The model of the Group 44 Jaguar XJR5 turned out to be a long-term project, alright. It got set aside for a couple of reasons… for one thing I needed to wrap up the Jaguar C-Type. Plus, I had a fair amount of paying work to do besides… and I'm sure grateful for that!
But one reason why it was easy to set this one aside was that the more I looked at it and compared it to the numerous reference photos I had gathered, the less happy I was with it. Eventually I figured out what the problem was: I started this model with bad drawings. I had downloaded them from the internet, and thought they were scale drawings. Simplified somewhat, but reasonably accurate… I thought. But much to my aggravation I had to conclude that the drawings actually had little basis in reality, apart from the fact that they did show the car with 4 wheels and tires. (I guess that's commendable) But seriously… after I worked my tail off trying to get the bodywork right I still could tell that something was wrong.
When I compared it to my reference photos, the front end was looking too bulky, the windshield way too small, the side windows not the right shape. It was driving me nuts. So I went digging some more and, to make a long story short, found better drawings. So, then I had to do the bodywork over AGAIN.
Based on the new drawings, I have re-modeled the bodywork and I'm very pleased with the vast improvement… and I've pushed right on through to applying the Group 44 livery to the bodywork. Here are some test renders:
I still have details to add and a lot of texturing to do insde the cockpit, but it won't be long now before I'll be able to drop an image or two into a "Group 44 Legends" format and make those available for purchase through my FineArtAmerica.com profile.
I'll be posting a few more images here before that happens, though. Thanks for visiting!
Here's a shot with wheels and tires removed.
