The legendary Jaguar E-Type celebrates its 60th birthday.

Photos by Jaguar

The swinging sixties were just beginning to pick up speed, when Jaguar made a brilliant design statement at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1961, the effect of which would go beyond that of an iconic new sports car. Because with its sensually charged shapes, the bold proportions - eternally long bonnet, short rear with a tailgate that opens to the side - the new Jaguar E-type characterizes an era in which London sets the tone in pop, fashion and art and becomes the swing city of World ascends. Britishness is getting cool and trendy. The first manned moon landing also creates a global atmosphere of optimism. The Beatles were founded in 1961, the fashion designer André Courrèges opened his first studio in Paris and caused a sensation with his designs based on space travel (space look). The first furniture fair opened in Milan in 1961, the popular crime series The Avengers (With Umbrella, Charm and Melon) with Diana Rigg and Patrick McNee started on television and it was only a year away from Mary Quant's first mini-rock .

Its magic still holds today!

The E-type, inspired by the successful Jaguar racing cars C-type and D-type, rolls with 265 hp into a decade of optimism, hedonism and cultural revolutions. Its magic still holds up today - since 1996 an E-type Roadster has graced the permanent exhibition of the New York Museum of Modern Art as an automotive work of art. The legacy is preserved at Jaguar Classic in Coventry and Essen-Kettwig. With the F-TYPE, Jaguar has been building the legitimate successor to a model since 2013 that the Daily Telegraph put in first place in a list of the “2008 most beautiful cars of all time”.

The British design decade

“What is going on in Carnaby Street,” sang pop singer Peggy March. Even if she only trilled the song in 1970, she set a musical monument to the shopping street in the Soho district of London, which had become a hip trend mile at the beginning of the 60s. A great deal was happening, and not just in Great Britain and especially in London. In 1966 England not only became the first and so far only soccer world champion, but at the beginning of the new decade the Jaguar E-type as well as the Mini (car and rock) and the Beatles emerged as British style and design icons.

It is a rebellious and permissive era that is dawning. The pirate radio station Radio Caroline broadcasts music from two transmitter ships anchored at sea and at the London Motor Show car manufacturers do not shy away from having more than lightly dressed models pose next to their innovations. Jaguar also chooses female beauties as decorative accessories for its world premieres of the E-type in Geneva and later New York, but maintains the etiquette despite the inviting bonnets. Especially since there is no need for such additional temptations: shortly after the unveiling, 500 orders for the E-type were received at the stand in Geneva. No wonder, since it is only half as expensive as an Aston Martin DB4 or Ferrari 250 GT. When the roadster was presented in New York in April 1961, Jaguar sold six copies only half an hour after opening the exhibition gates!

E-Mania: The celebrities bask in the glow of the new Jaguar big cat

The E-Mania also attracts many celebrities: the footballer George Best, big-screen stars such as Brigitte Bardot, Tony Curtis and Peter Sellers are among the customers as well as the two-time Formula 1 world champion Jack Brabham. Even the famous surrealist painter Salvador Dalì can be photographed with an E-type, and novel detective Jerry Cotton chases through the deep street canyons of New York in a red Jaguar Coupé. Even Enzo Ferrari is said to have called the E-type the “most beautiful car in the world”.

The sound of the sixties comes from Great Britain

The world of E-type is acoustically accompanied by new bands like the Beatles, who celebrated their first hit in 1962 with Love me Do and their worldwide breakthrough in 1963 with I want to hold your hand. The Rolling Stones are founded just a year later. 1964 The Who. The 60s did not only lead to outbursts of creativity in automobiles and in pop and rock music, but also in the world of design. Design is also establishing itself more and more in the everyday world. Because "everything is possible" is the motto.

Space travel inspires fashion and popular TV series

Take fashion, for example: André Courrèges founded an all-white atelier on Parisian Avenue Kléber in 1961 together with his future wife, Jaqueline Barrière. The French influenced the fashion of the 60s with his futuristic designs, which were heavily inspired by space travel. At the same time, he makes the mini-skirt created in England socially acceptable in Parisian haute couture. Courrège's Space Age style is reflected in new TV series such as Spaceship Enterprise, Doctor Who and The Outer Limits.

