Wednesday, August 17, 2022

Norman Dewis, who was a rear gunner in the RAF during WWII, piloted a modified 1952 XK120 with a small bubble windscreen to win the land speed record for a production car. It became the only Jaguar to hold a land speed record.


known as the ‘Jabbeke’ XK, famed for its 1953 land speed record of 173.159 mph, achieved on Belgium’s Jabbeke Motorway.


Norman Dewis & Jaguar XK 120

 To beat his mile run record, approved in May 1949 on the Jabbeke-Aeltre stretch of motorway at over 213 km/h, then beaten by Pegaso in September 1953 (243 km/h), William Lyons – the president of Jaguar – beats the recall of his troops from any urgency to line up immediately October 1953 a Jaguar XK 120 prepared with an engine pushed in its final stretch. 

Built is 1952, this XK120, registered MDU 524, began life as an original Jaguar Works Competition car and went on to compete in the challenging terrain of the Rallye International des Alpes as its first competitive outing.

Its optimized aerodynamics - narrow tires, removal of any frame, headlight profiling - is even spectacular with this famous bubble that has been debated. 

Indeed, these modifications seem to rather go against the will of the Royal Automobile Club of Belgium, which since 1946 has been organizing speed transfers on a portion of the Brussels-Ostende motorway for cars classified da ns different categories of cylinders.

 Beyond this controversial bubble, the result is no less stunning for the time being: the Jaguar XK 120, driven by chief engineer Norman Dewis, becomes the world's fastest "series car" again with a flying mile of 173 mph !!!

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