectagh.
The original was going to use a pair of turbines fromanother British company.
Shame they did not have the confidence to produce it, given the success of the P1 etc.
Two versions, one with the supercharged V8 and the other the hybrid drive. Certain it would have sold well.
Looked the dogs in Spectagh.
The proposed gas turbines were the first thing I thought of too.
Lazadude said:
Wasn't the CX75 originally designed for and powered by Gas Turbines?
Fully electric (Motor at each wheel), making 700+ bhp with a range of 600 miles?
Why isnt that mentioned, its why its a much more interesting car design than just a charged 4 pot.
Fully electric (Motor at each wheel), making 700+ bhp with a range of 600 miles?
Why isnt that mentioned, its why its a much more interesting car design than just a charged 4 pot.
Edited by Lazadude on Monday 5th November 08:01
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