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Setting the pace: a trip to Le Mans with Jaguar
By Rory FH Smith | 7 September 2022 | Cars & Yachts, Travel
Raise a glass to a titan of motorsport, as we celebrate the brand’s historic 1988 Le Mans win with the brand new F-Pace SVR Edition 1988
Since the 17th century, champagne and success have been inseparable bedfellows. Aside from its early association with European royalty, who adopted it as the drink of choice for celebrations, the sparkling wine has long links with sporting achievement; none more so than in the glamourous world of motorsport.
Depending who you ask, there are two characters linked to the popularisation of champagne in motorsport. The first was Count Frédéric Chandon de Briailles – otherwise known as the Champagne Count – who was rumoured to have handed out bottles of the stuff to the winners of the French Grand Prix in the 1930s, when it was held at the historic Rimes circuit in the heart of the country’s Champagne region.
The second was legendary racer Dan Gurney, who stood atop of the podium after winning the gruelling 1967 Le Mans 24 Hours race. When a fresh magnum of champagne was handed to him, he popped the cork, put his thumb over the top and shook it vigorously, spraying all around him, including his team boss, Henry Ford II, son of the founder of the mighty American carmaker.
From those two moments, champagne – or more precisely the spraying of it – has become the quintessential sign of motorsport success. Now, 55 years on from Gurney’s defining moment, I find myself on something of a to celebrate another momentous moment in motorsport history – Jaguar’s Le Mans win in 1988.
My mode of transport to get to the French region is none other than the latest special edition F-Pace SVR Edition 1988, which pays homage to the iconic purple and gold Silk Cut liveried, wedge-shaped Jaguar XJR-9 that took the chequered flag that very year.
While Jaguar’s F-Pace SUV might not seem like the natural candidate to reference a sleek, slippery and brutal Le Mans racer, its gloss purple paint job and champagne gold rims certainly make an impact. Aside from the not-so-subtle exterior touches, the Edition 1988 is every bit as aggressive as the regular F-Pace SVR. Setting eyes on it for the first time in Mayfair on a still summer morning, I can confirm that the Jaguar wears its potentially risky mix of paint shades well. Black in some lights and glittering amethyst in others, the Edition 1988’s purple paintwork stands apart from the sea of black, grey and silver cars drifting alongside as I pull through the city and out towards the south coast.
As one of only 394 that will be made worldwide, the quantity references the exact number of laps the XJR-9 completed at Le Mans in 1988 – and, handily, the exact number of miles I’ll be travelling down to the Champagne region to toast the new car and Jaguar’s mighty motorsport past.
Nestled in the comfort of the SVR’s sports seats, the subtle touches on the interior, including the open-pore carbon fibre, the 1988 badging and gold details are easy to live with and enhance the experience, serving as a reminder of the car’s exclusivity. Even on long blasts down the French motorway, it’s a delightful place to watch the golden fields and rolling hills rush by as I aim south, in the direction of Reims.
Sporting Jaguar’s 5.0-litre V8 supercharged petrol engine under the bonnet, the Edition 1988 is capable of making the 0-60mph dash in just 3.8 secondsandcanrunontoatopspeedof178mph. With all-wheel drive and 542 bhp to play with, the temptation to blast out of the gates at every toll is difficult to resist. With Sport mode selected and the active exhaust engaged, the sound the Edition 1988 makes as it scurries off in a hurry is monstrous; as is the feeling inside as the F-Pace heads towards the horizon like a scalded animal. In an age where new combustion cars are hard to come by, Jaguar’s latest creation is a full-fat, V8- engined cat with a penchant for performance.
Once off the main roads and close to my final destination, I make an important detour to the remains of the historic racing circuit outside Reims. Once home to the French Grand Prix, the Reims-Gueux circuit held races between 1926 and 1972 – a period that saw Jaguar make history with several victories.
The first came with Sir Stirling Moss behind the wheel of the legendary C-type, where he won in 1952 and 1953, before the equally iconic D-type followed up with more wins in 1954 and 1956 on the circuit. In short, the eerie remains of the Reims circuit still ring to the sound of Jaguar’s mighty motorsport past – something I bear in mind as the noise of the Edition 1988 reverberates around the site while I blast off down the start-finish straight towards my final destination.
The twisting, switchback roads that weave their way through the 34,300 hectares of vineyards in the Champagne region are a welcome change from the monotony of the motorway. Not only is it a treat to chuck the athletic F-Pace through the turns but they lead to my destination, the Royal Champagne Hotel and Spa. Parked up and cooling off in the evening sun, Jaguar’s latest limited edition makes for an enormously fun way to travel, while its unique colours and details reference the marque’s many moments of motorsport success over the years. For a brand that envisions its future in electric cars ( from 2025), the Edition 1988 is an apt send-off for its raucous supercharged V8. While Jaguar’s future is yet to be seen, whatever comes next will be building on a racing and road car heritage like no other.
As I stand overlooking thousands of hectares of vines and wine production, the hotel and its Michelin-star restaurant is the ideal place to raise a glass at the end of a long day of driving. While I won’t be spaying it quite like Gurney, or handing out bottles like the Champagne Count, sipping on a wine that’s grown a stone’s throw from where I’m standing is a wonderful way to toast Jaguar’s mighty racing past.