There are few cars as iconic as the 1961 Jaguar E-Type. It changed the industry. With unit-body construction rather than the then-common ladder frame chassis, rack-and-pinion steering, and independent rear suspension, it had a huge mechanical advantage over other post-war performance cars. Its gorgeous lines inspired even Enzo Ferrari, who called it “the most beautiful car ever made.”
Though more than 38,000 were built, barely 2,500 are believed to remain.
Its closest modern relative is the 2021 Jaguar F-Type. The company plans to celebrate the old icon’s birthday with a special edition of that car. The F-Type Heritage 60 Edition run will include just 60 hand-finished examples in coupes and convertibles.
The sentimental big news is the paint job. It’s a Sherwood Green that, Jaguar says, hasn’t been offered since the 1960s (though variations on British racing green have always been in the Jaguar stable). The interior features dual-tone Carraway and Ebony Windsor leather, and aluminum console accents reminiscent of the original.
Underneath the cosmetic changes, each Heritage Edition is an F-Type R, built around a 550-horsepower, supercharged V8, with a baffle in the exhaust, allowing drivers to increase the volume of that monstrous engine when they want to feel the visceral thrill.
