[Boxer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RufMD »

Thats bloody fantastic mate ! Well done and it couldn't go to a nicer bloke

Is there any truth to the notion that these cars are hard on clutches or gearboxes ?

Seriously beautiful car...one of my all time favourites !

Many thanks,

Had not heard that on the clutch or gearbox. Might be related to the 6 speed straight cut non-syncro box in the race cars. I have heard it is very tough box to manage. The "throw" on the shift is very short on all the boxes.

[TeutonicCarFan]

Great car, you have had some good pick-ups recently. enjoy!

[Boxer]

This was the first run out in the XJR-15. 150 mile round trip up to Silverstone racetrack:

[F1GTRUeno]

Awesome stuff, how does it feel on the road?

[Boxer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by F1GTRUeno »

Awesome stuff, how does it feel on the road?

Wrote this after the 1st drive:

The XJR-15 is raw and quite brutal. Far more a Le Mans race car than a road car, it is completely lacking in creature comforts. Based on the Le Mans winning XJ-13, it did not stray far from its roots. When driving a XJR-15, full concentration is completely required at all times. Just getting into the XJR-15 is an event, and not one you look particularly elegant doing. Open the right side driver’s door, put one foot on the sill and the other on the seat, slide your left leg under the steering wheel, follow with your right leg and swing yourself across and drop into the seat.

Getting out is even more challenging. Once strapped down in the four point harness, you then begin the start up procedure. Crank the engine over on the starter until you have at least 2 bar of pressure, then you turn on the fuel pumps, and final fire it up. Once started, you need to put the earphones on as the complete lack of sound deadening results in the cabin being loud at a whole new level. In fact, it is louder inside than standing outside near the XJR-15 at idle. Slot the tight short gearshift located to the right of the driver’s seat into first (the XJR-15 is technically RHD but the seat is so offset that calling it a center driving position would be more accurate), get the revs up over 2000 and release the nicely weighted clutch. While some supercars are happy pulling from 1000 rpm, under 1800 rpm with the clutch engaged is not a happy time for the XJR-15. It is not an easy car to drive slowly. In fact it is just not an easy car to drive. The thought of getting caught in traffic in a XJR-15 is near terrifying.

Once you are moving, running up the gearbox is both smooth and fairly easy to execute. Getting to know the gearbox is critical as it is all done by feel and the spacing is tight. Coming down from 5th, move the stick a couple of millimeters too far to the left and you are grabbing 2nd and not 4th. Do this at the wrong time and you will break the rear wheels free instantly. Once you build a bit of speed, the handling improves and the steering lightens nicely. However you do feel it is always a bit skittish and "smooth" is by far the best approach to driving the XJR-15. My guess is a quick and violent input will result in a fast swapping of the ends. On a positive note, it does give you a lot of feedback constantly. Give it a bit of gas, and the power comes on quickly and the engine feels urgent. Getting past the national speed limit is easy 3rd gear territory at about 3500 rpm. Push it towards the redline and you are easily pat 70 mph in 2nd.

The gearing on the steering is definitely set up for the track and not the road. Moving along with a bit of speed, it moves through quick corners very well. Trying to maneuver in a tight place or parking is much more of a challenge. The suspension is tight with every flaw in the pavement getting communicated back. Surprising, it does ride slightly higher up vs. other supercars so ground clearance is not as big a challenge. Visibility is actually quite good. The side mirrors provide some coverage both left and right. You can see back through the engine cover, and forward visibility across the wings is quite good. For a car it’s age, the AP racing brakes are quite good and scrub off speed effectively. The brake pedal is firm and progressive.

The level of concentration needed to drive a XJR-15, along with the cabin noise and heat, make for a very physically demanding experience. It is a far from a comfortable GT as one can get. Put in 150 miles in a XJR-15 in a day and you are left drained and a bit battered. It is good feeling though on a very primitive level. As you slowly drag your body up and out across the wide drivers side sill, you have ridden the dragon and survived to drive another day.

and wrote this after the 2nd drive:

Took the XJR-15 out for half hour run this afternoon. Really had a good run today. Now that the new tires are bedded in and the car is starting to get a few miles under its wheels, it felt much better planted and a lot less twitchy. Both the engine and gearbox also were smoother. The XJR-15 had 560 miles (in 19 years) on the odometer when I acquired it and 200 more have been added in the last 2 weeks. Even got the engine up over 5000 rpm for the 1st time today. Rear stayed nicely planted and put the power down cleanly. I am sure just a bit more experience behind the wheel helped. Based on today, I am sure that with more usage it will continue to get better.

[TeutonicCarFan]

^^^
nice! Wow I cannot believe how low the miles are on that car.

[Boxer]

Yesterday I had a great drive in the XJR-15. The big break through in terms of driving was realizing that it really is set up as a race car and needs to be driven like one. I.e. you need to set it up in advance for each change of direction, gear shift, braking, etc. Driving it for the 3rd or 4th time on the same roads that I know well, it just all came together. First time I can really say this, we really started to bond.

In general I have a set route that I take for most of the short weekend runs out that is a roughly 20 mile loop. Yesterday at the end of the loop, I wanted to keep going. Every time in the past, making it to the end has brought with it a feeling of relief -------akin to riding the dragon and surviving. This time, it all flowed. Part of it is having just that much more experience behind the wheel and knowing the "15" that much better. Part of it is the "15" getting a few more miles under its wheels after far too many years sitting in a private collection.

The handling continues to improve as the tyres bed in and the suspension gets more work. Everything feels like it is now moving that much more smoothly. The clutch is very different from any other car I have driven, but once you get used to it, it quite manageable. Power from the 6 liter V12 even 20 years later, is brain mashing. Put your foot down in 2nd gear (with all four wheels pointing straight ahead) and it just flies. A quick upshift into 3rd and you are not far from hitting triple digits. The steering rack is geared for the track, so it requires plenty of input to navigate on the road. The lack of any sort of insulation or sound deadening imparts the impression that you really are strapped to the front of a rocket. Headphones are a must and the totality of the experience is exhilarating. It is a car that is truly alive.

[Ludas]

Thank you so much for sharing Boxer. Is the drivers position in the middle like in the F1? It looks like it judging from the video. A truly unique car which I unfortunately expect to never encounter on the road.

[DJ]

Thanks Boxer, nice to see you over here mate.

[Boxer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ludas »

Thank you so much for sharing Boxer. Is the drivers position in the middle like in the F1? It looks like it judging from the video. A truly unique car which I unfortunately expect to never encounter on the road.

It is RHD with the gear shift on the right side next to the door. The sills are huge which pushes the seast into the middle of the car. On top of it, the drivers seat is angled to the middle which makes it appear that it is similar set up to the F1. Given that the cars share the same designer, it is not surprising that there are a few design similarities. One common misperception is that the McLaren F1 is the 1st CF tub road car, in fact the XJR-15 beat it by a year.