On Friday, in common with around 50 of my colleagues, I was unable to resist the draw of the Heritage Motor Museum in Gaydon, Warwickshire. The attraction was that Jaguar was firing up a couple of examples of the iconic XJ220 supercar – at one stage officially the fastest production vehicle in the world – and offering hot laps round the test track. That in itself was the fulfillment of a teenage boy’s dream; the car is a world away from the refinement of today’s supercars and at 165mph the experience was far from smooth. The thing that made most impression on me was the quality for the interior. Sure, it’s all leather but what hits you between the eyeballs is the MkIV Ford Escort switchgear. Three crappy plastic knobs and surround for the ventilation controls, nasty square buttons for the things like the fog lamps. Cabin detailing just wasn’t on the radar of the car designers of the day. We’ve got switches so why spend money styling new ones? It shows how far we have come in the last 20 years – the reason for the event – and how much more today’s ultra-rich buyers expect for their money.
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