Most track-day paddocks are indistinguishable from a Porsche press fleet. GT3 RS here, Huracán STO there, maybe a Mustang GTD if someone’s feeling patriotic. Jensen International Automotive has built something for the driver who finds that entire scene exhausting. The Interceptor GTX is a 960-hp, hand-built British GT priced at approximately $1.2 million, limited to roughly 10–15 units, and deliberately uninterested in racing homologation. Managing director David Duerden’s explanation is blunt: the restomod business — rebuilding original 1966–76 Interceptors for roughly half a million dollars — is running out of buyers. His answer was to build a new one.
The British-American Formula, Rebuilt From Scratch
Jensen’s GTX pairs a Houston-built supercharged V-8 with an aluminum chassis engineered to evolve — every choice signals what the company values.
The GTX uses an all-aluminum bonded-and-riveted chassis — not carbon fiber, though Duerden knows carbon well. Aluminum keeps tooling costs manageable and leaves the platform open for road-car derivatives without expensive re-engineering.
Power comes from a 6.8-liter supercharged V-8 built by Late Model Engines in Houston, derived from GM’s LT5 architecture but retaining only roughly 20 percent GM parts. Forged internals, CNC-machined heads, titanium valves, a Motec ECU, and a 2.65-liter Roots-style supercharger give it a ceiling of 1,200 hp; Jensen caps it at 960 hp and an estimated 1,000 lb-ft of torque. A rear-mounted Samsonas six-speed sequential dogbox transaxle, carbon-fiber propshaft, and Wavetrac differential handle the output. Steering is hydraulic power-assisted rack-and-pinion — a pointed choice in an era of electric-assist everything.
“We’re not looking for tenths of a second with this thing,” Duerden said. “We’re looking for something that’s an enjoyable drive.” That philosophy shows up in every spec decision:
- Treaded Michelin Pilot Sport 4S rubber over racing slicks
- Adjustable ABS borrowed from GT3-class race cars
- An FIA-approved safety cage paired with Tillett carbon competition seats
The hardware is serious; the ambition is deliberately measured. At 3,637 lb and an estimated 2.8 seconds to 60 mph, the GTX is fast enough to make the point without chasing a leaderboard.
Built It. Now Hope They Come.
The GTX is Jensen’s proof-of-concept bet — roughly 80 percent of its exterior carries forward to planned road cars projected to cost even more.
Duerden calls the GTX an “enhanced prototype” and “live concept model.” Around 80 percent of its exterior form and panel tooling is intended to carry over to two planned road-going models:
- The performance-forward Interceptor GTR
- The luxury four-seat GT — spiritual successor to the original Interceptor
Road car pricing is projected north of $2 million, reflecting the added complexity of street homologation and interior refinement. The platform is modular by design; the sequential dogbox can reportedly be swapped for a Tremec TR-9080 dual-clutch — the same unit found in the C8 Corvette and Ford Mustang GTD — for road-car applications.
Jeff Qvale, whose father Kjell Qvale acquired the Jensen factory in 1970, frames the project as carrying forward “the traditional Jensen philosophy of a powerful, hand-built British GT with real character, but reinterpreted using modern engineering and technology.”
On design, the rear is where the heritage lives — the C-pillar shape, shoulder line, and rear quarter treatment genuinely recall the original Carrozzeria Touring body. The front is less resolved. Slim LED headlamps and large corner vents push toward next-generation Camaro territory in a way that will polarize the very audience Jensen is courting.
Jensen built it. Whether enough $1.2-million buyers show up — drivers who want a soul more than a lap record — determines whether the GTR and GT ever follow. That is the actual bet on the table.
