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Jaguar with claws: 592-hp XE SV Project 8 Collector's Edition

A few years ago, and to much fanfare, Jaguar launched the F-Type Project 7. It was Jaguar Land Rover's Special Vehicle Operations (SVO) unit's first Collector's Edition car. It now has a successor – with four doors. Jaguar has announced the XE SV Project 8 Collector's Edition, which will get its official debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. Project 8 is as a 592-horsepower sedan that the automaker is calling "the most extreme Jaguar ever." It's powered by a specially tuned version of the company's 5.0-liter V8 engine, which will make it Jaguar's most powerful vehicle ever put into production. It will be limited to just 300 examples hand-built at SVO's Technical Centre in Coventry. As for how much it'll set you back if you're lucky enough to get your hands on one, Jaguar Land Rover Special Operations Managing Director John Edwards says Project 8 "is conceived for enthusiasts and the most discerning collectors. The price for such an extreme performance sports car available in strictly limited numbers will reflect that." Engine tuning is just one of the upgrades to the Project 8, but, for now, Jaguar is remaining vague about other alterations to the XE. Edwards says the car "takes aerodynamics and performance engineering to another level," and there's no reason not to take him at his word. The British automaker says it'll let us know more about the car on June 28, just two days before its official introduction. For now, though, we can enjoy the teaser video from Jaguar, above, which shows the XE SV Project 8 in a particularly sporty camouflage wrapper testing on the Nurburgring. Related Video: News Source: Jaguar Jaguar Performance Supercars Videos Sedan jaguar xe sv project 8

Lapping Le Mans with 1956's version of a dash cam

Mike Hawthorne and Ivor Bueb won The 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1955 driving a Jaguar D-Type. The following year, a few days before the race, a British broadcaster put cameras on Hawthorne's car, hung a mic from a plate on his race suit and had him narrate a lap of the Circuit de la Sarthe.
It is compelling viewing. A new pit complex was built after the massive accident on the front straight in 1955, but this was still a time when crews prepped for the race on roads that were open to the public. Hawthorne's lap includes maneuvers to avoid bicyclists and cars, and gems like letting us know that doing 185 miles per hour down the Mulsanne Straight was where you could "relax a little, recover your energy." Watch him work it like the men of old in the video below.

Jaguar Land Rover won't get a bailout from the UK

Bailout talks between Jaguar Land Rover and Tata Steel with the UK government have ended, leaving both firms to rely on private financing to overcome the impact of coronavirus on business, the Financial Times reported on Friday. The report said that talks for an emergency funding fell through as Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) did not qualify for taxpayer support. It is the luxury car unit of India's Tata Motors and Tata Steel, both owned by Indian conglomerate Tata Group. The bailout plan, titled "Project Birch", had been authorized by Finance Minister Rishi Sunak in May to rescue companies that are seen as strategically important, with the Treasury saying it may step in to support crucial businesses on a "last resort" basis after other options run out. The report, citing a source familiar with the matter, said that the funding scheme became infeasible for Tata as it imposed strict conditions on any lending. "Tata Steel remains in ongoing and constructive talks with the UK Government on areas of potential support," Tata Steel said in an emailed statement. The UK Treasury said it would not comment on individual companies. Tata Motors did not immediately respond to request for comment. Related Video: Earnings/Financials Government/Legal Jaguar Land Rover