1961 - 1968 Jaguar E-Type
When talking about cult icons, adjectives usually stream in an overwhelming fashion, making it hard to discern fact from fabrication. The Jaguar E-Type is one of these cars, earning an invitation to the Pantheon of motoring just as quick as the first journalists laid eyes on it. The long hood belied the size of the white two-door sports car as it was sitting on an exquisite animal print wall-to-wall. The public was elated, so much so that a second car was driven from Britain to Switzerland as Sir William Lyons, the company’s founder, was already receiving orders for the new ,,Big Cat’’.
Such was the initial impact of the E-Type that even the Italians, who were famed for putting together some of the most beautiful cars in existence, were left dumbfounded. One Italian in particular eulogized the styling of Jaguar’s new two-seater. His name? None other than Ferrari founder Enzo Ferrari, who is quoted to have said that the XK-E, as it was marketed in the USA, is "the most beautiful car in the world".
Despite of early reliability issues that pushed the debut date of the racing version further into 1962, the E-Type proved handy on race tracks around the world, especially the 12 lightweight chassis. Away from the track, the first E-Type, known as the S1, was built in far greater numbers, nearly 40,000 cars coming out of the Coventry-based plant between 1961 and 1968. The figure includes all variations, including the less fluid 2+2.
While the E-Type stayed in production until 1975, the S1 is the most distinguishable, as the latter versions lost the headlight covers as well as adopting larger fender flares, on the S3, that somehow messed with the original shape. This is mainly why the first iteration is also the most sought-after, with prices rising each year.
Continue reading to learn more about the 1961-1968 Jaguar E-Type.
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