JaguarE-Type

Jaguar E-Type Pictures

The Jaguar E-Type in pictures: the three series and the cars in between, roadsters, coupés and 2+2 cars, the badges and wheels that tell them apart, the racing cars, and the people and places of its story.

A pale blue E-Type coupé in profile at the kerb, in front of a brick shopfront with yellow windows.
A pale blue Series 1 coupé in profile at the kerb, photographed in August 2016.DeFacto, CC BY-SA 4.0

Three series of the E-Type left Browns Lane, Coventry, between 1961 and 1974, as roadsters, coupés and, from 1966, 2+2 cars. The racing cars are mostly seen as they are now, at historic meetings. Each picture's caption says what it shows; where a picture could be taken for a particular car, the caption says it is not.⁠1​2

Series 1

Built from 1961 to 1968, the Series 1 had glass covers over its headlamps until 1967, and its mouth was a small oval. The early cars had the 3.8 engine; from late 1964 they had the 4.2, and in 1966 the 2+2 joined the roadster and the coupé.⁠1​3​4

Series 1 7

  • A red E-Type roadster with a chrome boot rack, seen in profile at the kerb in front of a brick house with a green door. Opens a larger view

    1 A red Series 1 roadster in profile, photographed in August 2017.

  • A silver E-Type roadster with its hood folded and glass-covered headlamps, parked on grass by a harbour full of moored boats. Opens a larger view

    2 A silver Series 1 roadster with covered headlamps at the Greenwich Concours, Connecticut, on 1 June 2024.

  • A cream E-Type coupé in profile on a paddock road, in front of a steel barrier and a grass bank. Opens a larger view

    3 A Series 1 coupé, a 1962 3.8 by the photographer's account, at the Haynes International Motor Museum, Somerset, in January 2020.

  • A maroon E-Type roadster seen from above its long bonnet, parked on gravel beside a red Porsche 911. Opens a larger view

    4 At Lime Rock, Connecticut, in 2022: a Series 1 roadster, hood folded, beside an early Porsche 911.

  • A black E-Type coupé with red leather seats on a white display floor, under exhibition spotlights. Opens a larger view

    5 A Series 1 3.8 coupé shown as a flat-floor car at Grand Basel, Switzerland, in September 2018; it is not one of the 1961 launch cars.

  • A red E-Type roadster with bubbled paint on its wing and sill, parked in a sunny parking bay. Opens a larger view

    6 A roadster with the Series 1 body and no headlamp covers, in unrestored paint, in California.

  • A pale blue E-Type with a fixed roof and worn paint, parked on a street beside a hedge and an iron gate. Opens a larger view

    7 A right-hand-drive Series 1 closed car, worn from use, on a street.

Picture credits (7)
  1. 1 DeFacto, CC BY-SA 4.0
  2. 2 Charles from Port Chester, New York, CC BY 2.0
  3. 3 Andrew Bone from Weymouth, England, CC BY 2.0
  4. 4 Charles from Port Chester, New York, CC BY 2.0
  5. 5 Ank kumar, CC BY-SA 4.0
  6. 6 Stephen Hennessey from Murrieta, CA, CC BY 2.0
  7. 7 Rundvald, CC BY-SA 4.0

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Series 1½

In 1967 the covers came off the headlamps, early in the year on North American cars and by the middle of it everywhere. Enthusiasts call the cars built until the Series 2 arrived in 1968 the "Series 1½", though it was never a factory name.⁠5​1

Series 1½ 4

  • A dark blue E-Type roadster with its hood folded, parked on grass beside a circuit's steel barrier. Opens a larger view

    8 An open-headlamp "Series 1½" roadster, a North American car, at the Lime Rock Historic Festival, Connecticut, on 4 September 2022.

  • A pale yellow E-Type roadster with open headlamps and whitewall tyres, displayed in a museum hall. Opens a larger view

    9 An open-headlamp late Series 1 roadster, the kind called "Series 1½", at the Heritage Motor Centre, Gaydon, on 8 November 2007.

