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Jaguar returns to open-wheel racing with Formula E team [w/video]

One of the most legendary names in motor racing – Jaguar – is returning to the open-wheel racing, but not with an internal-combustion engine. The British company has confirmed its plans to enter the FIA Formula E Championship. Though the British automaker has revealed little in the way of concrete details, the team is set to join the electric grid for the third season starting next fall. Jaguar will team up with Williams as its technical partner, drawing on the relationship they established in developing the C-X75 hybrid hypercar concept and on Williams' considerable racing expertise. The F1 team founded by Frank Williams developed the battery system for the SRT_01E that all the teams are using currently. "Electric vehicles will absolutely play a role in Jaguar Land Rover's future product portfolio and Formula E will give us a unique opportunity to further our development of electrification technologies," said JLR's chief engineer Nick Rogers. "The Championship will enable us to engineer and test our advanced technologies under extreme performance conditions." The company recently showcased new battery propulsion technology and is said to be developing an electric crossover to be dubbed the Jaguar E-Pace. Jaguar won Le Mans five times in the 1950s and twice again in 1988 and '90, and racked up victories in touring cars in the early 80s. Most recently Jaguar Racing represented the company in Formula One until then-parent Ford sold the team to Red Bull in 2004 before divesting itself from the company altogether in 2007. Aside from the XKR GT3/GT2 that it furnished to privateer teams, Jaguar has not competed in any major racing series since. Jaguar joins Audi, Renault, and PSA Peugeot Citroen on the Formula E grid. The announcement coincides with the withdrawal from the series of the Trulli team. Former F1 driver Jarno Trulli took over the outfit from Drayson and is now relinquishing the slot back to the series organizers effective immediately, dropping the grid down to 9 teams and 18 cars until Jaguar takes its place next season. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Top Gear season 25 opens with a V8 roadtrip through America

Great news for fans of BBC Top Gear: the first episode of season 25 is here. Viewers of BBC America will catch the season opener on March 3, and for the American audience this episode is definitely suitable watching. The episode has been dedicated to V8 sportscars almost in its entirety, as it's been wrapped around a Western roadtrip with a motorsport bias. The three hosts get to choose three V8 sports cars, with the basic idea of finding the best all-rounder. Matt LeBlanc goes for a Hennessey-tuned GT350R, Rory Reid chooses a Jaguar F-Type SVR, and Chris Harris shakes up the pack by selecting a McLaren 570GT. It's a nicely varied trio, with V8 power still showing what it's good for. There are various challenges along the way, just like there should be on a Top Gear roadtrip episode – even if the road surface itself isn't always ideal. But things smoothen out, all the way to a NASCAR oval and an airport runway; the flooded Bonneville salt flats aren't suitable for shenanigans, so substitutes have to be found. The trio also hit dirt roads, and have to evade a buggy-driving Ken Block during a "moonshine run to the border." Fans of Sabine Schmitz will be pleased to find her piloting a chain car racer, which consists of two American junk cars with a Honda CRX chained in the middle. It must make sense to someone. The Star In A Reasonably Priced Car segment has been retained for this season. This time it's the British actor Rob Brydon driving the Toyota GT86, on a very wet lap around the show's Dunsfold Aerodrome track that must be a cult classic by now. All in all, the season 25 opener is exactly what it says on the tin. There's nothing out of the ordinary, but it still has excellent cinematography, V8 roar and some nice landscapes. Classic Top Gear. Cowboy duels, Sabine Schmitz chain car racing, @RobBrydon, a @kblock43 car chase and #TheStig The latest episode of #TopGear is available on @BBCiPlayer now. Outside the UK? See local listings here: https://t.co/HPPhbUErDu pic.twitter.com/87F53C8oYb — Top Gear (@BBC_TopGear) February 26, 2018 Related Video:

2014 Jaguar XKR-S GT claws at the driving enthusiast in us

If you still find yourself coming up a few seconds short per lap in your Jaguar XKR-S, the British automaker has introduced the XKR-S GT - a cat specifically tuned for the racing circuit - at the New York Auto Show.
While Jaguar has left the supercharged 5.0-liter V8 unchanged (550 horsepower and 502 pound-feet of torque), it has tuned and tweaked all the items that really make cars go quicker on the track (e.g. suspension, aerodynamics, contact patches, brakes). A once-over reveals upgraded go-fast goodies including a new ventilated hood, extended wheel arch spats, reworked front end with a bespoke front splitter and canards, a massive rear wing, height-adjustable adaptive dampers, active exhaust, carbon-ceramic brakes and sticky Pirelli Corsa tires. Try as we might, the driver in us can't find anything we not to like about this enthusiast-tuned coupe.
Of course all of the upgraded XK goodness doesn't come easy, or cheap. Jaguar will limit North American sales to just 30 units and price each at $174,000. Learn all the juicy details in the official press release below.