Jaguar celebrates 60 years of the D-Type

The streamlined structure and breathtaking looks of the D-Type make it one of the most beautiful competition cars ever produced and Salon Prive are thrilled to be celebrating its 60th anniversary. This is the only car with an asymmetric design, as it has a fin behind the driver, for better aerodynamic efficiency.

A car that won the extremely difficult Le Mans, and was the evolution of the C-Type — the first car to sport disc brakes. In its first-ever Le Mans the D-Type finished second. It featured the C-Type’s successful 3.4-litre XK competition engine, the D-Type varied from its forerunner completely as it had a very different construction, featuring two chassis sub-frames bolted to a monocoque. Few cars could match the D-Type on the endurance circuits of the period, with many dominating performances at Nurburgring, Reims, Sebring and three consecutive victories at Le Mans (1955 – 1957).

“Jaguar enjoys a magnificent road and race heritage and the D-Type was pivotal in cementing this during the 1950s -showcasing the engine power and design capabilities of the works’ engineers and mechanics. We were very keen to have our development car, #401, feature as we are always proud for it to be seen, especially at an event like Salon Privé where it will be alongside a selection of other fantastic and equally rare examples.”

Jaguar had recently designed the F-Type Project 7, which is the F-Type based on the D-Type styling. The D-Type has been a unique project undertaken by Jaguar and the results showed. The enthusiasm of the D-Type was carried forward on the E-Type, which is still one of the most gorgeous-looking classic cars of the century. The F-Type is the successor to the C-Type, D-Type and the E-Type. The F-Type is available as a convertible and Coupe models.