Pop Art influences on interior designers

Pop Art, with its protagonists Andy Warhol (Campbell's Soup Cans, 1962) and Roy Lichtenstein (Look Mickey, 1961), also reached its heyday in the early 60s. The Danish designer Verner Panton takes up the art direction in furniture and lighting designs. As with the FlowerPot VP4 table lamp. Well-known interior designers such as Eero Aarnio, Arne Jacobsen, Verner Panton and above all Charles Eames inspire design fans with minimalist, functional and timeless designs. To this day, they have found numerous imitators in the form of retro furniture. Here clear shapes and right angles contrast with bright colors such as orange or brown and olive tones. Lights, plastic chairs and beanbags stand out expressively between the rather simple furniture. Another special feature: you mix wood and fabric with materials such as plastic.

E-type continues the success story: With a V12 engine and as a 2 + 2-seater

Meanwhile, the Jaguar E-type continues its success story thanks to clever model updates. In the spring of 1966, a coupé, the E-type 2 + 2, for the small family, extended by five centimeters, appeared - especially at the request of the American clientele. In March 1971 the ultimate E-type took to the stage: the Series III equipped with a 5,3 liter V12. A twelve-cylinder was only available from Ferrari and Lamborghini at the time. In addition, there is an excellent price / performance ratio: "Jaguar has almost managed to offer a Ferrari at half the price!" States the American trade journal Car & Driver.

The E-type, designed by Malcolm Sayer, an aerodynamicist who came to Jaguar from the aircraft manufacturer Bristol, is not only beguilingly beautiful, but also deliberately streamlined, and is also a commercial success: in 14 years, over 72.500 buyers have succumbed to the charms of the big cat, which is available as a coupé and roadster. More than respectable, Jaguar had originally only planned a small edition of 1.000 pieces.

As an automotive work of art in the New York Museum of Modern Art

The E-type has not lost its electrifying charisma to this day: a steel-blue roadster has been ennobling the permanent exhibition of the New York Museum of Modern Art (MoMa) since 1996. And in 2008, the Daily Telegraph placed the car with the dream dimensions and shapes in its list of the 100 most beautiful cars of all time.

The E-type legacy is preserved at Jaguar Classic in Coventry and Essen-Kettwig

In addition to the Jaguar Classic Works headquarters in Coventry, the legacy of the Jaguar E-type is ensured by the Classic Center in Essen-Kettwig, which opened as a continental European competence center in May 2018. In the workshops of the 4500 m2 area, a highly qualified team takes care of all large and small questions about the E-type and all other classics from the Jaguar and Land Rover brands. More than half of the employees work in the service area, which can be seen from the showroom through large windows. Vehicle checks, service work and repairs, including engine repairs, are carried out at 14 modern service stations.

But restorations and - as the most demanding work - so-called “reborn” models are also among the specialties of the center. E-type enthusiasts can work with the Essen experts to choose a donor vehicle that is suitable for a restoration and that is then literally "reborn". Dr. Ralf Klasen, Managing Director of Jaguar Land Rover Classic, says: “The Jaguar E-type is one of the most sought-after classic cars in the world and I am very pleased that we have the opportunity here in Essen to help enthusiasts get their dream car or the owners to do so the maintenance of this icon and valuable object. "

Legitimate successor F-TYPE now as special model 60 Heritage Edition

As the legitimate successor to the E-type, the Jaguar F-TYPE celebrated its glamorous world premiere at the Paris Salon in 2012. The classy sports car, presented as a coupé and a convertible, heralded a new era at Jaguar after the global financial crisis. The fact that it already has what it takes to become a modern classic confirms not only the sustained high demand but also the many awards for the model. The readers of the Stuttgart trade magazine Motor Klassik recognized the F-TYPE as the “Classic of the Future” at the Motor Klassik Awards - the circle is full ...

On the occasion of the diamond anniversary of the E-type, Jaguar has now released the special model F-TYPE 60 Heritage Edition. Every example that is handcrafted in the Jaguar SVO department SV Bespoke is painted in Sherwood Green - an original E-type color that Jaguar has not had in its range for a new vehicle since the XNUMXs. But the interior, lined with two-tone Windsor leather in Caraway / Ebony, is reserved exclusively for the special edition's exclusive customers.

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The legendary Jaguar E-Type celebrates its 60th birthday.

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