RE: Callum 'fulfils the potential' with ultimate C-X75

RE: Callum 'fulfils the potential' with ultimate C-X75

Wednesday 30th October

Callum 'fulfils the potential' with ultimate C-X75

It is understandable Ian Callum regards the Jaguar as a missed opportunity. For the second time, he has another go


Callum, you may recall, has turned its attention to the Jaguar C-X75 before. And who can blame it? The existence of stunt cars from its fondly-remembered appearance in Spectre means there is an opportunity to revisit one of the great near-misses of the 21st century. And while the previous conversion was very much about getting the customer commission through its IVA certification, this one is said to go far beyond that. 

The supercharged V8 remains, but is now mated to a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission and has been re-engineered for improved drivability. It’s adaptive, too, with a more dynamic sporting mode available at the touch of a button. To complement what Callum says is ‘increased performance’, the firm has developed a bespoke active aero package that is said to provide additional downforce above 40mph, and even includes an air brake function. 

The original wheels remain (who would dream of replacing them?) although they now feature Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tyres. Callum reckons over 1,000 hours of craftsmanship has gone into perfecting the body, some of it into ensuring a more precise alignment of the body panels and applying some new aluminium details, but also in giving it a new lustrous paint finish in something called Willow Green. 

Still, the most serious work has been undertaken inside, where the merely functional stunt car cockpit has been replaced by a ‘driver-centric, premium environment’. There’s green at work in here, too, although it’s the plunging centre console, with three rotary controls, each with integrated touchscreens and all angled toward the driver, that draws the eye. That and the new instrument cluster (oof - those dials); to preserve the minimalist look, all the other controls are located on a roof-mounted console above the driver’s head, including the starter switch. 

We’re partial to the steering wheel (machined from a solid billet to the customer’s specifications) and the new Bridge of Weir leather sports seats don’t look half bad either. Callum says that the introduction of a digital rear-view mirror, electronic park brake and an immobiliser - fiddly, time-consuming jobs all - shows the level of detail it has committed to in the transformation process. 

“C-X75 was ‘the one that got away’ – a car brimming with unfulfilled potential,” reckons Ian Callum himself, who of course led the team that created the car in 2010 and is now design director and co-founder of the company that bears his name. “We’ve combined the customer’s wishes with carefully engineered solutions to bring C-X75 to the thoroughly satisfying conclusion it always deserved.” No word on price, naturally. But, clearly, this was a labour of love for someone. Let's hope they get to enjoy it on the road for a little while at least. 


Author
Discussion

pycraft

Original Poster:

925 posts

191 months

Wednesday 30th October
quotequote all
Oh my goodness, that is fabulous.

wistec1

450 posts

48 months

Wednesday 30th October
quotequote all
Mr Callum knows how to do automotive beauty and this is another looker for sure. Not convinced about the rocket launchers on the dash but otherwise it looks amazing.

Edited by wistec1 on Wednesday 30th October 05:34

Jamesas86

19 posts

101 months

Wednesday 30th October
quotequote all
Lovely

MOOSECORTINA

192 posts

86 months

Wednesday 30th October
quotequote all
Come on Jaguar, this is what you should be producing.

Arrivalist

593 posts

6 months

Wednesday 30th October
quotequote all
One of the most fabulous cars never to go into production.

200Plus Club

11,186 posts

285 months

Wednesday 30th October
quotequote all
Striking!

rodericb

7,256 posts

133 months

Wednesday 30th October
quotequote all
wistec1 said:
Mr Callum knows how to do automotive beauty and this is another looker for sure. Not convinced about the rocket launchers on the dash but otherwise it looks amazing.

Edited by wistec1 on Wednesday 30th October 05:34
A tip of the hat to the Bugatti Chiron?

Frankychops

987 posts

16 months

Wednesday 30th October
quotequote all
Looks like a McLaren gt/gts

Rostyle

54 posts

82 months

Wednesday 30th October
quotequote all
With looks like that it doesnt really matter how it drives. Callum has always been a great designer . I wonder if greedy old JLR classic are looking at this and thinking they can do a limited production run , its not as though Jaguar are busy making you know actual cars at the moment .

EmailAddress

13,566 posts

225 months

Wednesday 30th October
quotequote all
Oh my.

Robertb

2,092 posts

245 months

Wednesday 30th October
quotequote all
Utterly stunning. One of the best looking cars ever built.

Such a crying shame Jaguar never built a simpler production version themselves with the venerable V8, at Maserati MC20 money. Would have sold like hot cakes.

Kipsrs

512 posts

56 months

Wednesday 30th October
quotequote all
WoW. . . That is stunning! Bravo clap

CKY

1,928 posts

22 months

Wednesday 30th October
quotequote all
STILL not got the gas turbine engine of the concept car, yes it looks pretty but I wouldn't say this has got anywhere nearing fulfilling the potential of this car.

Slowlygettingit

716 posts

48 months

Wednesday 30th October
quotequote all
Thought it looked great at the time but don’t think the front end has aged well.

Sporky

7,277 posts

71 months

Wednesday 30th October
quotequote all
CKY said:
STILL not got the gas turbine engine of the concept car, yes it looks pretty but I wouldn't say this has got anywhere nearing fulfilling the potential of this car.
That's what I was thinking. Also I'm not sure about the back.

But it is pretty.

Augustus Windsock

3,467 posts

162 months

Wednesday 30th October
quotequote all
A shame that this will never go into production.
For those of us of a certain age, it makes me think of the lost opportunity that was the 1978 XJ Spider (albeit that was an independent design study iirc?)


pycraft

Original Poster:

925 posts

191 months

Wednesday 30th October
quotequote all
Robertb said:
Utterly stunning. One of the best looking cars ever built.

Such a crying shame Jaguar never built a simpler production version themselves with the venerable V8, at Maserati MC20 money. Would have sold like hot cakes.
To be fair, my understanding is that the MC20 has not sold well; however much we wanted this, JLR probably made the right business call.

supacool1

550 posts

186 months

Wednesday 30th October
quotequote all
That is stunning. But then the original concept car was a stunner as well. Not sure they would have got the Gas turbine to pass emissions for road use though...

BigChiefmuffinAgain

1,218 posts

105 months

Wednesday 30th October
quotequote all
pycraft said:
Robertb said:
Utterly stunning. One of the best looking cars ever built.

Such a crying shame Jaguar never built a simpler production version themselves with the venerable V8, at Maserati MC20 money. Would have sold like hot cakes.
To be fair, my understanding is that the MC20 has not sold well; however much we wanted this, JLR probably made the right business call.
Agreed - the market for something like this is always small, while the development costs aren't. For a perennially cash strapped company like Jaguar, it would have been very hard to make any sort of sensible business case for this. They would still have had memories of the XJ220....

WPA

10,153 posts

121 months

Wednesday 30th October
quotequote all
That is fabulous and still looks stunning now, you can fully understand however Jaguar never making them as it would never have sold in big numbers.