2004 Palmer Jaguar JP1 TS and Trailer

• Designed by Jonathan Palmer and Peter Sneller of Zeus Motorsport
• 3.0-litre Cosworth V6 quad-cam producing 277bhp. 0-60mph in 3.6 seconds. 0-100 in 7.6 seconds
• 6-speed sequential Hewland FTR. Powerflow LSD. Weighs approx. 695kg. Adjustable rear wing
• TIG-welded space-frame chassis. 3-section composite bodywork. High downforce-low drag aero
• Maintained in-house by Harwoods Jaguar under their ownership as well as by PalmerSport
• Used for corporate entertainment at Goodwood. Driven by professionals Duncan Tappy and Joe Sacco
• Bought by our vendor from Silverstone Auctions in 2018 and subsequently serviced by PalmerSport
• Bespoke ECO trailer with winch and Powertouch Evolution all-wheel-drive remote control for ease of manoeuvring.

With 83 Formula 1 starts to his name, plus a second at Le Mans in 1985, when Jonathan Palmer was considering a purpose-designed track car for the driving experience events that his company, PalmerSport, held at Bedford Autodrome, he knew what he wanted, and that was something as close as possible to the cars he’d driven at La Sarthe, yet suitable for novices on the tight Bedfordshire circuit.

Palmer found what he was looking for with the Zeus Challenger. Produced in Oxfordshire by Zeus Motorsport Engineering and designed by former racing driver and company boss Peter Sneller, it was powered by a four-cylinder 2.0-litre Toyota engine and was, by all accounts, very fast, its aerodynamics offering competition levels of grip. There was only one, albeit considerable, problem: it was a single-seater and Palmer needed room for the driver and an instructor. For Palmer, the answer was simple – to buy Zeus Motorsport Engineering, and have Sneller widen the steel tube space-frame chassis to make room for a second seat, with help from PalmerSport’s technical team.

The choice of Jaguar’s torquey and free-revving 3.0-litre V6 to power the car was almost inevitable given JP’s long involvement with Jaguar, Le Mans and the Jaguar F1 team and, in fact, it was Jaguar’s public affairs team who produced the press release where Stuart Dyble, the company’s then director of communications, is quoted as saying “The Palmer Jaguar JP1 captures perfectly the performance spirit of Jaguar”.

While eight cars were put to work at Bedford Autodrome (all of which PalmerSport has retained and still uses for track-day events) a handful were built for private customers and, in 2015, Harwoods Jaguar, one of the largest main dealers in the South East of England, purchased this example for corporate hospitality guests to share the 'Circuit Experience' at Goodwood and elsewhere. Guests were treated to exhilarating laps of the famous circuit by either Duncan Tappy or Joe Sacco and general maintenance was either carried out in-house or by PalmerSport at Bedford Aerodrome.

It's powered by a track-spec Jaguar Racing Cosworth 3.0-litre, V6 quad-cam producing 277bhp fed through a 6-speed sequential Hewland FTR gearbox and Powerflow LSD. The chassis is a TIG-welded space frame clothed in three-section composite bodywork with high downforce-low drag aerodynamics and an adjustable rear wing. It weighs approx. 695kg and, depending on set up, offers 178mph and 0-100 in 7.6 seconds on Super Unleaded fuel metered by Pectal engine management.

Purchased from a gentleman who had used the car sparingly, Harwoods themselves found it surplus to their requirements and it was subsequently bought by our vendor from Silverstone Auctions in February 2018. His plan was to use it for track days with his son, however, a 200 mile job relocation meant that the car was only enjoyed on one occasion and the decision has been taken to sell it to help fund his first house.

Under our vendor's custodianship, the car has been serviced by PalmerSport at a cost of £1,627. It will be offered for sale complete with its bespoke race car trailer which has been serviced and fitted with a Powertouch Evolution, all-wheel-drive, remote control system, all at a cost of £2,300.