TWR debuts supercat, a super-GT car inspired by jaguar XJS

Supercat by TWR is a super-GT car inspired by Jaguar XJS

TWR unveils the Supercat, its recent Super-GT car whose design elements are inspired primarily by the Jaguar XJS as well as some of the car manufacturer’s racing vehicles, including the XJR-9, XJR-15, and the XJ220 supercar. First previewed during the summer of 2024, the Supercat has finally lifted off its veil to reveal its long, sculpted, carbon-bodied bonnet at the front, which conceals a supercharged V12 engine, and a structure has been reinforced with an integrated tubular steel framework. The engine is developed in-house by the TWR engineers, and it can produce up to 660bhp and 730Nm of torque.

For the body panels of the TWR Supercat, the design team opts for carbon fiber, and the Super-GT car ends up with a 9.3 percent reduction in its total weight of 1,605 kilos compared to the original Jaguar XJS, which weighs 1,770 kilos. The vehicle features rear-wheel drive and a six-speed manual gearbox, as well as the option for carbon ceramic disc brakes, fully programmable traction control, launch control, and five distinct driving modes, each of which can enable drivers to tailor the car’s dynamics to suit various road and track conditions.

all images courtesy of TWR

flying buttresses from jaguar xjs to TWR supercat

Before stepping inside the TWR Supercar, the exterior can already draw attention with its singular steel color and sculpted look. The sides bear punctuated and embossed lines, and the expanded front has grilles on the bonnet for ventilation and to add aggressiveness to the Super-GT car’s overall look. The star of the show may be the rear, as the upper tail peaks like a surfer’s wave. These design elements hark back to the Jaguar XJS’ profile. They both share the signature silhouette, flying buttresses, and front-end graphic, and TWR remains faithful to its long-standing relationship with the Jaguar marque by staying true to the design features that make it distinctive.

For the Super-GT car, TWR also reshapes the Jaguar XJS’ flying buttresses so they’re optimized for airflow from the body to the rear haunches. They also flatten the floorpain and couple it with a fully re-engineered rear splitter, so the Supercar can handle the additional generated downforce. Because of this adjustment, the exhaust system has to be repositioned from the rear to the side of the car. Yes, the TWR Supercar car is a bit more lightweight than the Jaguar XJS, but no, it’s width isn’t the same because the engineering team increases that of the Super-GT’s from 1,793mm to 1,975mm. This allows for the TWR Forged Monoblok wheels, sized at 18 inches at the front and 19 inches at the rear, to fit, also bigger compared to the 15-inch ones on the original XJS.

TWR unveils the Supercat, its recent Super-GT car

Leather-covered interiors inside the super-GT car

Inside the TWR Supercat, it’s a leather fest. The carbon fiber-backed leather seats are available in a contemporary design or a ‘heritage’ option, referencing the original XJS seat louvres, and most of the interior’s design is covered in leather, from the door panels to the steering wheel and dashboard. This is TWR’s way of paying homage to the Jaguar XJS while modernizing it by installing a fully digital multimedia interface with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility. Even the suspension and steering settings are easily adjusted using an intuitive toggle interface.

The Supercat has been engineered by a team representing some known names in motorsport, including McLaren, Ferrari, Porsche, Williams, and Renault F1. The group is led by TWR director and co-founder Fergus Walkinshaw, whose father, Tom Walkinshaw, drove Jaguars to victory in the European Touring Car Championship, Spa 24 Hours, and Bathurst during the 1980s. TWR’s pool of orders for the Supercat is now open, and the Jaguar XJS-inspired model is only limited to 88 units worldwide, an honor to Tom Walkinshaw’s famous win with the XJR-9 at Le Mans in 1988. The first delivery of the model is expected in the summer of 2025.

TWR Supercat’s design elements are inspired primarily by the Jaguar XJS