IN 1961 the world car market was rocked by the launch of a model that has become a true sporting icon.
Now, 50 years later the Jaguar E-Type remains of one this country's greatest automotive achievements.
Anyone who was lucky enough to have been at the 1961 Geneva Motor Show would have witnessed the gasps of admiration when the wraps were thown off this amazing car which redefined what a sports car should be.
Gone were the somewhat dated lines of the XK150 and in were breathtaking, sweeping lines and a firm indication that the Big Cat was about to pounce on many more sports car sales.
It was a William Lyons/MalcolmSayer design masterpiece which achieved a staggering 150mph for around £2,000.
At the 1962 Earls Court Motor Show it was praised for its racing speeds and handling combined with a surprising degree of docility and luxury appointments.
With the then Purchase Tax it would have set you back £2,159 which must have made Ferrari weep because the 3.8 six-cylinder E-Type's 265bhp upstaged the V12 Ferrari 250 GT which had an output of 240bhp. And the Ferrari could not beat its top speed yet cost £6,666.
Over the years the E-Type went through various changes and actually ended up as a V12 which could still not beat the original's top speed.
When you look back it is perfectly clear that the very first E-Type produced from 1961-64 was the real statement of what this car was originally intended to be.
Although I drove a number of later E-Type's over the years until the model was withdrawn in the mid-1970s, I came into motoring just too late to drive one of the originals from new.
But I did take the wheel of a restored version some years ago and even compared to the refinements and classy delights of the last version – the Series 3 – it was just magic, conveying a sense of the old true-Brit hairy sports car with a feeling of opulence that was mind-blowing.
I walked away from the experience wondering just why everybody was raving about Italian sports cars when Britain created a car like the E-Type.
If the E-Type had one problem it was rust which could ruin the hull of the car. But the preservationists have done a fine job in saving many examples of the first model.
A lot have been re-imported into Britain from places where the climate had been kinder to the thoroughbred bodywork.
Throughout the E-Type's lifespan more that 70,000 were sold. By far the worst was a Series 2 variant which was exported to the USA with only 171bhp and gutless performance.
An open 3.8-litre car, the first such production car to be completed, was tested by The Motor magazine in 1961 and could accelerate from 0–60mph in 7.1 seconds with a fuel consumption of 21.3mpg.
A car for its time certainly but even by today's high performance standards the first E-Type can hold its head high as an expression of pure sporting excellence.