December 9, 2024

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TWR Launches the V12 Supercat

TWR has formally unveiled its Supercat — a new Super-GT based on the Jaguar XJS. 

Thanks to the XJS base, the fundamentals of the Supercat are traditional, but with significant upgrades: it’s rear-wheel drive and features a six-speed manual gearbox. It has a supercharged V12 developed in-house by TWR engineers that makes 660 hp and 730Nm of torque.

That said, TWR points out its defining philosophy: great driving cars are not the product of raw power alone. Balance is key, and this car has been given engineering enhancements to ensure dynamic handling.

According to TWR, the body has been stiffened with an integrated, tubular steel structure. Body panels are carbon fiber to deliver a significant weight savings over the original (1,605kg vs 1,770kg, a 9.3% weight reduction).

Carbon ceramic disc brakes are an option, alongside fully programmable traction control, launch control and five distinct driving modes. Double wishbone suspension, augmented by an active dynamic damping system, delivers a composed GT driving experience as well as strong capability when pushed on the track. 

The Supercat was engineered by a team representing many celebrated names of motorsport, including McLaren, Ferrari, Porsche, Williams and Renault F1. The team is led by TWR director and co-founder Fergus Walkinshaw. His father, Tom, the revered constructor and racer behind the original TWR, drove Jaguars to victories in the European Touring Car Championship, Spa 24hrs and Bathurst in the 1980s.

“Almost 40 years after my father’s original company dominated the racetrack, we’ve brought the TWR name roaring back with our new Supercat,” said Fergus Walkinshaw, Director And Founder, TWR. “Our debut product, designed as an authentic, analog Super-GT for the committed driving enthusiast, has been developed for over three years by some of modern motorsport’s brightest talent. Built on the foundations of the classic Jaguar XJS, it uses modern materials and production methods, plus our in-house supercharged V12, to deliver a visceral, immersive driving experience on the road and the track. With production limited to just 88 examples and every car individually commissioned, it’s a chance to own something truly unique and personal, rooted in motorsport history but completely contemporary in its design, engineering and performance.” 

Khyzyl Saleem, leading digital and 3D car concept stylist, is the man behind this car’s silhouette, and the TWR design and creative function were further enhanced by Magnus Walker, whose perspective as a leading future in global car culture was essential in delivering Walkinshaw’s vision of a contemporary TWR car.

Only 88 examples of the Supercat will be available worldwide, in homage to Tom Walkinshaw’s win with the XJR-9 at Le Mans in 1988. The first customer deliveries are expected in the summer of 2025.

Learn more here.

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