Currently reading: Lister Thunder renamed LFT-666 for production

British firm famous for its Knobbly Jaguar racers of the 1950s returns with 208mph sports car based on the Jaguar F-Type

The new Lister Thunder, Lister's 666bhp fettled version of the Jaguar F-Type, has been renamed LFT-666 for its 99-unit production run, to fit with the brand's other future models. 

Due to be produced in 99 examples with each priced from £139,950, the Cambridge-based company said this makes the LFT-666 the fastest-selling model in its 65-year history. Deliveries start on 1 October.

Lister Cars, famous for its Le Mans-racing Jaguar ‘Knobbly’ D-Types of the 1950s, has returned to new car production with this high-performance version of the Jaguar F-Type. It uses a supercharged 5.0-litre V8 that has been extensively reengineered so it produces 666bhp.

Rory McDonnell, head of sales and marketing at Lister, told Autocar that the car is capable of accelerating from 0-62mph in 3.2sec, to 100mph in 6.8sec and a will have a top speed of 208mph. This comfortably beats the quickest series F-Type on sale, the SVR, which has 567bhp and completes the 0-62mph sprint in 3.7sec.

The LFT-666's modifications include a new suspension setup to enhance its agility and a flashes of Lister green paint on its exterior. McDonnell confirmed that the car will also get a more luxurious interior with nappa leather-wrapped seats, as well as bespoke bodywork. Lister offers several options, including a carbonfibre kit that will cost from £19,950.

Rs880 lister thunder runway

CEO Lawrence Whittaker said that the car is the first of several Jaguar models from the brand. Lister will also modify F-Types with a package of Lister badges, bumpers and wheels, with the modified cars being badged Lister LFT, with no horsepower designation. The package costs £9750. 

Talking before the car's renaming, Whittaker said: “Like Brabus and AMG with Mercedes and Alpina with BMW, we are hoping to become synonymous once again with tuning Jaguar vehicles, giving customers new enhanced, bespoke performance and design alternatives to Jaguar’s acclaimed model programme.

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"Although we are not directly affiliated with Jaguar Land Rover, Lister has a Jaguar tuning heritage dating back 65 years. Our new Lister Thunder is the fastest and most powerful Lister ever created. I am utterly proud of what we have achieved, and the Thunder is just the beginning."

The LFT-666 continues Lister's increasing activity after the company returned to building cars with a continuation Knobbly racing car in April 2014. This was described as “all-new and factory-approved” and is eligible for entry into FIA/HTP Appendix K historic racing. Earlier this year, Lister launched a road-legal version of the Knobbly, of which 10 examples were to be produced, priced from £225,000. The car was ordered by 22 customers in the first 24 hours that followed its official announcement earlier this year, which brought the order total to just shy of £3.1 million.

Screen shot 2017 12 01 at 10

The company will also produce the LFP, what it describes as "potentially the world's fastest SUV", based on the 542bhp Jaguar F-Pace SVR. A similar suite of performance and aesthetic upgrades was suggested in a preview of the car shown in the spring. 250 units will be produced. 

Whittaker is also eager to develop an all-new Lister model. Autocar has previously reported his plans for a Lister hypercar that will capable of a sub-3sec 0-62mph time and a top speed of 250mph. The new LFT-666 is understood to mark the brand's first steps towards its goal of becoming a new car maker.

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Lister, a company that was born out of motorsport, last produced a new model when the Storm racing programme was born. In 1993, the brand created the Storm homologation road model that used a reworked version of the Jaguar XJR’s V12 engine, before taking it racing at the 1995 24 Hours Le Mans.

The Storm raced in the event’s top GT1 category against models including the McLaren F1 GTR and Ferrari F40 LM through the late 1990s with limited success, but it later became a race-winner in the FIA GT and British GT championships from 1999.

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grimble33 14 August 2018

More money than sense?

So let's see if I've got this right - buyers of this will be paying almost exactly £50,000 more than the SVR for a car that reaches 60 mph in 0.3 seconds faster (according to Autocar's own SVR test, not the misleading figure quoted here), and reaches a theoretical top speed which is a massive 8 mph higher. OK there's other bling-tastic stuff they chuck in as well..... but, really??? £50K? Really?????

FMS 6 September 2018

grimble33 wrote:

grimble33 wrote:

So let's see if I've got this right - buyers of this will be paying almost exactly £50,000 more than the SVR for a car that reaches 60 mph in 0.3 seconds faster (according to Autocar's own SVR test, not the misleading figure quoted here), and reaches a theoretical top speed which is a massive 8 mph higher. OK there's other bling-tastic stuff they chuck in as well..... but, really??? £50K? Really?????

 

Indeed and could be argued, all money, NO sense.

FMS 6 September 2018

grimble33 wrote:

grimble33 wrote:

So let's see if I've got this right - buyers of this will be paying almost exactly £50,000 more than the SVR for a car that reaches 60 mph in 0.3 seconds faster (according to Autocar's own SVR test, not the misleading figure quoted here), and reaches a theoretical top speed which is a massive 8 mph higher. OK there's other bling-tastic stuff they chuck in as well..... but, really??? £50K? Really?????

 

Also, if it is ONLY speed, then for around £35k, BMW M240i, 0-62 4.6s, so 0-60 in less. Not a direct competitor, though as I said, if only for speed, then loses out to the 666 by ONE WHOLE second at a saving of £££££...where can anyone use the capability of this 666, except in a stupid pub key on the bar bragging match...oh dear.

Peter Cavellini 1 August 2018

Thing of the past...?

 It’s old fashioned, the BHP isn’t exactly jaw dropping and the handling probably isn’t great either, and THAT price, the new Aston Martin driven here by this mag is £225,000 , if your spending this amount, why would you buy something that’s out of date in nearly every way?

Rodester 2 August 2018

Peter Cavellini wrote:

Peter Cavellini wrote:

 It’s old fashioned, the BHP isn’t exactly jaw dropping and the handling probably isn’t great either, and THAT price, the new Aston Martin driven here by this mag is £225,000 , if your spending this amount, why would you buy something that’s out of date in nearly every way?

Peter, Peter, Peter. Out of date? The car on which this is based is the pinnacle of sports car development. Not only that, something with such a classic design is timeless. Whilst this offers a different take on the original it cannot better it and attempting to compare it with the Aston Martin is, well, foolish. They lost any shred of credibility when they donned lederhosen and crossed the barbarians hands with silver.

FMS 6 September 2018

Rodester wrote:

Rodester wrote:
Peter Cavellini wrote:

 It’s old fashioned, the BHP isn’t exactly jaw dropping and the handling probably isn’t great either, and THAT price, the new Aston Martin driven here by this mag is £225,000 , if your spending this amount, why would you buy something that’s out of date in nearly every way?

Peter, Peter, Peter. Out of date? The car on which this is based is the pinnacle of sports car development. Not only that, something with such a classic design is timeless. Whilst this offers a different take on the original it cannot better it and attempting to compare it with the Aston Martin is, well, foolish. They lost any shred of credibility when they donned lederhosen and crossed the barbarians hands with silver.

 

Agree with your words about the timeless design...but have you forgotten that JLR is also owned by a foreign entity and Jaguar was before that?.

jer 2 February 2018

Quite fancy

One myself. Maybe there is something wrong with me.