Jaguar Owners Club

A new motorsport project 'Team Kilo Foxtrot' boldly announces an impressive goal. Many of these goals, alas, turn out to be little more than pipe dreams, but some have the air of credibility and others have solid foundations already in place. Falling into the latter category is Team Kilo Foxtrot, which is aiming to take a team of ex-service personnel from Karting all the way to the Le Mans 24 Hours. But it is the drivers of this new team that makes it remarkable, with their determination to succeed coming despite appalling injuries suffered in the line of duty and without their asking for anything other than a level playing field. Dave Player is the man behind the team, having previously founded Team KartForce as a place for very seriously injured service personnel to race. This video shows Dave, himself a wheelchair user and former serviceman, and Team KartForce in action on the indoor circuit: The next chapter of the story begins, however, with a chance encounter on Facebook in August; “My wife Emma read that one of the KartForce guys had had his kit stolen from a circuit and she contacted Dave to offer him some of our spare ones – we’ve got loads here from all the teams we’ve worked with,” began OMS boss Steve Briggs. “It turned out that they’d already managed to get replacement kit, but this led to Emma talking to Dave about getting involved with supporting the team. I soon joined in the conversation and it was clear to me that they’d already reached the stage in Karting where there was nowhere else to go really, so I suggested that they look at racing cars instead.” OMS (Online Motorsport Solutions) have a wealth of experience in motorsport, having been involved with Chamberlain Synergy for a decade and having managed the team for the past four years; a partnership that has yielded an LMES LMP2 championship in 2005 and runner up spot in LMES LMP1 in 2006, as well as back-to-back victories in Group C Racing in 2011, 2012 and 2013. They also worked with Greaves Motorsport from 2007 to 2012 (2011 LMP2 champions) and currently support Wessex Vehicles in Britcar, GT Cup and British GT. “Racing allows these guys a chance to compete on the same level as anyone else,” continued Steve. “Those with hand injuries are always going to be at a disadvantage when it comes to sports that demand dexterity, while Martyn can’t go swimming because of the chlorine in the water. But the hand controls that Team Kart Force use, and the ones that we are developing for Team Kilo Foxtrot, enable the guys to go head-to-head with able-bodied drivers. And the adrenalin generated actually gives them some relief from the pain for quite some time, which is significant when you consider that some of them require medication eight to 10 times a day.” So the team needed a car; but it wasn’t as simple as just going out and buying one, as Dave Player explained. “The guys who race with us have suffered major injuries during their service – amputations, spinal injuries, PTSD and missing digits; and Martyn has 75% burns – so they need assistance with their driving; and to that end we’re developing a special hand-control system, which will enable the driver to steer, throttle, brake and change gears all at the same time. ” Hand-controls already exist in motorsport, but these are all specific to a particular driver. What’s unique about our system is that they need to be used by guys with different injuries in an endurance environment. One of our guys has lost his right thumb, while another has only his middle finger on his left hand and another lost the top half of all his fingers; so the system has to be able to cater to all their individual demands. KartForce has already taken part in 24 hour kart races with adapted karts, so it’s now a case of working towards the same in race cars.” You can read the biographies of some of the KartForce drivers – here. Six of the Team Kart Force drivers (out of some 25 who have raced in karts) have acquired their National B licences and will be going on to race with Kilo Foxtrot in 2014. “We haven’t yet confirmed our racing program for next year, but the best fit for us is Britcar and we’ve already had talks with James Tucker about entering,” said Dave. “The number of drivers at each race will depend on the length of the races, but we’re hoping that by the end of the season some of them will have acquired enough signatures to upgrade their licences so that we can look at doing races like the Barcelona 24.” While the stated aim is to be the first team of only injured troops to race in the Le Mans 24 Hours, there is a long way to go yet before that happens. “We need to be realistic about timescales,” said Steve. “OMS have plenty of experience at Le Mans and on the International stage, but we won’t be prepping and running the car; so as well as getting the drivers up to speed in the car, we also have to help make sure that the team is developed to the required level . At the moment, we’re looking no further than competing in the Creventic series and then we’ll take it from there.” So which car will Kilo Foxtrot be using? “We needed a car to install and test the hand controls in, so I put the word around that I needed to borrow one for that purpose,” said Steve. “Ian Carvell quickly responded with the wonderful offer of the use of his Jaguar XF-S for both testing and racing.” The Jaguar was the car that gave Carvell Motorsport – Rob Carvell, Nathan Freke and Colin White – the D3T class win in the 2012 Nürburgring 24 Hours, so comes with its own endurance heritage. “The car will be prepped at Ian’s workshops and we’re hoping to install the hand controls and begin testing before the end of the year, said Steve.” While the hand controls are being developed by OMS, some backing is being provided by The Douglas Bader Foundation, which exists to advance and promote the physical, mental and spiritual welfare of persons who are without one or more limbs, or otherwise physically disabled; and it turns out that there is a fitting link to the legendary fighter ace himself; “The Jaguar was built in the same factory that used to build Spitfires during the second world war,” said Dave. “So it’s entirely possible that Douglas Bader visited the site back in the day.” Once trials of the installed control system are complete, testing will begin in earnest, with Dr Jonathan Palmer having offered the team the use of the Bedford Autodrome. Have overtures already been made to the ACO regarding the Kilo Foxtrot drivers being allowed to drive? “Not yet – we’re at such an early stage in the project that this isn’t yet a consideration,” said Steve. “But there are precedents: Paul Drayson proved that only having one eye wasn’t an obstacle to racing an LMP1 and Jean de Pourtales raced the Kruse Schiller Lola at Le Mans with a specially-adapted steering wheel due to his prosthetic left arm. I can’t see this being a major problem.” “What you need to remember is that these guys have already faced challenges far beyond anything they are likely to experience on the race track,” added Dave. “When you’ve had to act and think while injured and under fire from the Taliban, very little else is going to bother you!” One suspects that Douglas Bader would fully approve of what Team Kilo Foxtrot is setting out to achieve. To learn more about Team KartForce, see – here

