Reputedly signed off by company chairman Sir John Egan only a week before its debut at the 1988 Birmingham Auto show, the reception of Jaguar’s clandestinely developed XJ220 prototype was nothing short of rapturous. Jaguar fever swept the show halls, and within an hour some 1,500 people had placed a pre-order for the new car, each laying down a £50,000 deposit to secure their production slot.

Among the headline-grabbing innovations was a naturally aspirated 6.2-litre V-12 engine further to four-wheel drive, rear-wheel steering, and anti-lock brakes. All was clothed in effortlessly elegant, Helfet-styled aluminium coachwork that drew inspiration from the legendary D-Type, E-Type, and XJ13.

Jaguar and TWR subsequently established JaguarSport Ltd., which would produce the XJ220 in limited numbers at a new dedicated facility. However, emissions compliance issues necessitated the replacement of the prototype’s V-12 engine with a 3.5-litre V-6 twin-turbo equivalent. Additionally, the four-wheel drive and rear-wheel steering systems were also discarded on the grounds of cost and complexity.

Nevertheless, the 542 brake horsepower production version crucially retained the prototype’s spectacular looks and performance. It reached 100 km/h in just 3.6 seconds—quicker than the Ferrari F40, Porsche 959, and Lamborghini Diablo—while its headline top speed of 343 km/h made it, until the arrival of the McLaren F1, the world’s fastest production car.

Fewer than 300 of these special cars were built, among them chassis 220673, which was marked as manufactured on 22 November 1993 and left JaguarSport’s manufacturing facility on 19 January 1994, finished in Silverstone Green over a Sand leather interior. First registered during September 1996, at some point during prior ownership, the car was professionally repainted in its elegant, non-standard shade of Dark Grey.

By 2015, XJ220 number 265 resided in Switzerland, where it was previously registered in Bern as “BE3459” before its purchase by the consignor during June 2020. In February 2018, this XJ220 was submitted to model specialist Don Law Racing for more than £19,000 of servicing which included a comprehensive engine servicing, brake system upgrade, new seals, belts, gaskets, and lines, as well as the fitment of optional BBS light alloy mesh wheels wrapped in Bridgestone tyres.

Since acquiring this spectacular limited-production supercar, the consignor has added approximately 300 kilometers of fair-weather use, and as presented today this XJ220’s odometer shows just 4,492 kilometers from new. Maintenance duties have been entrusted to Rebellion Motors of Lausanne, and while in their care the car has received nearly 5,800 CHF-worth of sorting and fine tuning to its fuel system, and electricals.