The engineering minds from Jaguar Design, Jaguar Land Rover's Special Vehicles (SV) department and Jaguar Racing - the British marque's race-winning ABB FIA Formula E World Championship outfit - came together to build on the Vision Gran Turismo Coupe which debuted in the legendary Gran Turismo series back in 2019.
What they came up with was a heritage-inspired design that pays homage to its illustrious sportscars such as the C-Type, D-Type, XJR-9 and XJR-14 whilst taking detailed analysis of feedback from the sim racing and gaming community to optimise the Vision GT SV's ride and handling to create the perfect virtual endurance racer.
Jaguar made use of its Formula E know-how, with Jaguar Racing pooling libraries of electric motorsport knowledge learned over six successive seasons in the championship iterating its I-TYPE, with that of the company's SV engineers to provide technological solutions for the motors, cooling and powertrain.
A pair of motors at the front provide a combined 402bhp (300kW) with two more at the rear giving a maximum output of 536bhp (400kW) between them, for a total of 1,903PS (1,400kW) and 3,360Nm of instant torque - launching the GT SV from 0-60mph (100kph) in just 1.65 seconds, with a top speed of 255mph (410km/h).
The front axle was strengthened to cope with the higher power and torque ratings whilst the car's thermal management system was also tailored to suit both the quad-motor setup and its endurance racing brief with the addition of an extra liquid nitrogen circuit to keep the motors within operating temperatures at all times, even under the most strenuous racing conditions.
Each motor also has its own bespoke single-speed transmission, delivering the traction and dynamics benefits that come with intelligent all-wheel drive and torque vectoring - where any amount of power and torque available from any motor can be fired on-demand to any corner of the car at a given time.
The car is powered by a lithium-ion battery pack housed low down in the GT SV's lightweight, stiff body structure for a low centre of gravity and optimal weight distribution.
Jaguar Racing's computational fluid dynamics modelling - used to perfect the I-TYPE's form - helped make the car's body as slippery and efficient as possible whilst still offering optimal downforce when required, through a movable rear wing. The car also uses the I-TYPE 5's sustainably-sourced TYPEFIBRE materials in its seats and interior.
"Working on the development of Jaguar’s Formula E I-TYPE race cars in parallel with the Vision Gran Turismo SV has given the Jaguar Racing engineers an unprecedented opportunity to apply their expertise to two incredible electric race cars – our most advanced Formula E car yet, and an endurance racer for the virtual world," said James Barclay, Jaguar Racing's Team Director.
"Both have been designed and developed using state-of-the-art simulation tools to push all-electric powertrain and software technology to the limit, and we can’t wait to see them perform in Season 7 and Gran Turismo."
"Jaguars created for the race track and the road have always shared the same DNA – whether that’s the D-type and XKSS, or the I-PACE and the I-TYPE," added Jaguar Design Director Julian Thomson.
"So, when the design team behind the Vision GT Coupe were asked to create the ultimate electric gaming endurance racer for Gran Turismo, they worked with engineers from SV and Jaguar Racing to create something really special.
"In bringing this car to life with a full-size design study we’ve been able to showcase the most extreme version of an electric Jaguar race car that is inspired by the past but looks fearlessly to the future."