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Jaguar E-Type Series 3 gets tasteful upgrades thanks to E-Type UK

The Jaguar E-Type is one of the most important and recognizable cars of all time. The E-Type — also called the XK-E here in the U.S. — was in production from 1961 until 1975. That said, when most people think of E-Types, they think of the early Series I cars. The later ones (especially federalized models with those horrendous bumpers) don't get much love. E-Type UK, a restoration shop in England, is giving those Series 3 models a second life. The car in these photos is a 1974 Jaguar E-Type V12. This Series 3 underwent a 3,000-hour restoration, getting a number of upgrades along the way. The engine — originally displacing 5.3 liters — has been enlarged to 6.1 liters. It ditched the original Stromberg carbs for a custom downdraft fuel-injection system. Just take a look at those velocity stacks. The car has also been fitted with a custom stainless-steel exhaust system. Power is sent to the rear through a new close-ratio five-speed manual transmission. E-Type UK says it now makes 284 horsepower at the wheels. Other upgrades include a new steering rack, adjustable suspension with new torsion bars, AP Racing brakes with four-piston calipers and ventilated rotors and custom one-off 62 spoke 16-inch Turino wire wheels wrapped in whitewall tires. New louvres and air ducts were added to help cooling. All external lighting has been upgraded to LEDs, including the daytime-running lights. Inside, the E-Type has been fitted with air conditioning, modified heated leather seats from an XJS, iPod and Bluetooth connectivity, piano black trim and a red start button. The interior, including the factory hardtop, has also been fitted with Dynamat to reduce road noise. The car even has remote door locks. E-Type UK didn't post the price for this car, but a similar S3 E-Type is listed for GBP190,000, or about $250,000. If Series 3 or V12-powered cars aren't your thing, the website has a few listings for Series 1 cars with the classic inline-six. There's even an XK120 under the "sold" listings. Related Video:

Junkyard Gem: 1973 Jaguar XJ6

It requires a certain high level of commitment to keep an old Jaguar on the road, and so plenty of first-generation Jaguar XJs end up as projects that never get finished, sitting in yards or garages for decades before winding up in the nearest U-Wrench yard. As I clomp through car graveyards around the country in search of interesting machinery, I see so many 1980s XJs that I don't bother to photograph many of them … but a genuine Series I early Jag is a different story. Here's a '73 XJ6 whose final parking space (prior to facing the cold steel jaws of The Crusher) sits right next to that of a same-year Mercedes-Benz 450SLC in an East Bay yard. How the mighty have fallen! The C107 was too picked-over to be worth photographing, but you can admire the photos of this much nicer '72 I found in Denver a few years back. Unlike the last Series 1 XJ6 that I've photographed (in the very same yard, albeit 13 years ago), this car has not had its original straight-six engine replaced by a small-block Chevrolet V8 (because Jaguar parts were expensive and Chevy parts were cheap during the 1970s, that swap happened frequently). The US-market XJ6 got 150 horsepower from this smooth-running DOHC six, 40 fewer horses than the (far more expensive) 450SLC that year. The interior looks ravaged by the decades, but you can still discern the opulence that once reigned in this wood-and-leather-lined space. The dash boasts a full complement of authentic Smiths gauges, with a tasteful Kienzle clock right in the middle. Here's why we can assume that fewer than two of those instruments functioned at any given time during the life of this car: wiring by The Prince of Darkness! Working on electrical faults in these cars built up your patience while undermining your faith in symptom-to-problem relationships. The six-digit odometer ensures that we'll never know if we're looking at a 56,819-mile car or a 356,819-mile car. I'd guess 156,819 if I had to, based on pedal wear. These cars were very popular in the Bay Area, which has been full of European-car aficionados since the first Renault AXs sputtered off the docks of the San Francisco waterfront. Back in the 1970s and 1980s, you'd never see an old XJ without one of these pre-EU "GB" stickers on the back. The faded condition of this one suggests decades of sitting in the sun, probably while the car sat dead in the driveway due to electrical problems.

Jaguar XE to be built in China

After a six-year absence, the Jaguar XE will return that most English of automotive companies to the compact premium segment, the brand's first whole-hearted launch into that market. For certain Western markets it begins production at the Land Rover plant in Solihull early next year, but it will also continue the brand's venture in to China having been chosen as the first Jaguar to be built there, according to a report in Automotive News. Jaguar-Land Rover owns a plant in Changshu, a joint venture with Chery Automobile, that started building the Range Rover Evoque this year and will add the Land Rover Discovery Sport. Previously, The Leaping Cat was selling cars built from kits at its factory in Pune, India. The brand figures to sell 20,000 cars in China next year, which would be less than a fifth of in-country sales for the JLR group, but the XE is the "spearhead vehicle" that "could make significant inroads" there, according to Jaguar. For comparison, Audi moved 120,450 A4s alone and BMW sold more than 100,000 3 Series models in China in 2013. Globally, Jaguar is predicted to sell 80,000 units this year. By 2017, after the release of the XE, new XF and coming crossover, plus factory expansions in China, Brazil and Saudi Arabia, it hopes to get that number up to 200,000 units; Forbes has a piece detailing why they think it's possible. The JLR group is shooting for a target of 850,000 units worldwide by 2020. Featured Gallery 2016 Jaguar XE: Paris 2014 View 12 Photos News Source: Automotive News Europe - sub. req. via Paul TanImage Credit: Copyright 2014 AOL Plants/Manufacturing Jaguar Land Rover Luxury Sedan jaguar xe jlr