Affordable Exotics: Jaguar

Jaguars have always held a special cachet for sports car fanatics. Jags offer superb performance allied with sumptuous styling and a reasonable price tag, at least when compared with Italian and German exotica. The 1948 XK-120 (along with the MG-TC) launched the sports car craze in America after WWII, and Jaguars have been popular ever since.


Today Jaguar is owned by Ford and some new models are basically Lincolns with facelifts, but in the past Jaguars were designed and built in England, with all the good and bad entailed therein. The English have always known how to build cars with character and speed, but reliability has not been their strong suit.


Modern Jaguars are expensive, and many classic Jaguars sell for stratospheric prices. Clean Jaguar XK-120 roadsters will top $50,000 at auction, the striking first series XKEs are more than that, and racing models (like the D-Type) can exceed a million dollars. However, there are numerous models that can be had for bargain prices—but beware of rough examples that can cost a fortune to restore. Here are some bargains in Jaguar sports models (the sedans deserve an article of their own), plus some to avoid.

XK-150 (1957-1961)
The first postwar Jaguar sports car was the XK-120, which was replaced in 1954 by the similar XK-140. Both these models are highly prized by collectors, but the handsome XK-150 that followed is not as respected.


The XK-150 was a heavier, more touring-oriented upgrade of the raw XK sports cars that preceded it. It looked the part, with higher doors, heavier bumpers and a bigger grille. The basic suspension and running gear (live rear axle, drum brakes and a 3.4-liter twin-cam six) were carried over but, by the late 1950s, the Mercedes 300SL and the fuel-injected Corvette were both faster and more fun to drive. Plus, the Austin-Healey 100-6 was almost as quick for a lot less money.