  • A red E-Type roadster with a white hood seen head-on under red museum lighting, its headlamps without covers. Opens a larger view

    10 Head on in red museum light at the Museo Nazionale dell'Automobile, Turin: a car the museum labels a 1969 4.2 "Series 1,5".

  • A red E-Type 2+2 with its whole bonnet tipped forward to show the engine, on a grass show field. Opens a larger view

    11 Open headlamps and a bonnet (hood) tilted forward on a 1968 4.2 2+2, at a Dutch club show in 2010.

Picture credits (4)
  1. 8 Charles from Port Chester, New York, CC BY 2.0
  2. 9 allen watkin from London, UK, CC BY-SA 2.0
  3. 10 Zairon, CC BY-SA 4.0
  4. 11 Alf van Beem, CC0

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Series 2

The Series 2 of 1968–70 kept the open headlamps and gained a larger mouth, with its lamps moved below the bumpers. It was built as a roadster, a coupé and a 2+2.⁠1​6

Series 2 4

  • A white E-Type coupé in profile at the kerb of a quiet suburban street, in front of a brick bungalow. Opens a larger view

    12 A right-hand-drive Series 2 coupé on a street in Christchurch, New Zealand, on 1 February 2013.

  • A dark green E-Type roadster with open headlamps and a large oval intake on terracotta tiles in a museum. Opens a larger view

    13 A Series 2 roadster on show in Monaco's Top Cars Collection, September 2016; the museum's placard gives its year as 1969.

  • A red E-Type coupé on grass beside a harbour, with a large oval intake and the indicators below the bumper. Opens a larger view

    14 A red Series 2 coupé at the Greenwich Concours, Connecticut, on 1 June 2024.

  • A gold E-Type 2+2 on grass by a road, with a large oval intake and the indicators below the bumper. Opens a larger view

    15 A Series 2 2+2, built in April 1969 by its uploader's account, photographed in July 2012; its number plate was blanked by the uploader.

Picture credits (4)
  1. 12 Riley from Christchurch, New Zealand, CC BY 2.0
  2. 13 Victor Grigas, CC BY-SA 4.0
  3. 14 Charles from Port Chester, New York, CC BY 2.0
  4. 15 Mr.choppers, CC BY-SA 3.0

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Series 3 V12

The Series 3 of 1971–74 was in practice a V12, and it came only as a roadster and a 2+2: there was no two-seat Series 3 coupé. The last E-Type marks its end.⁠7​1​2

Series 3 V12 6

  • A dark blue E-Type roadster with its hood up and a cross-hatched grille in a white garage. Opens a larger view

    16 A Series 3 V12 roadster, an American car, with its hood (soft top) up, in Minnesota on 9 April 2016.

  • A dark blue E-Type 2+2 with flared wheel arches and a long roof, in profile at the kerb by a hedge. Opens a larger view

    17 A Series 3 V12 2+2 at Timmendorfer Strand, Germany, on 20 July 2010.

  • A dark green E-Type roadster with red seats and whitewall tyres on a parquet floor in a white hall. Opens a larger view

    18 A Series 3 V12 roadster, a 1973 car by the photographer's account, at the Legendy show in Prague on 19 May 2019.

  • A dark grey E-Type 2+2 with a cross-hatched grille and wire wheels on a pale museum floor. Opens a larger view

    19 The Deutsches Technikmuseum's 1973 Series 3 V12 2+2 in Berlin, photographed on 4 April 2017.

  • A dark green E-Type roadster with its hood up from behind on cobbles, showing a 'V12' badge and four exhaust pipes. Opens a larger view

    20 A Series 3 V12 roadster on the forecourt of the Louwman Museum, The Hague, in 2016.

  • A pale yellow E-Type 2+2 with a cross-hatched grille parked on gravel above vineyards. Opens a larger view