As Peter has stated, there are ways to clean the throttle body and its certainly worth a try but it does seem a quite terminal malady with the throttle bodies on these Jags. Pay careful attention to the electrical contacts to see if there is any corrosion on them when attempting cleaning. There are companies that remanufacturer like BBA Reman or other solutions are eBay but you could end up buying another faulty one

It does seem cheap but needs work...which is okay if you can do it yourself or enlist the services of a reasonably priced mechanic. But it is a high spec car so maybe worth a punt ?

A very beautiful car indeed !!! Lovely colour too

VIDEO: Jaguar Castle Bromwich production line

I have put it as the Gallery front page image....looks great !

Hi Thomas and welcome to the club ! I saw the X-Type listed...hope you find a good home for it...seems like a great car from the specs that you have put in the advert. Regards Trevor

Cruise control issues could be something as simple as a brake light bulb out, Air Flow Sensor or an ABS wheel sensor fault. Worth using the live data function to see what outputs you get and then post them up so I can look at the data if you like.

Have to agree that the Aston is a beautiful car but running costs wise I think the XK is far more economical to maintain. Personally, I would take either...or both !

Thanks Mick....it looks in superb condition...great colour too !

Failsafe is generally known as an emergency running mode that the car is placed in to enable you to get to a garage albeit, at a reduced engine power output. There could be many reasons for it going into 'Limphome Mode' and it can only really be efficiently diagnosed by using a scan tool. I advise you enlist the services of a Jaguar specialist with this one...a good diagnosis can save you lots of money in the long run

Hi Chris, I believe we are due to launch one for the Jaguar Owners Club very shortly. I am just waiting to hear back from the Technical department and will confirm a launch date with you shortly Regards Trevor

Thought it relevant to relist this post as its coming up to that slippery time of year again ! Please feel free to add your thoughts...are winter tyres really necessary (not applicable to those in the Highlands as we know you need them !)

This is an extract from our Facebook page when the question was asked earlier today. Have you guys got any suggestions ? Jaguar Owners Club3 hours agoWhat sort of topics would you like to see on here in future....new models, old classics, lifestyle products....you tell us Wayne Terence Bowen Do a case study on a jaguar model each week ?Unlike · Reply · 2 · 2 hours ago via mobile Oleg Savkin And this and that, and more . No, I'm serious. Very many news we know from third-party resources, so why would we not the first to publish news on our favorite page?! Thanks Jaguar Owners ClubUnlike · Reply · 1 · 2 hours ago

