Jaguar Considering Lighter F-Type, May Get Powertrain from the C-X75 Concept

The limited edition Jaguar F-Type Project 7, revealed at the Goodwood Festival of Speed last week, is not only the fastest and most powerful production Jaguar ever made, but also the lightest F-Type to date. Thanks to its an all-aluminum body and other weight-saving measures, the car weighs 1,585 kg (3,494 lbs) – 80 kg (176 lbs) less than the F-Type Roadster it’s based on.

However, Jaguar is looking to develop an even lighter model, one that would use innovative powertrain technology from the stillborn C-X75 hypercar, including the 1.6-liter supercharged and turbocharged engine.

“The Project 7 is 80kg lighter, but there are smaller engines that start from a lower point. Will the Project 7 be the lightest ever? I’m not sure, but we haven’t invented it yet,” Paul Newson, director of Jaguar Land Rover’s Special Vehicle Operations division, told Auto Express.

One way to come up with a lighter F-Type would be to use the 1.6-liter engine from the C-X75, which produces 500hp and revs to 10,000 rpm. “We designed that engine for a £1million supercar, so it’s extremely expensive. But it could work well,” Newson said. “Who can say where we’ll go in the future? The world is downsizing with high-pressure engines. In the longer term, we won’t be using 5.0-litre V8s,” he added.

As for the upcoming products from the SVO division, a source revealed to the publication that two more will arrive at the beginning of next year, with more to follow. The cars are purportedly known internally as Project 8, 9 and 10.

By Dan Mihalascu

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