XK-engined Cars

Copyright Porter & Porter

XK60: Shop

Supported by Lloyds TSB

XK60: Potted History

The XK 120 Super Sports caused a sensation when it was unveiled at the 1948 London Motor Show, Earls Court, where it was proclaimed “the most beautiful production sports car in the world". 

Today, the original XK 120 continues to be heralded as an archetype of innovative design: certainly its long-nosed, sculptural beauty can still be appreciated.  However, the real genius of the car was in its successful fusion of styling elegance and mechanical excellence.  The XK was not simply ‘gorgeous’, but was also incredibly fast.  It was powered by Jaguar’s new XK engine (the first to be designed in-house by Jaguar). This engine, which remained at the heart of all Jaguar cars until 1986, powered the XK 120 to the title of the fastest production car in the world: at a press demonstration in 1949, a standard model XK 120 reached speeds of over 130mph on the Jabbeke Highway, Belgium! The XK 120 further proved its credentials by unprecedented international success in racing and rallying, and spawned the Le Mans-winning C-types.

With such a prominent reputation for pace & grace, the Jaguar XK very quickly became a symbol of all that was desirable in post-war Britain and was a ‘must-have’ amongst the stars of Hollywood. The series prospered through another two incarnations: the XK 140 and XK 150, each of which combined updated styling with mechanical improvements.  The last production XK was made in 1961.

However, the XK-engine did not die with the XK but remained the driving force behind Jaguar cars well into the 1980s. It was the engine that powered the equally brilliant E-type for the first 10 years of its life and the ground-breaking XJ6 saloon. It is this heritage, as well as the heritage of the classic XK, that we will be celebrating at Goodwood.  The XK brand has also survived into the modern age, with the arrival of the current XKs and XK-Rs. The modern XKs are a new success story.  They remain markers of style and discernment and now are the choice of a new generation of opinion-formers.