10 Things You Never Knew About The Legendary Jaguar C-Type - HotCars

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Jaguar today, is Jaguar Land Rover, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tata Motors, and has come a long way from its founding years as the Swallow Sidecar Company, later becoming S.S. Cars Limited.

In 1945, after their Jaguar cars were successful for a decade, the company yet again changed its name and became Jaguar Cars Limited, and even though they were dependent on other companies to make bodies for their cars, Jaguar was going places.

In 1950, Jaguar debuted its XK120-C, also known as the Jaguar C-Type, solely for the track. Very few cars were made from 1951 to 1953, and 2021 marks the 70th year of this gorgeous classic that decimated the competition.

So here are 10 things you may not have known about the Jaguar C-Type, and why it's such an important piece of automotive history, for both Britain and the USA.

10 Jaguar XK120-C Won Its Debut Le Mans

After 16 hours of horrible rain racing, Peter Walker and Peter Whitehead drove the very first Jaguar C-Type to its very first Le Mans win. It lost out in 1952 but in 1953 it won the Le Mans again. So for two out of its three production years, the Jaguar C-Type was unbeatable on track.

It raced in 1954 as well, and finished in fourth place, and made Jaguar a big name in the world of endurance racing. So this is the car that put Jaguar on the racing map and gave it that hallowed legacy it bears today.

9 The 'C' Stood For Competition

There was already an XK120 from Jaguar, which was a street-legal sports car. The C-Type was a track-ready model and made 205 horses from its 3.4-liter straight-six engine, some 25-45 horses more than the road models.

What also worked for the car was the tubular steel frame that went in to give it added strength as well as the slippery aluminum body that added to the aerodynamics of the car, leading to the multiple Le Mans wins.

8 The Very Limited Numbers Of The XK120-C

The Jaguar C-Type was only built from 1951 to 1953, and only 53 of these were ever made. The 1953 models are the ones that often command the highest prices because these were made even more lightweight, after the 1952 Le Mans' failure.

The entire premise of the C-Type was to race and win, so each of the 53 cars, despite the geriatric age, is built to last and take a high-wind beating. But as daily drivers, they are notable for lacking all creature comforts.

7 And The Very Unlimited Prices

Only 53 were made. And each of the 53 cars comes highly prized, and consequentially, highly-priced. At the 2012 Pebble Beach Auctions, a 1953 Jaguar C-Type sold for more than $3.7 million. But this is just the edge of the price precipice.

In 2017, a 1952 Jaguar C-type was sold at the RM Sotheby’s Icons auction in New York, for a cool $5.2 million. But even before that, in 2015, RM Sotheby’s sold a 1953 Jaguar C-Type Works Lightweight model for a whopping $13.2 Million in Monterey, also because this is the car that finished fourth at the 1954 Le Mans. So this car is valued. And then some!

6 Probably Why Replica Jaguar C-Types Are Very Popular

So it's clear, the common man, and even the common rich man cannot afford the C-Type. So if you still want one of the C-Types, one way to get it is to commission a replica or recreation car. But there’s a whole variety out there, in quality and pricing.

There are crude fiberglass cars of the past, and more recently the alloy cars that to the non-expert eye, look nearly identical to the original C-Type. There a couple of listings here, with one for sale for $88,000 and another for $139,000. Even replica C-Types don’t come cheap.

5 The Racing History Of The C-Type

The C-type made its racing debut in 1951 with three entries. Two retired while the third, driven by the two Peters, Walker, and Whitehead won the race. In 1952, the reshaped front end led to the mechanical failure of all three factory-backed entries.

In 1953, the C-Type became lighter and more powerful and factory entries decimated the Le Mans, coming in first, second, and fourth. In its last racing year, a privateer C-Type came in fourth at Le Mans.

4 This Is Where The C-Type Fails A Little

The 1951 C-Type, despite its very credible win, came with its own faults. It suffers from a loss of oil pressure caused by excessive vibration at high revs when the pipe connecting the oil pump to the filter gets shaken from its place.

For the 1952 models, the redesign of the front fascia led to mechanical failures and cooling issues. The 1953 models were turned out to be the best with better power and lighter bodyweight. All cooling problems were also fixed.

3 But Mostly The Jaguar XK120-C Shined Brightly

The C-Type was the first Jaguar to be designed by Malcolm Sayer, known for his aerodynamic prowess who designed cars more after science than style. The tubular frame came through the brainpower of William Heynes, Bob Knight, and Norman Dewis, equally big names in the automotive business.

The C-Type not only took the Le Mans, but it also took it the very first year of its birth, beating the likes of Aston-Martin, Ferrari, and Talbot-Logo. For a small British manufacturer, this was big. And yet they kept improving the C-Type, enough for a 1953 win as well, with the first-time use of disc brakes.

2 Jaguar Is Building New Continuation C-Types

10 Things You Did Not Know About The Jaguar C-Type — Via ClassicCarsJournal

In 2014, Jaguar built six lightweight E-Types racers as a continuation series, built to the same specs as the original cars from 1963. And now, to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Jaguar XK120-C, Jag is making a series of continuation C-Types.

Only eight new C-types will be built, on the specs of the original, but since they cannot pass 2021’s emission and safety regulations, these will only be track legal. The coolest bit is that they will debut at the 2022 24 Hours of Le Mans, where it all started.

1 The Jaguar Clubs Of North America Are Excited

Technically, making eight such continuation C-Type is not going to do anything for Jaguar Land Rover, and even priced expensive, these cars could be a financial loss. So why is Jaguar doing it? The idea is to rekindle the hallowed legacy of Jaguar in racing, and perhaps even create a buzz in the younger crowd.

The continuation C-Types may not be all that affordable, but we are pretty sure that Jaguar hopes that once the unattainable is gone, the consumers may head to the I-Pace and XF models instead. That said; the price of the continuation C-type is still under wraps and apparently, not all have been sold. Yet.

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About The Author

Arun Singh Pundir (541 Articles Published)

Arun Singh Pundir has been a longtime media crackerjack and worked most of his life in sales and marketing. In 2018, he officially flipped and switched sides to the editorial. He lives with his wife, two rascally sons and is a car and motorcycle nut in his free time. Not that he has too much free time. He currently writes for HotCars on anything that has any number or kind of wheels. He is also penning pop culture, lifestyle and all things rich for TheRichest. For now, he considers his Isuzu D-Max V-Cross, Suzuki Ciaz, and Royal Enfield Classic 500, the three current flames of his life. His dream is to drive around the world; even if it takes more than eighty days.