The British automotive industry has been littered with marques that have long-since disappeared: Austin, Triumph, TVR... the list goes on and on, but one of the greatest – and most innovative – of them all was Jensen. And now that marque is being revived with the new design you see here.
It's called the Jensen GT, and from the clay model pictured it looks like a suitably modern interpretation of classic lines. Though the original Jensen may have been better-known for its fastbacks, the new design calls for a proper two-door coupe with a trunk and will be available – where it will be available, anyway – in two-seat or 2+2 configurations.
Power is slated to come from a thoroughly modified (and thoroughly modern) General Motors-sourced 6.4-liter supercharged V8 with direct injection, variable-valve timing and dry-sump lubrication, mated to a six-speed manual or automatic transmission and sending 665 horsepower and 630 pound-feet of torque – with apologies to fans of the legendary Jensen FF Interceptor – to the rear wheels alone.
The project is being undertaken by Jensen International Automotive, which may not be tied directly to the original manufacturer, but has made a business restoring and modifying classic Jensens. It's not the first time, though, that we've seen an effort to revive the marque.
The original company traces its roots to 1934, building some legendary sports cars of its own and collaborating with the likes of Austin-Healey, Sunbeam and even Volvo along the way. It went bust in '76. In 1998 a new Jensen S-V8 roadster was presented but the project was aborted when its backers went bust in 2002. Coachbuilder CPP also had plans to revive Jensen, as did another outfit called V Eight, but those efforts never came to fruition.
It's called the Jensen GT, and from the clay model pictured it looks like a suitably modern interpretation of classic lines. Though the original Jensen may have been better-known for its fastbacks, the new design calls for a proper two-door coupe with a trunk and will be available – where it will be available, anyway – in two-seat or 2+2 configurations.
Power is slated to come from a thoroughly modified (and thoroughly modern) General Motors-sourced 6.4-liter supercharged V8 with direct injection, variable-valve timing and dry-sump lubrication, mated to a six-speed manual or automatic transmission and sending 665 horsepower and 630 pound-feet of torque – with apologies to fans of the legendary Jensen FF Interceptor – to the rear wheels alone.
The project is being undertaken by Jensen International Automotive, which may not be tied directly to the original manufacturer, but has made a business restoring and modifying classic Jensens. It's not the first time, though, that we've seen an effort to revive the marque.
The original company traces its roots to 1934, building some legendary sports cars of its own and collaborating with the likes of Austin-Healey, Sunbeam and even Volvo along the way. It went bust in '76. In 1998 a new Jensen S-V8 roadster was presented but the project was aborted when its backers went bust in 2002. Coachbuilder CPP also had plans to revive Jensen, as did another outfit called V Eight, but those efforts never came to fruition.
Featured Gallery Jensen GT revival: clay model
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