Jaguar to build 6 new Light Weight E-Types
Discussion
In todays Daily Telegraph page 9 they say Jaguar are now going to build the final 6 of 18 Light Weight E-Types
The original production was to have been for 18 but for an unknown reason thy stopped at twelve
They are looking to sell them for arround one million pounds, originals sell for £3-4 million
The original production was to have been for 18 but for an unknown reason thy stopped at twelve
They are looking to sell them for arround one million pounds, originals sell for £3-4 million
Posted this earlier on the Classic PH Forum. Can't help but think they're cashing in with the current values of some historics. My real Q? though is...who's making them for Jaguar? One imagines they'll go to RS Panels for manufacture...? And who'll make the engines...Rob Beere/Sigma Engineering? Wheels from Simon Dunsford? I'm struggling to see the current Jaguar people having the inhouse skills to make genuine E-Type LW's...unless they're planning to start up a similar 'historics' division ala Porsche and Mercedes.
a8hex said:
Unless they've got existing engines to rebuild then they'll be going to C&G surely. I don't think anyone else make new XK engines do they?
I think you're right, Crosthwaite and Gardiner are the only ones making the alloy engine blocks/wide angle heads as far as I know. I would imagine a new engine won't give much change out of £100k once the ancillaries are thrown in.v8250 said:
Posted this earlier on the Classic PH Forum. Can't help but think they're cashing in with the current values of some historics. My real Q? though is...who's making them for Jaguar? One imagines they'll go to RS Panels for manufacture...? And who'll make the engines...Rob Beere/Sigma Engineering? Wheels from Simon Dunsford? I'm struggling to see the current Jaguar people having the inhouse skills to make genuine E-Type LW's...unless they're planning to start up a similar 'historics' division ala Porsche and Mercedes.
I don't think there's much financial gain to be had from selling six cars no matter how big the profit margin. Certainly not worth it from a financial perspective to a company the size of Jaguar.As a nod to their history and a PR exercise I think it's a very positive.
Regarding someone else making the bodies and someone else the wheels. That's how it always was. Jaguar, along with virtually every other manufacturer, assembled components produced by other companies.
As you say, perhaps they're thinking of starting up an historics division.
There are two sources of new alloy blocks; C & G and ATS in France who have been making them for 20 years, just not made so much noise about it. IIRC, Renault sport machine the blocks for them.
IMHO, ATS are more authentic and actually have the approval of Jaguar to make them.
Wide Angle heads, 2 sources in UK, and neither make them to the original LWE spec.
Wheels, suspension, hubs and brakes have all been made by RS Panels for many years and are absolutely spot on factory spec.
Then you get on to the other hard to find stuff, Lucas fuel bomb, correct metering unit, the list goes on. It depends how authentic Jaguar want to make them, many copy parts currently available have had modern personal interpretations added and the quality of the makers homework is questionable, e.g 8" rear wheels, 7 1/2 rear and 7 front was max in period, and they came later, 12" front discs is another false hood.
By Jaguar using a company's reproduction parts and selling the car as a Jaguar, does that therefore endorse formally the copying of Jaguar designed parts?
All the original cars where different, some remained "standard LWE" others developed extensively by the factory and became very different and more competitive.
Will be very interesting, if you are interested in this sort of stuff, to see how it unfolds.
IMHO, ATS are more authentic and actually have the approval of Jaguar to make them.
Wide Angle heads, 2 sources in UK, and neither make them to the original LWE spec.
Wheels, suspension, hubs and brakes have all been made by RS Panels for many years and are absolutely spot on factory spec.
Then you get on to the other hard to find stuff, Lucas fuel bomb, correct metering unit, the list goes on. It depends how authentic Jaguar want to make them, many copy parts currently available have had modern personal interpretations added and the quality of the makers homework is questionable, e.g 8" rear wheels, 7 1/2 rear and 7 front was max in period, and they came later, 12" front discs is another false hood.
By Jaguar using a company's reproduction parts and selling the car as a Jaguar, does that therefore endorse formally the copying of Jaguar designed parts?
All the original cars where different, some remained "standard LWE" others developed extensively by the factory and became very different and more competitive.
Will be very interesting, if you are interested in this sort of stuff, to see how it unfolds.
Jaguar has had the Heritage Site, JDHT, was B Leyland owned at one time, now restores and shows all company owned Jaguars. It is next door to the Gaydon, JLR Engineering Centre. A team there of specialist restorers. Word is the 6 Lightweights will be made in-house, the skills definitely do still exist here, maybe not the wheels though!
If you've never been a visit to the museum is well worth it, especially if you've kids. Junction 12 off the M40, Gaydon, Warwickshire.
If you've never been a visit to the museum is well worth it, especially if you've kids. Junction 12 off the M40, Gaydon, Warwickshire.
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