JAGUAR

XK 150

The Jaguar XK 150 was announced in May 1957 as the last evolution of the XK line that had begun with the sensational XK120 of 1948 and continued with the XK140. Though it kept a clear family resemblance, the Jaguar XK 150 was radically revised, with a wider, one-piece curved windscreen, a higher waistline and fuller, more modern bodywork that gave it a plusher, more grown-up character. Most significantly, it was one of the first production cars to offer four-wheel Dunlop disc brakes as standard, a huge advance over the drums of its rivals. The XK 150 launched only as a fixed head coupe (FHC) and drophead coupe (DHC), with the open two-seater roadster (OTS) arriving in 1958 to continue the line started by the XK120. Under the long bonnet sat the famous 3.4-litre DOHC XK straight-six, uprated with a new "B-type" cylinder head to 180 bhp, and from 1958 a 3.8-litre version offered up to 220 bhp, or as much as 265 bhp in the triple-carburettor "S" specification that could reach 135 mph. Production of the Jaguar XK 150 ran to October 1960, with 9,382 cars built in total, comprising 4,445 fixed head coupes, 2,672 drophead coupes and 2,265 roadsters, before the model gave way to the epochal E-Type. Fast, comfortable and beautifully finished, the Jaguar XK 150 is prized today as the most usable and best-braked of the classic XK sports cars.