Jaguar’s iconic XJ220 gets a modern makeover with Wild A

Fancy a tune based on Jaguar’s first supercar? Kyzyl Salim May Have the Answer

Jaguar may have entered a new era of all-electric vehicles with a controversial brand and styling relaunch campaign, but there was a time when its designs were widely regarded as beautiful. The XJ220 wasn’t as popular as the struggling automaker needed it to be in the early ’90s, thanks in part to the Bugatti EB110 and McLaren F1, but it went down in history as an iconic car.

Independent designer Khyzyl Saleem has given Jaguar’s first supercar a major visual upgrade, bringing it into the modern era. Saleem is no stranger to classic Jaguars, as he was most recently responsible for the exterior design of the TWR Supercat, a wild modification based on the XJS. Unlike the latter, the updated XJ220 is not intended for production, but is more of a spare project.

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The designer’s goal was to create something “still recognizable but different in its own right.” Much of the XJ220’s bodywork has been tweaked to make it look more like a modern supercar. The highlight is the noticeably wider fenders, which swap the original’s slender, elegant figure for a more aggressive stance.

The front bumper features additional side air intakes with integrated daytime running lights and a large splitter made of carbon fiber. The same material is also used on the oversized rear wing and the signature air vents at the base of the windshield.

Illustration: Khyzyl Saleem

At the rear, the Rover-derived taillights have been replaced by slimmer, darker LED lights, combined with a larger carbon fiber diffuser with twin tailpipes. The designers also added some references to the Jaguar C-X75, which could be the successor to the XJ220 if it ever goes into production. Finally, the imaginary supercar rides on a new set of center-lock wheels with wider tires

Overall, the KS220 (as the designers call it) looks like a racing version of the XJ220. There’s no mention of any updates for the twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6 engine, which produces 542 hp (405 kW/550 hp) when factory-tuned. The modified XJ220 could easily be swapped for something more exciting – perhaps the V12 and AWD combo originally intended by Jaguar itself.

While the model is likely to remain digital, the renderings may inspire wealthy owners of the XJ220 to upgrade their supercars to make them even more unique. We’ll leave it to you to decide whether this is a good thing or not.