E-Type

Jaguar built cars that looked and felt like they cost twice the money, from the XK120 and the E-Type to the Mk2 and the XJ6, and won Le Mans along the way. A guide to the classic Jaguars worth knowing, what each one is like to own and run now, and where it sits in the marque's story.

The Jaguar E-Type was the most beautiful car of its age and one of the fastest, and it ran from the covered-headlamp Series 1 to the V12 Series 3 across fourteen years. The development story, the differences between the series, the myths sorted from the facts, and what the survivors are like to buy now.

The Series 1 is the original E-Type and the one collectors prize most, defined by its glass-covered headlamps and slim chrome bumpers. The 3.8 and 4.2 cars, the early flat-floor and outside-bonnet-lock collectables, the Series 1.5, and what to look for when buying one.

The Series 2 answered American safety and emissions rules with open headlamps, a bigger grille and wraparound bumpers, and in doing so became the best-developed and most usable of the six-cylinder E-Types. What changed, the American power question, and what to look for when buying one.

The Series 3 swapped the XK six for Jaguar's new 5.3-litre V12, sat on the longer 2+2 wheelbase and came only as a roadster or 2+2 coupe. The most relaxed and the smoothest E-Type, the truth about its performance, the run-out commemorative cars, and what to look for when buying one.