A sports prototype , sometimes referred to simply as a prototype , is a type of race car that is used in the highest-level categories of sports car racing . This is basically a purpose-built sports racing car, as opposed to the street-legal and production-based ones, and is therefore not intended for consumer purchase or production beyond that required to compete in races.
12-523: The Jaguar XJR-9 is a sports-prototype race car built by Jaguar for both FIA Group C and IMSA Camel GTP racing. In 1988, Jaguar's XJR-9 won the 24 Hours of Le Mans , after debuting that year at the 24 Hours of Daytona . An evolution of the design for the XJR-8 , the XJR-9 was designed by Tony Southgate , built by Tom Walkinshaw Racing (TWR) and featured a Jaguar 7.0-litre V12 engine based on
24-570: A great amount of flexibility within set rule parameters. In 1953 - 1984 seasons the World Sportscar Championship titles were awarded to manufacturers of sports prototypes (except of the 1978 - 1981 seasons). In 1985 - 1992 seasons titles were awarded to teams entering sports prototypes (instead of manufacturers of sports prototypes). In historic racing, they are often called "sports racing cars". Sometimes, they are metonymically referred to as "Le Mans cars", as
36-471: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This motorsport-related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . 1978 World Sportscar Championship The 1978 World Sportscar Championship season was the 26th season of FIA World Sportscar Championship motor racing. It featured the 1978 World Championship for Makes, which was contested from 4 February to 3 September 1978 over an eight race series. The 24 Hours of Daytona and
48-529: The 1989 World Sports Prototype Championship , with Jaguar not winning a single race during the series. Midway through the championship, the XJR-11 was developed to replace the XJR-9, although both finished out the season. This disappointment led to Jaguar finishing fourth in the Teams Championship. Within months of Jaguar's 1988 Le Mans victory, TWR would use the XJR-9 chassis for the development of
60-464: The 24 Hours of Le Mans has been closely associated with the category in recent decades and features entries from several of the main championships contested by prototypes. Since the 1960s, various championships have allowed prototypes to compete. However, most championships have had their own set of rules for their prototype classes. Listed here are some of the more commonly known types of prototypes. This sports car racing -related article
72-598: The 1000 km Nürburgring were part of the inaugural FIA World Challenge for Endurance Drivers. The championship was open to cars in Groups 1 to 5, i.e.: Porsche was awarded the overall championship and the Division 2 title for cars with an engine capacity of over 2 litres. BMW was awarded the Division 1 title for cars with an engine capacity of up to 2 litres and Porsche won the GT Cup. Points were awarded to
84-838: The R9R prototype which by 1990 had evolved into the XJR-15 sports car and spec-racer . In 2010, the car won the Le Mans Legend race. Engine Drivetrain Performance figures Sports-prototype Prototype racing cars have competed in sports car racing since before World War II , but became the top echelon of sports cars in the 1960s as they began to replace homologated sports cars. Current ACO regulations allow most sports car series to use two forms of cars: grand tourers (GT cars) , which are strictly based on production street cars, and sports prototypes , which are allowed
96-606: The eleven race series. Silk Cut Jaguar won the Teams Championship and Jaguar driver Martin Brundle won the Drivers title. Jaguar's success at Le Mans marked the first time since 1980 that Porsche had not won Le Mans, and the first Le Mans victory for Jaguar since 1957 . For 1989, the XJR-9 was again entered in both IMSA Camel GTP and the World Sports Prototype Championship . However, the XJR-9
108-492: The overall win. However, throughout the rest of the IMSA Camel GTP season the XJR-9 was unable to gain another win until the final race of the season, meaning the team had to settle for third in the constructor's championship. In the 1988 World Sports Prototype Championship , the XJR-9, running Silk Cut sponsorship, met with more success. The XJR-9 was able to take six victories, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans , over
120-702: The production 5.3-litre engine as used in the Jaguar XJS road car. A variant of the XJR-9, the XJR-9LM, would be developed specifically for the 24 Hours of Le Mans where the requirement for high straight line speeds on the Mulsanne Straight necessitated a low-drag aerodynamic package. In the United States, the Castrol sponsored XJR-9s debuted at the 24 Hours of Daytona , with the car taking
132-410: The top 10 finishers in each division on a 20-15-12-10-8-6-4-3-2-1 basis. Manufacturers were only allocated points for their highest finishing car with no points awarded for positions filled by any other car from that manufacturer. Only the best six points finishes could be retained towards the championship, with any other points earned not included in the total. The overall championship was awarded to
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#1732790230710144-521: Was by now dated, and in IMSA was being repeatedly beaten by Nissan , leaving the XJR-9 with only a single win on the season. This led to Jaguar introducing the XJR-10 midway through the season, which met with slightly better success having two wins on the season and usually placing higher than the XJR-9 it ran with. At the end of the season, Jaguar finished 2nd in the championship. A similar story occurred in
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