The three official series, 1961 to 1968
Series 1
The original car, in 3.8 and then 4.2 litre form, with covered headlights, triple SU carburettors and the small bonnet intake. The shape as it was shown at Geneva in March 1961.
Specification
- Announced
- Geneva Motor Show, March 1961
- Body styles
- Open two seater and fixed head coupe from 1961, 2+2 fixed head coupe from 1966
- Engine
- XK six cylinder, twin overhead camshaft, iron block and alloy head
- Capacity
- 3,781cc to late 1964, then 4,235cc
- Carburettors
- Three SU, sidedraught
- Gearbox
- Moss four speed with unsynchronised first on the 3.8, all synchromesh Jaguar unit on the 4.2
- Brakes
- Discs all round, inboard at the rear
- Suspension
- Front torsion bars and wishbones, independent rear with twin coil springs each side
- Identifying points
- Headlights behind glass covers, small oval bonnet intake, lights above the bumper line, toggle switches
Production
| Series 1 3.8 | 15,498 | 7,670 coupes, 7,828 roadsters |
|---|---|---|
| Series 1 4.2 | 16,195 | 5,830 coupes, 6,749 roadsters, 3,616 2+2s |
| Series 1 total | 31,693 | Excluding the interim 1.5 cars |
Those figures come from the per-body-style table. Robson's widely reproduced breakdown gives 15,490 3.8s and 17,320 4.2s for the same period, and counts the 2+2 bodies separately at 10,930 across the whole run, which is a different way of slicing the same cars rather than a dispute about how many were built.
Series 1 covers the first seven years of production and two quite different engines. A 3.8 litre car of 1961 and a 4.2 litre car of 1967 look much alike from ten paces, and are noticeably different to live with. Anyone identifying a car should start with the chassis number rather than the badge.
The 3.8 cars
The earliest cars carry flat floors, external bonnet latches and a welded louvre bonnet, all of which were changed within the first year or so of production. The Moss gearbox, shared with the XK sports cars, has no synchromesh on first gear and a slow, deliberate change that rewards patience. Seats are thinner and the cabin is plainer than later cars.
The 4.2 cars
From the second half of 1964 the 4.2 litre engine arrived, together with an all synchromesh Jaguar gearbox, an alternator in place of the dynamo, a better brake servo and much improved seats. Jaguar did not claim more power for the larger engine, describing the gain as torque and flexibility. For most owners the 4.2 with its own gearbox is the easier car to use regularly.
The 2+2
From 1966 the coupe was also offered on a longer wheelbase with a raised roofline, a longer door and occasional rear seats, and this was the first E-Type available with automatic transmission. It is a body style rather than a separate series, and Series 1 2+2 cars carry the same identification points as their two seat siblings.
What to look at first
- Chassis and engine numbers against the Heritage Trust record, since Series 1 cars are the most often modified and the most often described optimistically.
- The bonnet, which is expensive, and its shut lines, which tell you a great deal about past accident damage.
- The structure around the rear radius arm mountings, the sills and the floors, where corrosion is structural rather than cosmetic.
Sources
- Per-body-style production table reproduced in the Wikipedia Jaguar E-Type article, used here as the archive's secondary breakdown and cited as such.
- Production figures attributed to Graham Robson, widely reproduced, which divide the same cars differently from the per-body-style table.
- Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust research guide to E-Type chassis numbering and build dates.
- xkedata.com, for chassis number ranges and build-record detail.
Last reviewed .