A tribute to an automotive icon

LIGHT up the candles and stick on a silly hat, because an icon of the automotive world is about to celebrate a momentous anniversary. One of my favourite cars of all time is approaching its fiftieth birthday bash.

Next month Jaguar's E-Type, which first wowed the world in 1961, will be almost exactly twice as old as I am, meaning it was long gone when I was young and impressionable and carefully nurturing my love of all things cars. I should have lusted after something faster and more modern from my own childhood, like an Aston DB7, any of TVR's offerings or even Jaguar's own XK8, but I didn't. At the tender age of ten all I wanted was an E-Type.

Not that our fifty-something's going to get off that easily, of course; read any of the classic car mags and you'll be well versed with all the E-Type horror stories that abound, like the cramped driving position in the early models, the 1960s reliability, the heart-stopping (but not car-stopping) brakes and the increasingly ugly styling modifications, spurred on by the ‘elf ‘n' safety conscious American market. Most notoriously of all, the only E-Types that would actually do the car's claimed top speed of 150mph were the souped-up ones lent to the press. It wasn't quite the bargain Ferrari-bater Jaguar made it out to be.

But this isn't a car you justify by numbers, particularly if you're looking at the £50,000 pricetag for a good one these days. The reason why I've always wanted an E-Type is because....well, just look at it. This isn't a car that's been designed for anything so boring as going to the shops. It's a rolling work of art that's been sculpted to go as single-mindedly fast as possible, like a 1950s jet fighter. Sure, I can think of lots of cars that are better all-rounders, but none that are anything like as beautiful.

I can also think of plenty of cars that come close to matching the E-Type on looks alone but, judging by a new top ten of my best looking cars of all time that you're free to comment and improve on, don't quite match the cat from Coventry:

1) Jaguar E-Type: For all the reasons listed above
2) TVR Griffith: The closest thing you'll get to a modern E-Type
3) Citroen DS: Looks like a Fifties spaceship, but that's a good thing
4) Austin-Healey 100: The best-proportioned small sports car of all time
5) Ferrari 458 Italia: The best looking new car on sale today
6) Mini Cooper S (original): Well, it had to be in here somewhere
7) Audi TT (1998 original): I hate the TT for lots of reasons, but it's still stunning
8) Ford GT40: In Gulf racing colours please
9) Land Rover Series One: An 80-Inch in Bronze Green is as stunning as the scenery it belongs in
10) Alfa Romeo 156 Sportwagon: Because estate cars can be beautiful too

So it's unfortunate that I blow the metaphorical candles on the E-Type's birthday cake out on a sad note, because I've never driven, ridden or even sat in one. To this day the closest I've ever got to Jaguar's greatest achievement is staring at one as it passes in the street.

Calls from E-Type owning readers to the usual Champion telephone number, please...