Range Rover Sentinel | |
---|---|
Overview | |
Type | Range Rover (L405) |
Manufacturer | Land Rover |
Production | 2019 |
Powertrain | |
Engine | 5.0 L 380 PS (279 kW; 375 hp) supercharged AJ Gen III V8 (petrol) |
Transmission | 8-speed automatic |
Chronology | |
Predecessor |
Until 2023, British manufactured cars had always been used as prime ministerial cars by the prime ministers of the United Kingdom. The cars currently used are armoured, custom built Range Rover Sentinel supercharged 5.0 litre V8 models and armoured Audi A8L models. [1] [2]
Prime ministerial and ministerial limousines are operated and administered by the Government Car Service, an executive agency of the Department for Transport, and stored and maintained at 10 Downing Street. The cars are driven by officers from the Metropolitan Police Royalty & Specialist Protection branch (RaSP), skilled in protection convoy, anti hijack and evasive driving skills. [3]
They are escorted by three to four unmarked Range Rover or Ford Galaxy models and at least nine to ten RaSP officers, with the ability to utilise motorcycle outriders from the Metropolitan Police Special Escort Group to aid in the swift travel and protection of the motorcade. [4] [5]
In December 2022, the UK government announced that it would purchase armoured Audi A8L models for use by ministers, on the basis that no UK manufacturer could meet revised security specifications. [6] Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was first seen to use an Audi A8 model in July 2023, although the Range Rover Sentinels are still in use by the Prime Minister. [7]
Many details are classified, but the current Range Rover Sentinel models are estimated to have cost up to £400,000. They feature a number of security features, including a 13 mm explosive resistant steel plate underneath the body, titanium and Kevlar lined cabins, armoured windows with bullet resistant polycarbonate toughened glass, and run flat tyres. The bodywork can withstand hits from 7.62mm high-velocity, armour-piercing rounds.
The cars are also equipped with an independent, self contained oxygen supply, to safeguard occupants in the event of a chemical or biological attack.
The vehicles used to be classed as B7 level [ clarification needed ] but under the new system, called VPAM, they are classed as VPAM9, and are understood to be capable of withstanding the blast of 15 kg equivalent TNT [ clarification needed ], and sustained attack by a variety of other armour piercing weapons. [8] [9] [10]
Since the early-1980s, when Margaret Thatcher switched from the Rover P5 models that had been in use since the 1960s, all prime ministerial cars have been from the Jaguar XJ range of the day, or its Daimler-badged variant.[ citation needed ]
The 2000 model replaced a British racing green XJ40 model, built for John Major, which gained international media attention when it bore Tony Blair to Buckingham Palace on the day after the 1997 general election. For the first few months of his premiership in 2007, Gordon Brown reverted to the previous prime ministerial car, a navy blue (X308) model purchased in 2000, before starting to use the silver model. A British racing green X308 took Gordon Brown to Buckingham Palace on 6 April 2010 to request the dissolution of Parliament, but it was the 2000 model that took him on his last ride as Prime Minister.[ citation needed ]
David Cameron arrived at 10 Downing Street following his appointment in a silver 2010 Jaguar XJ X350 model, but a new X351 Sentinel model was delivered on 13 May 2010. [11]
The X351 model had a 5.0 litre supercharged petrol engine producing 375 bhp, with a top speed of 121 miles per hour (195 km/h), and is capable of reaching 60 miles per hour (97 km/h) from a stationary position in 9.4 seconds, slower than the original due to the substantially greater weight of the vehicle. [12]
On 12 August 2011, one of the previous Jaguar XJ Sentinel fleet was damaged when its driver dented the car on a high kerb in Salford, although the car was able to be driven away. [13] On 17 June 2020, Boris Johnson was in one of the vehicles when a crash occurred due to a protester running in front of the motorcade. [14]
Jaguar is the sports car and luxury vehicle brand of Jaguar Land Rover, a British multinational car manufacturer with its headquarters in Whitley, Coventry, England. Jaguar Cars was the company that was responsible for the production of Jaguar cars until its operations were fully merged with those of Land Rover to form Jaguar Land Rover on 1 January 2013.
The Cabinet of the United Kingdom is the senior decision-making body of the Government of the United Kingdom. A committee of the Privy Council, it is chaired by the Prime Minister and its members include Secretaries of State and senior Ministers of State. Members of the Cabinet are appointed by the Prime Minister and are by convention chosen from members of the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, the House of Commons and the House of Lords.
11 Downing Street in London, also known colloquially in the United Kingdom as Number 11, is the official residence of the Chancellor of the Exchequer. The residence, in Downing Street in London, was built alongside the official residence of the Prime Minister at Number 10 in 1682.
The Jaguar XJ is a series of mid-size/full-size luxury cars produced by British automobile manufacturer Jaguar Cars from 1968 to 2019. It was produced across four basic platform generations with various updated derivatives of each. From 1970, it was Jaguar's flagship four-door model. The original model was the last Jaguar saloon to have been designed under the leadership of Sir William Lyons, the company's founder, and the model has been featured in countless media and high-profile appearances.
