The Jaguar E-Type (sold in North America as the XK-E) was unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1961 and caused a sensation. It combined breathtaking styling by aerodynamicist Malcolm Sayer, a claimed top speed of 150 mph and a price far below that of comparable Italian exotics. It is frequently quoted as the car Enzo Ferrari called “the most beautiful car ever made”, it is one of the few cars in the permanent design collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and an electrified E-Type carried a royal couple away from their wedding in 2018.

At a glance
Unveiled March 1961, Geneva
Designer Malcolm Sayer
Engines 3.8L and 4.2L inline-six; 5.3L V12 (Series 3)
Body styles Roadster, fixed-head coupé, 2+2 coupé
Production 1961–1975, roughly 70,000 built

Aerodynamics as art

Malcolm Sayer had worked in the aircraft industry and designed Jaguar’s Le Mans-winning D-Type. He shaped the E-Type mathematically for low drag, and the result — a long, curvaceous hood, small oval grille and tapering tail — looked like nothing else on the road.

The Geneva drama

Jaguar had so much interest at Geneva that a second car was driven overnight from England to meet demand for demonstration drives. The story became part of E-Type legend.

Series 1, 2 and 3

  • Series 1 (1961–1968): the purest design, with glass-covered headlights on early cars; engine grew from 3.8 to 4.2 litres.
  • Series 2 (1968–1971): open headlights and larger bumpers and lights, partly to meet U.S. safety rules.
  • Series 3 (1971–1975): a 5.3-litre V12, a longer wheelbase and wider track.

In the Museum of Modern Art

The Museum of Modern Art in New York acquired an E-Type roadster for its design collection — a rare honor for an automobile, underlining its status as a design icon.

The royal wedding E-Type

In 2018, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle left their wedding reception in a silver E-Type Zero, a 1960s E-Type converted to electric power by Jaguar Classic. It showed how a classic car can still steal the show at a wedding. Read vintage vs modern wedding cars.

Legacy

The E-Type remains a benchmark of automotive beauty and is widely collected, restored and reproduced. See it at car museums near New York and concours events like Greenwich.