Three works XJ220-Cs were entered in the
1993 24 Hours of Le Mans race, in the newly created
Grand Touring Class.
John Nielsen,
David Brabham and
David Coulthard won the GT class, beating Porsche by two laps; the other two cars retired, both through engine failure. However, the class win was revoked when the Jaguar XJ220-C was controversially disqualified for failing to run with
catalytic converters.
[72][73][74][75] The Jaguars had passed scrutiny and completed the first day of qualifying when senior steward Alain Bertaut complained that Jaguar were not running catalytic converters. The cars had been entered under the
IMSA GT category and Bertaut claimed that they needed to run with catalysts.
[39] The cars ran in the race under appeal.
International Motor Sports Association (IMSA) officials wrote to the
Automobile Club de l'Ouest(ACO) (English: Automobile Club of the West), organisers of the
24 Hours of Le Mans, confirming that the XJ220-Cs entered had complied with IMSA rules. Jaguar won their appeal (supported by the FIA) but were nevertheless disqualified, as the ACO confirmed that the appeal had not been lodged in time.
[39]
Four cars were entered in the GT1 class for the
1995 24 Hours of Le Mans, two by PC Automotive Jaguar and two by Chamberlain Engineering, though the latter did not run their cars. Neither team had Jaguar or TWR backing; both of PC Automotive's cars were outpaced by the new
McLaren F1 GTR.
[76] Richard Piper,
Tiff Needell and James Weaver were holding fourth position until an engine failure during the night, ending their race, whilst the second XJ220-C retired after leaving the road.
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