Jaguar Launches Production Of Turbine Engines For C-X75 Supercar

Jaguar’s parent company, Tata, has formally opened the factory that will build the gas turbines for the Jaguar C-X75 supercar. The Bladon Jets Engineering Centre in Coventry will employ 15 people and house the equipment for the production of micro gas turbines, which the company has a patent for. The 95bhp turbines weigh 35kg each, have fewer moving parts than an internal combustion engine and don’t need oil lubrication or water cooling, which offers packaging and weight advantages. In the C-X75, they will combine with four independent electric motors at each wheel to send the Jaguar from 0-62mph in 3.4sec, give it a range of 560 miles and emit a mere 28g/km of CO2. Only a handful of C-X75s will be fitted with the turbines, despite Tata owning a stake in Bladon. The majority of cars, which aren’t expected to arrive until 2015, instead will run a four-cylinder turbo engine developed by Formula One team Williams.