Early start

AS THE oldest example of the E-type, this Gunmetal Grey fixed-head coupe is as important to British culture as an original edition of William Shakespeare’s First Folio, John Constable’s The Hay Wain or a 1962 pressing of Love Me Do, The Beatles’ debut single.

All early E-types define the Swinging Sixties and this one more than most, it being the oldest. A preproduction example, it was also the manifestation of Jaguar’s growing confidence as a car manufacturer that, following five victories of the Le Mans 24 Hours between 1951 and 1957, validated the company’s position as one of the world’s greatest sports car manufacturers, up there with Aston Martin and Ferrari.

The car’s history, though, unlike The Hay Wain, is best described as rocky. It is only still here to be enjoyed thanks to a little luck and the foresight of several owners.

One of these is Philip Porter. In 1977, when this author, marque historian and E-type Club founder bought the car (universally known by its numberplate, 9600 HP), it looked no better than scrap, a reflection of its age and hard life. Philip understood the importance of the car’s place in history so, because he did not have the funds to restore it, he put it away for two decades in an open-fronted Dutch barn.

“Anyone driving or walking past could just look in at everything. Actually, it looked like a local scrapyard.” That’s how Philip describes the car’s condition in his recent book about it – 9600 HP The World’s Oldest E-type Jaguar. “Also, the weather could get in, which was not good, but everything had to be a long-term plan and could only progress as I could afford it. No one believed I would ever do anything to the poor old cars, including 9600 HP, which looked sadder and sadder as the grime built up.”

The situation was a long way from the car’s heyday in the early Sixties, when it had a pivotal part in the development,