Jaguar

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PHILIP P O R T E R
JAGUAR: HISTORY OI« A CIASSIC MARQI K telis the
story ofone of the most excitingand innova-tive motor companies the autó industry has seen. It is a story of unsurpassed engin-eering sophistication and design genius, of ambition and the unending struggle for automotive refinement.
That story begins in 1922 in a tiny garage producing just one motorcycle sidecar a week. It incíudes the production of somé of the most aristocratic and stylish pre-war sports cars; elegant saloons amid post-war austerity; the appearance in the 1950s of what many consider to be the ultimate sports racingcar, in the unmistakable shape of the D-type; and of course the dazzling impact of the legendary E-type. Fortunately for those who love cars, and even for those vvho simply love the happy marriage oftech-nology and style, the story is far from over. The XJ6, the Sovereign and the top-of-the-range Daimler have recently taken the motoring world by storm.
Each stage of this fascinating... Tovább

Fülszöveg

PHILIP P O R T E R
JAGUAR: HISTORY OI« A CIASSIC MARQI K telis the
story ofone of the most excitingand innova-tive motor companies the autó industry has seen. It is a story of unsurpassed engin-eering sophistication and design genius, of ambition and the unending struggle for automotive refinement.
That story begins in 1922 in a tiny garage producing just one motorcycle sidecar a week. It incíudes the production of somé of the most aristocratic and stylish pre-war sports cars; elegant saloons amid post-war austerity; the appearance in the 1950s of what many consider to be the ultimate sports racingcar, in the unmistakable shape of the D-type; and of course the dazzling impact of the legendary E-type. Fortunately for those who love cars, and even for those vvho simply love the happy marriage oftech-nology and style, the story is far from over. The XJ6, the Sovereign and the top-of-the-range Daimler have recently taken the motoring world by storm.
Each stage of this fascinating history is meticulously and enthusiastically charted in jaguar and illustratecl with evocative images from the Jaguar company's own archives, previously unpublished, and many full-colour, specialy commissioned photo-graphs of the famous marque. Comprehen-sive specification panels are provided for all models, along with readable explanations of all the engineering breakthroughs, from the revolutionary XK engine of 1948 to the intricate microelectronics of today's XJ40.
jaguar is enlivened by the authoritative contemporary comments of the people who shaped the company — the workers on the shop floor, the engineers, the directors, the image-makers — and the racing drivers. A chapter is devoted to the Jaguar challenge on the track, battling with Alfa Romeo, Ferrari and Porsche at Le Mans, and Fords at IMSA meetings across the United States.
Continued on back flap
The struggle for survival through the long night of the French 24-hour event is mirrored in the struggle for autonomy of the whole Jaguar concept during the 1970s and British Leyland nationalization. This aspect of the story is alsó covered — the boardroom battles, the determination of the Jaguar team to reassert their reputation for refinement and reliability in a periocl of great upheaval and uncertainty.
jagl ar: history of a classic marql e pres-
ents a comprehensive analysis of a company, and a product, that have become synony-mous with style and state-of-the-art autó technology, to delight and inform anyone who has ever fallen under the Jaguar spell.
philip pori er is a motoring journalist and author of wide-ranging interests and exper-ience, but his greatest love has always been the Jaguar marque. He has been involved with Jaguar cars in so many ways: as a col-lector, in racing competiton, restoration, working for autó clubs, concours judging, historical research and of course writing. He was a car enthusiast from an early age and began competitive motoring while still at school. In the early 1970s he began col-lecting older cars, particularly Jaguars. Today his collection includes several his-toric XK's, a prototype E-type, the first pro-duction Fixed Head E-type and the twelfth open E. for a time he co-owned a restoration firm, the only one of its kind specializing in the E-type. He was editor of the 'XK' magaziné and later of'Jaguar Dri ver. His books so far include a short generál history ofjaguar, a book on the XK120's and 140's, and another on the XJ6. He is in close contact with past and present Jaguar employees, which lends his writing on the subject a greater immediacy and authority. Vissza