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The Jaguar XKSS: A Road-Going Version of the Le Mans-Winning D-Type

The Jaguar XKSS is a rare and highly sought-after car. The Jaguar D-Type race car's road-going adaptation was first made in 1957. There were only ever 16 produced before the remaining nine cars were lost in a factory fire. Jaguar said in 2016 that it would produce nine further XKSS cars to finish the initial batch. Some people even assert that the Jaguar XKSS was the first supercar ever built.

A 3.4-liter inline-six engine with a double overhead camshaft and 250 horsepower propelled the Jaguar XKSS. Additionally, it included a four-speed fully synchronized manual transmission and three Weber 45DC03 carburetors. The straight six variants of the XKSS utilized a traditional iron block with R50 aluminum heads. The unique feature was a triple Weber carburetor setup with double-over-head cams that operated two valves per cylinder.

With a top speed of 150 mph and handling to match, the XKSS was sensational. It was only a two-seater with few luxuries, but that wasn't the point of the vehicle. A famous car, the XKSS, was once on the verge of being destroyed by fire. A former owner of an XKSS was actor and racing fanatic Steve McQueen. The 1957-built Jaguar D-Type racing car has been transformed into the Jaguar XKSS for use on public roads.

At the time, just 16 were constructed and sold. In a manufacturing fire that occurred in 1957, nine were lost. Jaguar declared in 2016 that a modest production run of nine "continuation" XKSS copies would be hand-built to the original specs to finish the run of 25 that was initially planned.

The Le Mans-winning D-type, which was produced by Jaguar between 1954 and 1956, was converted to a road-going vehicle in order to create the XKSS, which is frequently described to as the world's first supercar. The XKSS required the requisite modifications in order to be road legal despite the fact that the cars were nearly similar.

1 thought on “The Jaguar XKSS: A Road-Going Version of the Le Mans-Winning D-Type”

  1. Our local doctor had a XKSS. He was on his way for a delivery of a baby.
    He ran into a 1927 Chev that was used to deliver news papers. A handmade aluminium front guard was transported by rail. Silly me nearly destroyed it, as when I picked up the guard, it was lighter than I expected. Thinking it would be heavy, I nearly dropped it. A lot of oohs and aahs were heard, especially the repair guys.
    Oh! He also had a J2 Allard

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