the most famous dash to 150MPH

In 1961, the e-type changed the course of automotive history. this is the story of how autocar magazine verified Jaguar’s claim that it was offering a 150mph car for real-world money

WORDS Philip Porter

IT MAY BE DIFFICULT to believe now but, when the Jaguar E-type was launched in 1961, it was such a sensational motor car and such a rare sight initially that the few examples on the roads of Britain were literally mobbed when they stopped. Peter Sargent, who would race E-types at Le Mans, worked in the City. When he left his office at the end of the day, he could not get near his newly delivered E-type parked in the street, such was the crowd. He had to go and have a gin and tonic! There were two reasons for this extraordinary aura. First, the E-type was, and is, a piece of stunningly beautiful automotive sculpture – quite possibly the most beautiful car ever made. Second, it would do 150mph, a speed…

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Octane (Digital) - 1 Issue, December 2015

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