YAHOO AUTOS
By Zach Doell
Face it, if you haven’t been born into or plan to marry into a royal family, your chances of donning the crown are slim to none. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t scoot around in some ex-royal family rides…permitting you have the funds.
Case in point, this 1994 Jaguar XJ220, which was originally owned by the royal family of Brunei. The historic Jaguar will cross the block at Silverstone Auctions’ NEC Classic Motor Show on November 15th, expected to nab a rather princely £200,000 ($349,000).
The Jaguar XJ220 was the halo project of what was once known as Jaguar’s ‘Saturday Club’, a group of engineers who spent nights and weekends tirelessly working away at unofficial side projects. Soon the idea of a V12-toting supercar with all-wheel drive became too attractive for Jaguar to let simmer on the side, so it got the green light.
It would debut as a concept for 1988 boasting 530-horsepower from its V12, though ultimately in production trim it nicked the V6 from the MG Metro 6R4 rally car. The twin-turbocharged engine produced 540-horsepower and would propel the car up to 217 mph, making it the fastest production car in the world at the time…until the dawn of the McLaren F1.
TWR Jaguar built this royal example – chassis number 220693 – in 1991 before promptly shipping it off to Brunei where it covered very few miles. In 2002 the Jag made its way back to the UK with only 1,412 miles on the clock and began its second life in the hands of a champagne dealer, before arriving to the current seller. According to the posting, it’s listed in excellent shape having undergone extensive work inside and out in 2007.
Only 281 XJ220s have ever graced this earth. With less than 6,000 miles on the clock, factory documents, and immaculate visuals – this might be one of the best.
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