Supercars are cars that statement cars that spare no expense in the name of performance and style. Just about every manufacturer has made them with the intention of getting great press coverage and winning important races. The Alfa Romeo Tipo 33 is good example. According to Brown’s Alfa Romeo of Patchogue, a local Alfa Romeo dealer in Patchogue, NY, the Tipo 33 is a classic supercar. It has been considered to be one of the best-looking roadsters ever made but was actually built to win races, specifically the 24 Heures du Mans or “LeMans.”
Another beautiful automobile is dear to the hearts of British car enthusiasts. The XKSS is a stunning car and never has demand ever been stronger to own one. This probably has something to do with the fact that just a few of them were built back in the 1950s.
Jaguar Motors, of course, knows quite well about the mystique of the XKSS and in 2016 did something unprecedented. They cloned the originals down to rubber in the tires. Here’s the story:
About the XKSS
The dominant European car race in the 1950s was 24 Heures du Mans or just “LeMans.” To win at LeMans was the highest honor that could be bestowed on a car manufacturer and Sir William Lyons, the president of Jaguar, wanted that honor. To accomplish this, Jaguar built an exotic racecar called the “D-Type” just to compete at LeMans and in 1954, they won the race. D-type Jaguars also won the LeMans in 1955 and 1956. With three consecutive wins at Lemans under their belt, Jaguar had now earned its position as a World class racecar manufacturer.
After its last LeMans race Jaguar decided to retire from the racing circuits—leaving several D-Type racing chassis unused. After some thought, Sir William Lyons decided to do something interesting; he decided to transform these leftover chassis into elite sports cars available to the general public. They would be similar to the racing D-types but would have some creature comforts for day-to-day use. They name of this new model was the KKSS.
The XKSS quickly became a motoring legend, ultimately ensnaring gearheads like Steve McQueen and famous drivers. The company planned to produce 100, but on February 12, 1957, a fire ravaged Jaguar’s factory and destroyed nine of the 25 XKSS builds in progress—along with all of the production equipment involved in their production.
Enter the clones
Fast forward 60 years and Jaguar is celebrating its 60th birthday. For this milestone, the brass at Jaguar embarked on something quite unusual. For the first time in its history, select Jaguar engineers became historic car replicators; they were tasked with building just 10 copies of the 1957 XKSS bolt for bolt without a single original or restored part. Here are the remarkable details:
The sheet metal
The metal used for the body (minus the hood and tailgate) of the original XKSS was a magnesium alloy. Unfortunately, this alloy is no longer available. According to Kev Riches, head of Jaguar Heritage Engineering, the team turned to “the closest substitute,” a 5,000 spec series aluminum material.
The bodywork
The metal bodywork of the clone XKSS run would shaped by hand just like the 1957 version. And it was done by several direct descendants of the same Warwickshire men who shaped out the originals. Because it was assembled by hand, the 1957 XKSS had irregularities and panel gaps that no modern automaker would allow today but they were designed into the clone XKSS cars to maximize authenticity. Even the rivets were the same. Over 2000 of them were made out of the original 1957 alloys and each was hand-set into the bodywork.
The powerplant
The original XKSS had a highly modified version of the production dual cam, straight-six engine. Along with the five speed gearbox and torsion bar suspension, the engine was custom made from scratch for ten clone XKSS cars.
The tires
Even the tires were replicated as closely as possible to the originals. Dunlop, which made the original tires for the XKSS, dove into their archives to recreate the exact rubber material of that era. This was not an easy task but with original tire molds, they fashioned tires which are exactly like the originals.
The leather
Jaguars are famous for their beautiful Connelly leather interiors. However, modern improvements in tanning techniques create leathers that are quite different from the leathers of the 1950s. In order to create absolute authenticity, Jaguar had the leather upholstery made the exact way it was in the 1950s. This included the tanning and dyeing process.
Car zero
Jaguar built 10 XKSS racecars in total. The first assembled vehicle will never go on sale, serving as a testing and show vehicle. Car Zero underwent extensive track shakedowns before clearing the way for the nine sold builds. It made its world debut at the 2016 Los Angeles Auto Show.
Want one?
Sorry, all nine XKSS clones are spoken for. They were purchased sight unseen days after Jaguar announced the project in April 2016. Considering the effort that was put into manufacturing these uber-replicas, they weren’t cheap. Jaguar never announced the price of the XKSS clones but the cars are believed to have be purchased for close to $2 million each.
