Even Enzo Ferrari did not spare his praise at the time and admired the Jaguar E-TYPE as “the most beautiful car in the world”. These days the E-TYPE, one of the most legendary sports cars in automotive history, celebrated its 50th anniversary. For Jaguar, the XK successor, unveiled in Geneva on March 15, 1961, not only proved to be an image booster, but also a commercial success. In 14 years, over 72.500 buyers worldwide succumbed to the charms of the model, which was available as a coupé and roadster.
The response to the E-TYPE Coupé presented to around 15 journalists on March 1961, 200 was overwhelming. The first sight set off a chain reaction in the brain of people with petrol in their blood. The Jaguar stand then received 500 orders for an E-TYPE. No wonder, at 25.000 marks it was only half as expensive as an Aston Martin DB4 or Ferrari 250 GT. At the official presentation of the Roadster in New York in April 1961, six units were sold just half an hour after the gates opened!
Malcolm Sayer, an aeronautical engineer responsible for the breathtaking design of the Jaguar E-TYPE, had previously applied his aerodynamic expertise to the Le Mans-winning C- and D-TYPE cars. The rear independent wheel suspension invented by Sayer, for example, was radically new – with one trailing arm and two spring strut assemblies per side, as well as drive shafts acting as upper wishbones. Disc brakes slowed down the E-TYPE all round – at the rear they were located inside to reduce unsprung masses. The six-cylinder installed under an endlessly long bonnet produced 3,8 hp at 265 rpm from a displacement of 5.500 liters.
With a factory-specified top speed of 240 km/h, the E-TYPE, like the XK120/150 before it, earned the title of "fastest production car in the world". The English specialist magazine The Motor measured an acceleration from 0 to 96 km/h (60 miles) in 7,1 seconds in test drives with an E-TYPE Roadster.
In October 1964, Jaguar replaced the 3,8-litre engine with the 4,2-litre from the new Mark X sedan. Maximum torque increased from 348 to 380 Nm at 4.000 rpm, which brought more torque in the lower and middle engine speed range. The engine performance, on the other hand, remained identical. Air conditioning was installed for the first time in export models, and there was a removable hard top for the roadster.
In the spring of 1966, the E-TYPE 2+2 appeared, mainly at the request of the American E-TYPE clientele. A coupé extended by five centimeters with a wheelbase stretched by 23 centimeters, a roof that is 3,8 centimeters higher and two jump seats in the rear. For the first time there was also an optional three-speed automatic for the "Two plus two". Unfortunately, the E-TYPE now weighed 100 kilos more for the Klein family, which, according to The Motor, pushed the top speed down to 219 km/h. The sprint from 0 to 100 km/h now takes almost nine seconds.
Then, in March 1971, the ultimate Jaguar E-TYPE took the stage: the Series III, fitted exclusively with a newly developed 5,3 liter V12. With 276 hp at 5.850 rpm and a peak torque of 408 Nm at 3.600 rpm, this cat was well fed. Designed by Harry Mundy and Walter Hassen, the 'father' of the Coventry Climax Formula 1 engine, the power plant, thanks to an all-aluminium construction, weighed just 36 kilos more than the earlier six-cylinder engine. Other technical refinements of the Series III included four Zenith two-stage downdraft carburettors, electronic transistor ignition and internally ventilated front disc brakes. From 1971, the roadster took over the long wheelbase of the 2+2, while Jaguar dropped the short coupé entirely from its range.
The European version completed the 0-100 km/h sprint in 6,4 seconds and successfully scratched the 240 km/h mark again. The US model with only 250 hp lost 17 km/h and a full second for the sprint. Nevertheless, the American trade journal Car and Driver summed it up: "Jaguar almost managed to offer a Ferrari at half the price!"
By April 1975 Jaguar had produced 20.297 two-seater and 18.222 2+2-seater coupés, plus 33.996 roadsters. The bulk - a good 49.000 units - found their way to the United States. More than 30.000 E-TYPEs are still registered worldwide today and are the favorites of many classic car fans at vintage car meetings or beauty pageants.
The Jaguar E-Type was the epitome of the contemporary sports car. Athletes and show greats vied to bask in the splendor of the revolutionary new Jaguar E-TYPE. Prominent E-Type owners included footballer George Best, screen greats Brigitte Bardot, Tony Curtis and Steve McQueen, and surrealist painter Salvador Dalì.
At auction and sales, Jaguar E-TYPE roadsters of the first series and convertibles with V12 power command the highest prices, while the cheapest are 2+2 coupés of the series II and III. Also, as a rule of thumb, roadsters are half the price of coupes, and an E-TYPE with covered headlights will certainly command more awe than one with bare ones.
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