CAN’T AFFORD $240K FOR AN F-TYPE JAG? NEXT BEST THING IS THE $465 RING CAT RIDE
Jaguar’s latest edition to the F-TYPE family, the 200mph (321 km/h) capable SVR, isn’t quite what you’d call a car of the people. With the regular F-TYPE priced from $129,000, the range-topping SVR will be well out of the financial reach of many wanting to experience the full performance potential of Jaguar’s F-Type Coupe.
Jaguar’s incredible F-TYPE SVR arrives in New Zealand later this year and is priced from an eye-watering $240,000 for the coupe, or $255,000 for the SVR convertible.
If that is a little out of your price range never fear, the Nurburgring Nordschleife has come to fans’ rescue, but only for a limited time.
Jag fans can now experience the new F-TYPE SVR and the track known as the Green Hell at the same time, with the launch of the Jaguar Co-Pilot Nordschleife programme.
By booking their place for a flying lap in the special Firesand Orange and sticker-clad F-TYPE SVR, appropriately dubbed the Ring Cat, Jaguar Co-Pilot customers will be among the first to experience the power, speed and enhanced dynamics package of the SVR, while also ticking off their bucket list a high-speed blast around the 20.83km Nordschleife circuit.
Powered by a fettled version of Jaguar’s supercharged 5.0-litre V8 engine, the SVR develops 423kW and 700Nm of torque, which makes it the most powerful F-TYPE, and also means it more than has the performance credentials to make even the Green Hell fly by in a blur.
“The weather at the Nurburgring is famed for being unpredictable and the new Jaguar F-TYPE SVR is the perfect car to tackle the undulating track in variable conditions, said Mark Stanton, the director of Jaguar Land Rover Special Vehicle Operations, the team behind the SVR badge.
“Jaguar Land Rover’s Special Vehicle Operations division has engineered the SVR to be lighter, faster and more powerful, while still remaining a usable supercar every day. The Nordschleife is a fantastic circuit on which to experience all of the engineering enhancements my team has applied to the F-TYPE SV,” said Stanton.
According to Jaguar’s engineers, one 20.8 km lap around the Nordschleife stresses the car’s chassis and drivetrain as much as 200km on a normal road. With such extreme pressures on the car, safety is an important factor for taking the public out on the circuit. As such, the mad scientists in Jaguar Land Rover Special Vehicle Operations fitted the Ring Cat with a roll cage, Recaro Racing seats, and race harnesses.
Before each passenger ride begins, all co-pilots are equipped with a race suit and helmet plus Hans (head and neck support) system to ensure maximum safety on the track. Inside the F-TYPE SVR, mounted on-board cameras capture the lap so passengers can relive their adventure at the Nordschleife circuit while showing off to envious friends.
Passenger laps in the Ring Cat are available for 16 consecutive weekends from now until the end of October. With the price for the 30-minute thrill ride at €295 ($465) a person, the co-pilot programme is one of the best ways we can think of to experience the Nurburgring in all its glory.