Historic Jaguar back on track

Racing driver Andy Wallace has been reunited with his 1988 Le Mans-winning Jaguar XJ-R9 LM at Silverstone.

Andy also got bang up to date during his day-and-night track sessions, also driving the new 550PS, 5.0-litre supercharged V8 Jaguar XJR.

Driving at night on the Silverstone circuit gave Andy the opportunity to test the new LED headlights on the XJ road car – a first for Jaguar.

“Driving at Le Mans back in 1988, it was so hard to see at night,” Andy explained.

“We were travelling at around 240mph and it was too fast to see the road ahead. We used the lights more to catch glimpses of landmarks as they whizzed past, so we knew where we were.

“These days, modern road cars have incredible lights. LED technology allows you to see three times the distance we could back then, while active steer and bend also help target the lights to the places you want to see.

“As a driver, whether you’re cruising on the road or pushing for performance on track, that level of vision really helps to give you confidence and that improves safety, performance and precision.

“I would love to have had the modern lights we have now on the XJR9-LM.”