Wednesday 7th February 2018

Jaguar Classic announces D-Type continuation

All-new 25-car run primed for launch at this week's Salon Retromobile

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Bringing things back from the dead is all the rage these days. From Snow White to the Spice Girls, it seems nothing is safe from a 21st century re-hashing, and cars are no exception.

Lister revived the Knobbly, Aston Martin has built 25 more DB4 GTs, and Land Rover couldn't even wait a year before getting in on the act with its 're-engineered' Defender. Jaguar itself has already brought back the XKSS, committed to 10 'reborn' E-Types, and even gone so far as to stick an electric motor in a 'future-proofed' version of the same model.

Not satisfied with stopping there, however, Jaguar Classic has now set its sights on the legendary D-Type, the car which claimed three back-to-back Le Mans wins for the marque between 1955 and '57. Having originally planned for 100 D-Types, Jaguar only managed to complete 75, and with the classic car market as it is, it was one of those - the 1956 Le Mans winner - which set a new record at auction, selling in 2016 for £15.5m. You can see where this is headed.

Following extensive research, and working from the original engineering drawings, Jaguar seems confident that every one of the 'new' D-Types - set to be hand-built at the JLR Classic Works in Coventry - will be made to an "authentic, original specification", resulting in the creation of 25 "period-correct sports cars".

Kev Riches, Jaguar Classic Engineering Manager, said of the project: "Recreating the nine D-type-derived XKSSs was hugely satisfying, and an even bigger technical challenge than the six missing Lightweight E-Types, but lessons learned from the XKSS project have given us a head start on the final 25 D-Types. Each one will be absolutely correct, down to the very last detail, just as Jaguar's Competitions Department intended."

There's no word on cost yet - it seems likely if you need to ask you're already too late - though a choice of either 1955-spec 'Short Nose' or 1956-spec 'Long Nose' bodywork has been confirmed. The first prototype example will make its debut at Salon Retromobile in Paris this week, with more details expected to be announced then.

[sidesauce]

As Jag and Aston supply the demand for these period creations, surely Ferrari, Porsche and Daimler must be readying something similar from their back catalogues...?

Very interesting times.