The Williams Formula 1 team, which only recently announced its deal with Renault as an engine partner from 2012 sparking rumors about special editions of the French company’s cars like the acclaimed Clio Williams of the past, now says it also wants to expand its cooperation with Jaguar beyond the C-X75 hybrid supercar.
“We would like to become the competition and sporting side of Jaguar” Williams chairman Adam Parr told British magazine Autocar. Parr said that the cooperation in the development of kinetic energy recovery systems (KERS) to be used on the C-X75 is very relevant to Formula 1.
And this technology will be developed even more in the near future since the 2014 rules stipulate that all F1 cars must be powered solely by electric power in the pit lane (Bernie Ecclestone’s objections not withstanding).
“When the C-X75 was first envisaged it was powered by two turbines manufactured by Bladed Jets, which is part owned by Jaguar owner Tata Motors. But we have concentrated on adopting a path that will make the C-X75 the cleanest and more environmentally friendly supercar of all time” said Parr. “So at the moment we are concentrating on a downsized internal combustion engine combined with some pretty amazing kinetic energy recovery systems.”
So, will Jaguar reenter racing and specifically the Le Mans endurance race where it had considerable success in the past? Parr does not confirm nor deny such a possibility: “The C-X75 is not a Le Mans car, of course. But Jaguar had a tremendous record at Le Mans and I think competition and high-performance cars are an area where it’s keen to develop the brand.”
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