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=TxkG3u6fxm0 If you haven’t seen the brand new Jaguar F-Type in “flesh and blood” after it’s debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show, you might want to go on a vacation to Dubai. Yes, the sexy new coupe was recently photographed there, about three weeks ago and it sure made and impression. The bloody red car was actually the range-topping R version of the F-Type Coupe that's easily identified from the fact that it comes with carbon ceramic brakes. Other than that, this car burns the streets with its 5.0-liter V8 supercharged engine, the one borrowed from the XKR-S and XFR-S, and manages to reach 60 mph (96km/h) in just 4 seconds. At 550 hp and 680 Nm of torque, this is easily the most powerful and fastest F-Type model. But the real story here is not the power or the acceleration, it's the exclusivity. This is the first real world spotting of the F-Type Coupe and the car even has license plates, so it's been registered. We've got a little something extra over the photos we got from Autogespot. A film posted not three days ago show the very same car has just been tested by a publication called Wheels Mag TV, meaning this is likely a press car.

The Evoque is one of JLR's best-selling models in Brazil Continue reading the main story Related Stories Land Rover Defender production ends Inside Jaguar Land Rover's huge factoryWatch Jaguar Land Rover has confirmed plans to build a car plant in Brazil capable of producing 24,000 vehicles a year. The UK car company had been in talks about the project with authorities in Rio de Janeiro for months. JLR, the luxury car unit of India's Tata, said that it would invest £240m (750m reais) in the factory, which would begin production in 2016. JLR, which is also building a plant in China, is targeting the new rich in emerging economies. Dr Ralf Speth, chief executive of JLR, said: "Brazil and the surrounding regions are very important. Customers there have an increasing appetite for highly capable premium products." JLR's sales in Brazil for the first ten months of 2013 have increased by more than 40% to 9,549 vehicles. The company's best-selling models in the country are the Range Rover Evoque, Freelander and Discovery Producing cars locally means JLR will avoid Brazil's high import tariffs. Nor does JLR have to form a partnership with a Brazilian company, as it had to in China. As part of its joint venture in China with the Chery Automobile Company, JLR is building a manufacturing plant at Changshu. Tata bought Jaguar and Land Rover in 2008 and has won plaudits for the way it has re-established the two prestige marques. In September, JLR announced plans to create 1,700 jobs at its plant in Solihull in the UK as part of a £1.5bn investment to expand its product range.

Hi Guys, would you like to tell us what you would like to see in the club forums....new models, classic models, lifestyle products....you tell us. Thanks

Your chance to win a JustDRIVE Digital DAB Radio KIt http://www.justconnectme.co.uk/facebookcompetition/?utm_campaign=autoclubs-INV-374-1&utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=facebook-comp&utm_content=%23win%20JustDRIVE%20including%20install

Hi Craig....and welcome back to the club ! It's great to hear that you have stayed loyal to the Jaguar brand in all this time. Hope the running repairs don't present any problems as you're Stateside ? Look forward to seeing your post and pictures Regards Trevor

Classic D-Type road test http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHdZzm87UuE

Novelist Clive Cussler with his Jaguar in Paradise Valley, Arizona Clive Cussler, 82-year-old car collector and author of 55 adventure novels, on his 1954 Jaguar XK120, as told to A.J. Baime. When I was in the military, I socked away $100 every month. When I was discharged in 1954, I got home at 5 a.m. By 10 a.m., I was pulling out of a foreign car dealership in Pasadena in a new Jaguar XK120. It was the hot car. All the celebrities owned one. I courted my wife in mine. After I proposed and she said yes, I traded it in for a Nash Rambler. She never forgave me but I used the money I saved to buy all the furniture for our first apartment. Novel Ride for Adventure Novelist Best-selling novelist Clive Cussler's 1954 Jaguar XK120 Years later, I started collecting cars. I just love old cars and when I find what I like, I try to buy it. In 2004, I was at an auction when I saw a 1954 XK120. I bought it for about $40,000. As soon as I drove it, I could picture myself 50 years earlier. The engine's been played with; it has three carburetors and the original had two. It has later-model seats for more comfort, and it has been painted. But otherwise it's original, and it's quite a mover for its age. My wife laughs about the old days in the Jaguar, those times in the 1950s in L.A. when I couldn't hit a stop sign without someone wanting to drag race me. It brings back all those memories. Mark Peterman for The Wall Street Journal