Jaguar XJS T/A Group 44 #44 Bob Tullius 1981

[JR98]

Scoring hundreds of victories across several American racing series (Including IMSA, SCCA and Trans Am) and several wins at Le Mans, Bob Tullius's Group 44 racing team literally wrote the rule book on how to properly operate a race team as a business. From gleaming facilities to crisp uniforms and flawless preperation, Group 44 is still held as an example on how to run a successful racing team.

They are well known for running several Group C Jaguar's in the states in the 1980's and they also ran a Jaguar XJS in Trans Am during the 70's as well.

The car was based on a road going XJS with original running ear and started in the GTO class in 1976 with team owner Bob Tullius at the wheel with some decent finishes including 10th in it's debut race at Mosport, 4th in Kent (1st in class) and 5th at Westwood (1st in class) all in it's first year of competition.

Despite these successful finishes and a driver's championship win for Tullius, Jaguar missed out on the Constructor's Championship due to only 2 Jag's competing and the sheer amount of Porsche's in the championship.

The car had an even more successful second season with only 1 DNF and every other finish was in the top 15. In 1978 the car was changed to a steel tube chassis which greatly reduced the car's weight with the only original panel being the roof.

The Group 44 Jag's final season was in 1981 and it managed to get a race win at it's first race of the season and went on to win another race that year before Group 44 stopped competing in Trans Am and focused on Group C racing in IMSA GTP.

The XJS was also used by TWR in the ETCC in 1982 with great success, being far faster than rivals from BMW and Alfa Romeo (Walkinshaw qualified 5 secs quicker than everyone else at Brno). By 1985 the Jaguar XJS was completely retired from motorsport and TWR committed to using the V8 Rover SD5.

Today the XJS continues to be extensively campaigned in club level motorsport both in the United Kingdom and overseas. Best known of the race series is probably the Jaguar Enthusiasts' Club XJS championship, currently in association with Toyo Tires. Their championship has now been running for over a decade, offering an affordable entry into club motorsport in the UK, and continuing to attract large grids of this unlikely racing car. Cars compete in various states of modification, from barely modified road cars through to full race-specification cars built in homage to the great TWR specials.

The steel tube frame car of 1981 is still used extensively in club events across the US while the original factory XJS is presumed to still be in the hands of Group 44.

Specifications:
Body Style: 2 Door Coupe
Length: N/A
Width: N/A
Height: N/A
Wheelbase: N/A
Engine: Jaguar 5.3 V12
Aspiration: Naturally Aspirated
Drivetrain: Front Engine Rear Wheel Drive
Power: N/A
Torque: N/A
Weight: N/A
Transmission: 5 Speed Manual

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