📍. ‘The Jaguar D-Type’s legend wasn’t built on comfort — Stirling Moss said it preferred escape roads to corners.’
Think of the Jaguar D-Type as the Concorde of the 1950s racetrack: fast, exotic, and just a little terrifying.
Stirling Moss swore the C-Type was nicer to drive, yet he and Peter Walker still hit 172.97mph at Le Mans before fuel gremlins and brake failure ended the show.
A car that terrified drivers, embarrassed rivals, and made Jaguar immortal.
Early 1950s – The Challenge
Ferrari, Alfa, Aston and Maserati were sharpening their claws.
Fresh from Le Mans triumph with the C-Type, Jaguar knew it needed a sharper weapon.
1954 – Enter the D-Type
Eighteen months in gestation, the D-Type emerged: aviation-inspired aerodynamics, a vertical fin like a Spitfire’s rudder, and the trusty straight-six XK engine.
Designed for one thing only: Le Mans.
1954 Le Mans
Moss and Walker led, despite contaminated fuel.
They set a new speed record — 172.97mph on the Mulsanne straight — before the brakes gave up.
1955–1957 – The Glory Years
Wins at Le Mans in three consecutive years confirmed the D-Type as Jaguar’s most successful racing machine.
Rivals were left looking distinctly pre-war.
Afterlife – The XKSS
With Jaguar quitting works racing, 25 half-built D-Types were softened into XKSS road cars — Steve McQueen famously bought one.
Nine perished in a devastating factory fire, only adding to the legend.
Legacy
Jaguar only built 71. Today, each is an eight-figure ticket into motoring’s highest society, as rarefied and unobtainable as the Concorde seat it was compared to.
📍. ‘The XKSS was the ultimate example of British improvisation: when in doubt, slap on a windscreen and sell it to Hollywood.’
