There’s no denying the war years were tough on everyone involved, but amidst the chaos the seeds were planted for what would become the very foundation of the modern Jaguar brand. As with so many car factories, the war years had seen Jaguar’s manufacturing facilities turned over to military contracts. The constant risk of aerial bombardment, however, meant that staff were required to spend one night a week on fire-watching duties, and the ever-efficient ‘Mr Jaguar’, William Lyons, ensured that the time was made productive by turning them into design seminars for what his company would do when car production could be resumed after the war.
At that time, the engines used in SS Jaguars were all supplied by Standard, but Lyons’ love-hate relationship with Standard boss Sir John Black made him keen to produce his own engines, and it was this that was discussed during the night-time sessions. Lyons demanded a design which was ahead of its time – something that could stay in use through several generations without becoming old-fashioned.
Jaguar’s ‘X’ for experimental codes began at this time, with prototype engines developed in both four- and six-cylinder forms. Ultimately, this process would culminate in the XK engine, and it certainly fulfilled Lyons’ hopes by staying in production for well over half a century.
Developing an all-new engine at a time when company finances had been
