The JaguarSport XJR-15 has been called ‘the supercar that time forgot’, and only 50 of these raucous V12-engined sensations were ever built.
In a new book that tells his personal history of the car, Peter Stevens, the model’s designer, offers an entertaining and informative reminder of exactly what made the XJR-15 so special at its launch in 1990, and how this exceedingly rare machine has found a new lease of life in the 21st century. During Concours on Savile Row (May 22-23, 2024), you can now have your book signed by Peter himself.
Published by Porter Press International, this is a detailed, often humorous account of how the master automotive designer helped Tom Walkinshaw to produce a road car that offered its lucky owners the chance to experience some of the sensations of the famous Le Mans-winning Group C Jaguars. Full of behind-the-scenes detail and anecdotes – from Stevens’s initial ideas, to the humble origin of the final tail-lights – it shows how this ground-breaking project produced the world’s first fully carbonfibre road car.
Along the way, Stevens offers fascinating insights into his personal design history and philosophy, from the early influence of his famous uncle – automotive writer Denis Jenkinson – to his years at Lotus working on the Excel, Elan and Esprit, and the amazing period during which he designed the XJR-15 and the McLaren F1.
He also looks back on his long relationship with Tom Walkinshaw, who took Jaguar back to its rightful place at the pinnacle of international sports car racing during the 1980s and early 1990s, and he covers that fondly remembered era in great detail. There’s a full account, too, of the million-dollar XJR-15 Intercontinental Challenge race series that featured famous drivers such as Derek Warwick and David Brabham, and wowed spectators at Monaco, Silverstone and Spa-Francorchamps during 1991.
Limited to 400 copies, JaguarSport XJR-15: A Personal History of the Design and Development of the Legendary Supercar features more than 270 colour photographs and illustrations, plus contemporary sketches, press releases, newspaper articles, magazine stories and internal documents.
Celebrating the launch of his book, Peter Stevens will be signing copies at The Service, 19 Savile Row, London W1S 3PP on Wednesday and Thursday, May 22 and 23, 2024.
More on the JaguarSport XJR-15 book here.