    21 A Series 3 V12 2+2 in Champagne, France; its number plate was blurred by the uploader.

Picture credits (6)
  1. 16 Greg Gjerdingen from Willmar, USA, CC BY 2.0
  2. 17 Bin im Garten, CC BY-SA 3.0
  3. 18 Jiří Sedláček, CC BY-SA 4.0
  4. 19 Mike Peel (www.mikepeel.net), CC BY-SA 4.0
  5. 20 Michel Curi, CC BY 2.0
  6. 21 David Perez, CC BY 4.0

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Badges and wheels

Small details date a car. The 3.8's boot carried only the "E TYPE" and "JAGUAR" scripts; the 4.2 added its capacity. The wire wheels here are held by an eared knock-off spinner on one car and by an earless cap on a Series 2. A badge or a spinner can be changed, so none of these proves what a car is: the chassis numbers page explains what does.⁠5​3

Badges and wheels 6

  • Chrome 'E TYPE' and 'JAGUAR' script on a cream boot lid. Opens a larger view

    22 The script on a 3.8's boot (trunk) lid, "E TYPE" over "JAGUAR", with no capacity badge, photographed in Australia on 26 August 2012.

  • Chrome 'E TYPE', 'JAGUAR' and '4.2' script on a red boot lid. Opens a larger view

    23 The boot script of a 4.2.

  • Chrome 'JAGUAR', 'E TYPE' and V-shaped 'V12' badges below a vent grille on a red tailgate. Opens a larger view

    24 The tail badges of a Series 3 V12 2+2.

  • A wire wheel with a two-eared chrome knock-off spinner marked 'JAGUAR', on a pale blue E-Type. Opens a larger view

    25 A wire wheel held by an eared knock-off spinner, photographed at Castelo Branco, Portugal, on 10 May 2015.

  • A wire wheel with an octagonal chrome hub cap marked 'JAGUAR', without ears, on a black E-Type. Opens a larger view

    26 The earless knock-off cap on a Series 2 2+2, at Ratingen, Germany, in 2017.

  • Close view of an E-Type's chrome cross-hatched grille and its gold growler badge. Opens a larger view

    27 The grille of the Deutsches Technikmuseum's 1973 V12 2+2, in Berlin, on 28 December 2019.

Picture credits (6)
  1. 22 Jeremy from Sydney, Australia, CC BY 2.0
  2. 23 Jakub "flyz1" Maciejewski, CC BY-SA 3.0
  3. 24 Mic from Reading - Berkshire, United Kingdom, CC BY 2.0
  4. 25 _morgado, CC BY 2.0
  5. 26 Im Fokus, CC BY-SA 4.0
  6. 27 Nick.Pr, CC BY-SA 4.0

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The racing cars

Three of these photographs were taken in period: the Lindner and Nöcker Lightweight at the Nürburgring in 1963, a coupé in the Tulip Rally the same year, and a club race at Llandow in 1966. The rest are modern. Five show named cars: the Group 44 V12 and four Lightweights, one of them John Coombs's 1961 car, rebuilt to the Lightweight specification and counted among them by the register. The others are E-Types raced or shown today, none of them identified. The racing page and the notable cars tell their stories.⁠8​9​10​11​12

The racing cars 12

  • A black-and-white photograph of a Lightweight E-Type with a hardtop and the number 67 racing past trees, a blurred branch in the foreground. Opens a larger view

    28 Racing in the Nürburgring 1000 km on 19 May 1963: Peter Lindner and Peter Nöcker's Lightweight, then an open car with a hardtop.

