Photo: USPTO
Other than the hallmark promise of grace, space, and pace, Jaguar is known for making some of the most iconic racing cars the automotive world has ever seen. The Jaguar XJ13 is one of them and, as fate would have it, the XJ13 never got to race.
Ever since the 1950s, the era in which the C-Type and D-Type dominated the endurance racing stage, the British automaker thought about making a V12 engine. Then the 1960s came, an epoch when Jaguar pondered about the viability of a racing car with a V12 engine located in the middle. And hey presto, both ideas turned to fruition in the spring of 1966.
Designed by the same Malcolm Sayer who penned the C-Type, D-Type, E-Type, and XJS, the bite-the-back-of-your-hand beautiful XJ13 never got to race due to a handful of reasons. First and foremost, endurance racing regulations limited engine capacity to 3.0 liters, rendering the 5.0-liter freely aspirated V12 tower-of-power in the XJ13 obsolete.
Secondly, Jaguar test driver Norman Dewis crashed the bejesus out of the one-off go-faster machine in 1971 at the MIRA proving ground. Happily, however, the wrecked XJ13 was rebuilt to an almost exact specification. But the truth of the matter is, the XJ13 never got to race, not did it ever got into the hands of private owners as a limited run.
These circumstances could change if the Jaguar Land Rover Classic division can make a case for it. As discovered by Autocar, the automaker has applied for the XJ13 word mark this August. The fine print reads “motor land vehicles” and “toys, games, and playthings.” Given this information, this word mark application might translate into a Continuation Series, a similar formula to what Jaguar has done with the XKSS and Lightweight E-Type.
But this unfounded hope could turn out to be just wishful thinking. As per Autocar: “A Jaguar spokesperson denied the possibility of the XJ13 being remade by Jaguar’s heritage division, and stated that the filing of trademarks is standard practice.” Then again, isn't it standard practice for PR boys and girls to deny any information whatsoever regarding future models?
On that note, a Jaguar XJ13 Continuation Series would be totally rad.
Designed by the same Malcolm Sayer who penned the C-Type, D-Type, E-Type, and XJS, the bite-the-back-of-your-hand beautiful XJ13 never got to race due to a handful of reasons. First and foremost, endurance racing regulations limited engine capacity to 3.0 liters, rendering the 5.0-liter freely aspirated V12 tower-of-power in the XJ13 obsolete.
Secondly, Jaguar test driver Norman Dewis crashed the bejesus out of the one-off go-faster machine in 1971 at the MIRA proving ground. Happily, however, the wrecked XJ13 was rebuilt to an almost exact specification. But the truth of the matter is, the XJ13 never got to race, not did it ever got into the hands of private owners as a limited run.
These circumstances could change if the Jaguar Land Rover Classic division can make a case for it. As discovered by Autocar, the automaker has applied for the XJ13 word mark this August. The fine print reads “motor land vehicles” and “toys, games, and playthings.” Given this information, this word mark application might translate into a Continuation Series, a similar formula to what Jaguar has done with the XKSS and Lightweight E-Type.
But this unfounded hope could turn out to be just wishful thinking. As per Autocar: “A Jaguar spokesperson denied the possibility of the XJ13 being remade by Jaguar’s heritage division, and stated that the filing of trademarks is standard practice.” Then again, isn't it standard practice for PR boys and girls to deny any information whatsoever regarding future models?
On that note, a Jaguar XJ13 Continuation Series would be totally rad.
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