Jaguar to archive ‘famous growl’ of its V8 sports cars with British Library as it moves to electric cars

Jaguar is archiving the noise of its V8 F-Type sports car with the British Library as it wants the sound to be remembered for decades and generations to come.

The British firm is transitioning to become a fully-electric car firm from 2025, with Jaguar set to axe its F-Type imminently to make way for more eco-friendly vehicles.

One of the key characteristics of the F-Type has been its noise, specifically that of its 5.0-litre V8 petrol engine and accompanying exhaust. Jaguar has said that it wants people to be able to enjoy this sound ‘for generations to come’, which is why it’s archiving the sound with the British Library.

Set to be available in the autumn, recordings of the V8 engine’s noise will be catalogued in its extensive archive, which also includes entries such as the first street recordings of cars being driven on the street.

The recordings, which are between 30 and 47 seconds long, were made in a sound chamber at Jaguar Land Rover’s engineering centre in Gaydon, Warwickshire. The noise from both inside the cabin and outside the car was documented, from the engine start-up through to full-throttle.

This is also the place where the F-Type’s exhaust note was originally tuned, with more than 85 different examples sampled before Jaguar decided on the final sound.

Cheryl Tipp, curator of wildlife and environmental sounds at the British Library, said: “We’re delighted to be able to preserve recordings of the F-TYPE V8 engine for Jaguar enthusiasts and listeners around the world.

“As production of this engine comes to a close, this unique noise takes its place in the nation’s archive alongside other sounds that can no longer be heard today.”

The sound was recorded using an F-Type R 75 – a special edition model created to mark 75 years of Jaguar sports cars, as well as the final model year of its petrol sports cars.