6HP is ZF Friedrichshafen AG's trademark name for its six-speed automatic transmission models for longitudinal engine applications, designed and built by ZF's subsidiary in Saarbrücken. Released as the 6HP 26 in 2000, it was the first six-speed automatic transmission in a production passenger car. Other variations of the first generation 6HP in addition to the 6HP 26, were 6HP19, and 6HP 32 having lower and higher torque capacity, respectively. In 2007, the second generation of the 6HP series was introduced, with models 6HP 21 and 6HP 28. A 6HP 34 was planned, but never went into production.
The Downing Street chief of staff is the most senior political appointee in the Office of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, acting as a senior aide to the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. The holder of the office retains a highly powerful, non-ministerial position within His Majesty's Government.
Damian Patrick George Hinds is a British Conservative Party politician who has been Member of Parliament (MP) for East Hampshire since 2010. He has served as Shadow Secretary of State for Education since July 2024. He previously served as Secretary of State for Education under Theresa May from 2018 to 2019; he has also held junior ministerial positions under four Prime Ministers.
The ministerial ranking, Cabinet ranking, order of precedence in Cabinet or order of precedence of ministers is the "pecking order" or relative importance of senior ministers in the UK government.
An official state car is a automobile used by a government to transport its head of state or head of government in an official capacity, which may also be used occasionally to transport other members of the government or visiting dignitaries from other countries. A few countries bring their own official state car for state visits to other countries, for instance, the United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, South Korea, Germany and Japan. It also may serve as an automotive symbol of the head of state and their country. An official state car must have adequate security, capability and stateliness for its duty. A limousine or other high-end vehicle is usually selected.
Jaguar's independent rear suspension (IRS) unit has been a common component of a number of Jaguar production cars since 1961, passing through two major changes of configuration up to 2006 and last used in the Jaguar XK8 and Aston Martin DB7. This article concentrates on the first generation Jaguar IRS, which firmly established the marque's reputation for suspension sophistication, combining as it did smooth ride with excellent roadholding and low levels of noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH). The two generations overlap in time due to their being used in both full size and sports models that were updated at different times.
The Jaguar XJ (X351) is a saloon car built by British manufacturer Jaguar Cars, later known as Jaguar Land Rover, from 2010 to 2019. It is the fourth-generation of the Jaguar XJ model. Referred to internally within Jaguar as the X351, it was announced in 2009 before going on sale in 2010, and combines revised styling with underpinnings of the previous Jaguar X350 generation. The model was discontinued in 2019. It is the final generation of the XJ, after the electric Jaguar XJ was cancelled in February 2021.
The Jaguar XJ (X350) is a full-size four-door luxury sedan/saloon manufactured and marketed worldwide by Jaguar Cars for model years 2003–2009 as the third generation of the Jaguar XJ saloon, carrying the internal designation X350 and the internal designation X358 following its 2007 intermediate facelift. Both the X350 and X358 were available with a six-speed automatic transmission, a range of petrol and diesel engines, numerous trim levels, and short wheelbase (2003–2009) or long wheelbase (2005–2009) car body configurations. Extended-length models were the longest vehicles Jaguar had manufactured.
The Jaguar XJ (X300) is a full-size luxury saloon car manufactured by Jaguar Cars between 1994 and 1997. It was the first Jaguar XJ produced entirely under Ford Motor Company ownership, and can be considered an evolution of the outgoing XJ40 generation. Like all previous XJ generations, it features the Jaguar independent rear suspension arrangement. The design of the X300 placed emphasis on improved build quality, improved reliability, and a return to traditional Jaguar styling elements.
The Jaguar XJ (XJ40) is a full-size luxury saloon manufactured by Jaguar Cars between 1986 and 1994. It was officially unveiled on 8 October 1986 as an all-new, second generation of the XJ to replace the Series III, although the two model ranges were sold concurrently until the Series III was discontinued in 1992. The XJ40 used the Jaguar independent rear suspension arrangement, and featured a number of technological enhancements, such as electronic instrument cluster.
The Jaguar XJ (X308) is a full-size luxury saloon car manufactured and marketed by Jaguar Cars for years 1997–2003 across two generations and featuring the Jaguar AJ-V8 engine and Jaguar independent rear suspension. It was the third and final evolution of the Jaguar XJ40 platform that had been in production since 1986. It was preceded by the Jaguar XJ (X300).
Rishi Sunak is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2022 to 2024. He has been Leader of the Conservative Party since October 2022; after the general election in July 2024, he became Leader of the Opposition. The first British Asian to hold those offices, he previously held two Cabinet positions under Boris Johnson, latterly as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2020 to 2022. Sunak has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Richmond and Northallerton, previously Richmond (Yorks), since 2015. He is the most recent Conservative Party prime minister.
Sir Oliver James Dowden, is a British Conservative Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Hertsmere since 2015. He has served as Deputy Leader of the Opposition and Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster since July 2024. He served as Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Secretary of State in the Cabinet Office from 2023 to 2024 and as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster from 2022 to 2024.
The Jaguar Land Rover car platforms are the major structures, designed by Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), which underpin their Jaguar and Land Rover cars.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)