  • A black-and-white photograph of an E-Type coupé with rally number 2 and a roof lamp, two men in coats beside it on a circuit apron. Opens a larger view

    29 An E-Type coupé in the Tulip Rally on 25 April 1963, in a press photograph by the Dutch agency Anefo.

  • A black-and-white photograph of an E-Type coupé numbered 79 racing alongside a Morgan and an MGB. Opens a larger view

    30 An E-Type coupé at the start of a club race at Llandow, South Wales, in August 1966.

  • A white E-Type coupé with two blue stripes and the number 10 in a dimly lit museum. Opens a larger view

    31 A coupé in the white, blue-striped No. 10 livery of the Cunningham and Salvadori car, 4th at Le Mans in 1962; nothing shows that it is that car.

  • A white E-Type Lightweight with two blue stripes, the number 14 and the registration 5114 WK on gravel. Opens a larger view

    32 5114 WK, Briggs Cunningham's Lightweight, 9th at Le Mans in 1963, at Hampton Court in 2024.

  • The front of a white E-Type Lightweight with the registration 4 WPD under a paddock awning. Opens a larger view

    33 4 WPD in a paddock in July 2023: John Coombs's car, raced in 1961 as BUY 1 and made a Lightweight by 1963.

  • A silver low-drag E-Type coupé with three headlamp openings and the registration 4868 WK on a display stand. Opens a larger view

    34 4868 WK, Peter Lindner's Lightweight in its low-drag body, restored, at the AvD Oldtimer-Grand-Prix at the Nürburgring in August 2011.

  • A dark green low-drag E-Type coupé with white roundels and the registration 49 FXN on tarmac. Opens a larger view

    35 Photographed in 2009: 49 FXN, the Lightweight of Peter Lumsden and Peter Sargent, given a low-drag coupé body in 1964; it is not the Low Drag Coupé.

  • A white and green E-Type V12 race car numbered 44 driving fast past straw bales. Opens a larger view

    36 Group 44's V12 roadster, raced in America in 1974–75, at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in June 2014.

  • A dark blue E-Type roadster with a hardtop, numbered 35, racing on a circuit beside a strip of grass. Opens a larger view

    37 An E-Type roadster with a hardtop in the Masters Historic race at the British Grand Prix meeting, Silverstone, on 18 July 2021.

  • A silver E-Type coupé numbered 64 racing on a circuit. Opens a larger view

    38 An unidentified E-Type coupé at speed in the AvD Oldtimer-Grand-Prix at the Nürburgring on 7 August 2009.

  • A dark green E-Type coupé numbered 85 racing between red and white kerbs. Opens a larger view

    39 An E-Type coupé, not identified, in a race at the Donington Historic Festival in May 2026.

Picture credits (12)
  1. 28 Lothar Spurzem, CC BY-SA 2.0 de
  2. 29 Jack de Nijs for Anefo, CC0
  3. 30 Hugh Llewelyn from Keynsham, UK, CC BY-SA 2.0
  4. 31 Alan Raine from Cheshire, CC BY 2.0
  5. 32 MrWalkr, CC BY-SA 4.0
  6. 33 Calreyn88, CC0
  7. 34 Lothar Spurzem, CC BY-SA 2.0 de
  8. 35 Brian Snelson from Hockley, Essex, England, CC BY 2.0
  9. 36 Nic Redhead, CC BY-SA 2.0
  10. 37 BWard 1997, CC BY 4.0
  11. 38 Lothar Spurzem, CC BY-SA 2.0 de
  12. 39 MrWalkr, CC BY-SA 4.0

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People and places

Malcolm Sayer appears in a portrait and on his plaque, Sir William Lyons in a bust, Norman Dewis through the XJ13 he tested and Graham Hill 10 years after his win, and the places as they are now.⁠13​14​15​16​17

People and places 7

  • A black-and-white profile portrait of a grey-haired man in a jacket, looking into the distance. Opens a larger view

    40 A portrait of Malcolm Sayer, its date unknown, published under a licence from his family.

  • A round blue plaque reading Malcolm Sayer 1916-1970, Designer of the Jaguar E-Type, lived here. Opens a larger view

    41 Malcolm Sayer's blue plaque in Leamington Spa, in 2014.

  • A bronze bust of a bald man in spectacles and a suit beside a Jaguar Heritage sign. Opens a larger view

