"If you’re lucky enough to be enjoying a 2019 Influx calendar you’ll have been able to stare at this topless beauty throughout May. It's unmistakablyy a Jaguar E-Type, and was a joy to work with. The stretched bonnet has "
Jaguar E-Type: stretched?
Look carefully. Can you spot anything strange here?
Well, here’s the thing. This is the world’s first stretched E-Type. We admit – we couldn’t spot the difference, but it’s a 1968 left hand drive Jaguar E-Type series 1 4.2 roadster and it has been stretched by four and a half inches during a major restoration carried out by Classic Motor Cars Limited of Bridgnorth (CMC).
Nick Goldthorp, Managing Director of CMC reckons the car is phenomenal to drive. “It’s the E-Type that Jaguar Cars should have built.” He says. “The extra space makes all the difference and actually alters the whole attitude of the car.”
Apparently the stretch gives the greater legroom and improved handling of the longer wheel based V12 S3.
During the rebuild the owner, a client in the United States who intends to travel widely in the car, requested a trailer to be built that captured the essence of that famous rear-end. CMC built this from two E-Type rear ends joined together. Cute.
The E-Type itself has been named “the Kaizen” by Paul Branstad, the owner, and takes its name from one of Toyota’s founding principles. Kaizen roughly translates as “understand the imperative to make continuous improvements and then get to work.”
We suppose that Mr Sayers, the designer of the car, might well have approved of a design evolution that improved the car’s all-round performance, comfort and appearance. But we’ll leave it to you to decide whether this is a crime of passion – or just simply a crime.
CLICK TO ENLARGE
