1964 Jaguar XKE E-Type

The Jaguar E-Type, or the Jaguar XK-E for the North American market, was in production between 1961 and 1975. In 1958, designer Malcolm Sayer and technical director William Heynes, persuaded their boss, Sir William Lyons, that a new production sports model was needed. Its development, however, dated back to the mid-1950s with the racing D-Type, which had been put aside after Lyons canceled the competition program. The D-Type was an aluminum-bodied roadster powered by a 3.4-liter XK engine and independent front and rear suspension. Sayer and Heynes re-engineered it for steel and powered it with a 3.8-liter engine sourced from the Mk IX saloon. Apart from the transmission and engine, the production E-Type was completely new. It had a multi-tube front chassis with a monocoque center section. Anti-roll bars were placed in the front and back. Wishbones and torsion bars were in the front in a similar fashion to the XK 150. The rear had transverse lower links and fixed-length drive shafts. The wheels were suspended on coil spring-shock absorber units, two on each side. The differential was mounted to a steel cross-member and housed inboard disc brakes.

In comparison to the XK 150, the E-Type was more powerful and weighed 500 pounds less. The 3.8-liter twin cam engine was fitted with three SU side-draft carburetors and offered 265 horsepower.

In March of 1961, the E-Type made its debut at the Geneva Motor Show and was shown in New York a month later. It had race-bred performance and sensuous body lines. It is one of only a few automobiles on permanent display at New York's Museum of Modern Art.

Production of the E-Type began with cars for Jaguar's export markets in March of 1961, followed by domestic production commencing in July. The Series I cars, which were produced until 1968, featured aircraft-type switches, aluminum-accented interiors, and unadulterated bodylines with minimalistic bumpers and covered headlamps.

For 1964, the XK-E remained mostly unchanged. Bodystyles included a coupe and roadster with the roadster having a base price of around $5,300.The dual-overhead-cam six-cylinder engine displaced 230.6 cubic inches and offered 265 horsepower. Later in the year, a later 4.2-liter engine became available with a larger bore than the 3.8-liter version. Horsepower remained the same but torque increased by 23 pounds-feet.

There were 7,828 roadsters and 7,670 fixed-head coupes, of the 3.8-liter XKE, produced from 1961 through 1964.

by Daniel Vaughan | May 2019