    42 A bronze bust of Sir William Lyons at Coventry Transport Museum, in 2014.

  • A dark green mid-engined Jaguar racing car behind a display rail with an information panel. Opens a larger view

    43 The XJ13 of 1966, which Norman Dewis tested, at the British Motor Museum in 2022.

  • A black-and-white portrait of a man with swept-back hair and a moustache, wearing white racing overalls. Opens a larger view

    44 Graham Hill at Zandvoort on 16 June 1971, 10 years after he won at Oulton Park in an E-Type.

  • A wide lawn leading to a restaurant building with white parasols among tall cedars. Opens a larger view

    45 The Parc des Eaux-Vives, Geneva, in August 2024, where the E-Type was shown to the press on 15 March 1961.

  • Old grandstands and pit buildings beside a road beyond a stubble field. Opens a larger view

    46 The grandstands of the Reims-Gueux circuit in 2012, where the Low Drag Coupé was 2nd overall in 1963.

Picture credits (7)
  1. 40 Pat Sayer (deceased), wife of Malcolm Sayer., CC BY-SA 4.0
  2. 41 Bob Parkes, CC BY-SA 2.0
  3. 42 Draco2008 from UK, CC BY 2.0
  4. 43 Calreyn88, CC BY-SA 4.0
  5. 44 Anefo, CC0
  6. 45 3lisai-4u, CC0
  7. 46 G.Garitan, CC BY-SA 3.0

Contents

Sources

Sources are given as plain text; their addresses are on the sources page.

  • Primarymade at the time, by the maker or by people who were there
  • Referenceserious later work: clubs, specialists, magazines, books
  • Databaseresults and listings, entry by entry
  1. Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust, Research Guide No. 001F: Chassis Number Runs and Change Points by model – Jaguar E-type, Issue 3, January 2023. Primary
  2. Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust, "1974 Jaguar E-type Series 3 V12 OTS HDU 555N: The Last E-type Built". Primary
  3. Motor Sport, "New cars" (Earls Court), Nov 1964, p. 13. Primary
  4. Bill Boddy and Denis Jenkinson, "The Jaguar E-type 2+2", Motor Sport, Apr 1966, p. 18. Primary
  5. Jaguar Clubs of North America, Series 1 E-Type Judge's Guide (draft), part 1: Intro–Exterior, Draft, version of 21 Jul 2026, open headlamps. Reference
  6. Jaguar Cars Ltd, Coventry, Jaguar "E" Type range Series 2 (sales brochure), UK, 10/1968. Primary
  7. Bill Boddy, "The new Jaguar V12", Motor Sport, Apr 1971, p. 61. Primary
  8. Jaguar Land Rover (Jaguar media newsroom), "The Lightweight E-type is Reborn" (press release), 14 May 2014, editors' notes. Primary
  9. collectordata.com (the XKEdata family of registers), Coventry Racers: Jaguar C-Type, D-Type, XKSS and Lightweight E-Type register. Reference
  10. Simon Ostler, "Previous winners of the RAC TT Celebration", Goodwood Road & Racing (goodwood.com), 20 Sep 2026. Reference
  11. racingsportscars.com, Le Mans 24 Hours 1962, results. Database
  12. racingsportscars.com, Le Mans 24 Hours 1963, results. Database
  13. Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust, "E-Type Evolution Exhibition", Geneva Motor Show, 1961. Reference
  14. Alan Griffin, "Malcolm Sayer – Aerodynamicist and Designer of Jaguar cars", Leamington History Group, Mar 2014. Reference
  15. Motor Sport, "Oulton Park debut for E-Types", May 1961, p. 24. Primary
  16. Damien Smith, "Cut and pace", Motor Sport, Mar 2005, p. 86. Reference
  17. Simon Taylor, "Lunch with… Norman Dewis", Motor Sport, Apr 2013, p. 86. Reference

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