The second collector’s edition by SVO, following the successful F-Type Project 7 of 2014, Project 8 is a hand-built four-door saloon with supercar performance – designed to thrill driving enthusiasts, with an extraordinary combination of explosive power, dynamic agility and all-wheel-drive traction.
To ensure exclusivity, no more than 300 examples will be created, each assembled at SVO’s Technical Centre in Coventry.
Project 8 exclusively features the most highly tuned version of Jaguar Land Rover’s 5-litre supercharged V8 petrol powertrain. The 600bhp power unit, which has a Titanium Variable Active Exhaust, is complemented by Jaguar’s All-Wheel-Drive (AWD) system and motorsport-derived aerodynamics to deliver a 321km/h top speed and 0-100km/h in about 3.3 seconds, making Project 8 the fastest accelerating Jaguar yet.
Fundamental to the performance of the most track-focused car SVO has ever produced, Project 8 features a number of purposeful modifications to the award-winning XE’s lightweight aluminium body panels, including a carbon fibre bumper with enhanced cooling ducts, vented carbon fibre bonnet, flared bodywork covering 20-inch forged aluminium alloy wheels, adjustable front Splitter, flat underbody, rear carbon fibre bumper, rear diffuser and adjustable rear aerodynamic wing.
Project 8 will be the lightest V8 saloon in the Jaguar range.
To ensure optimum performance on road or track, Project 8 endows the XE’s double-wishbone front and integral-link rear suspension with stiffer springs and manually adjustable continuously variable dampers (giving a 15mm lower ride height for track use), debuts a new carbon-ceramic braking system, an industry-first use of Formula 1-style silicon nitride ceramic wheel bearings on a road car, and incorporates a rear electronic active differential (EAD) with oil cooler – a first for XE.
The high-performance theme continues inside, with subtle applications of gloss carbon fibre trim, as well as Alcantara, on the rim of the Project 8 sport steering wheel, instrument binnacle and door cards.
The 8-speed Quickshift transmission can either be operated by aluminium paddle-shifters behind the steering wheel or by a central Pistolshift lever – another first for XE.
Project 8 is also the first Jaguar to feature a dedicated Track Mode, which tailors driveline and stability control systems for circuit use, and sharpens both throttle and steering responses for ultimate precision and driver feedback. 
Read our review of the Jaguar XE.
