Lust and Envy : The Emotional Pull of the Ultimate Sports Car, the Jaguar XK120

The year was 1950. A fledgling auto salesman, I commuted from Westchester County to my job in Manhattan at the wheel of my first sports car, a medium green, right hand drive MG TD. Like a first serious romance, that car always has occupied a special place in my memory. Not only was the car a delight, owning it was an experience somewhat akin to being admitted to a fraternity. Encounters with other sports cars, even with an Austin. Standard or Morris, prompted a comradely exchange of hand waves between drivers. One may envision similar salutes being exchanged when equestrian knights of mutual allegiance met in feudal days.

Often, while driving south through Riverdale toward the West Side Highway that hugs the Hudson River shoreline, I was joined by a sleek, almost intimidating Jaguar roadster, sporting New York license plate XK 120. Some subliminal protocol made me realize that it would have been inappropriate to initiate an exchange of salutes…that my MG’s subordinate ranking in the automotive pecking order obliged me to await a signal from the driver of that comparatively expensive, powerful machine. He seldom acknowledged my presence on what he undoubtedly considered his highway. While I loved my MG, I admit being absolutely awe-struck by that ‘ultimate’ sports cat. Only the words, Lust and Envy, adequately describe my emotions. Narrow and taut, with a rakish vee windshield, the XK120 visually promised what the 3.4 liter, twin overhead cam. six cylinder engine beneath its bonnet could deliver. That look rendered superfluous the brass plate on the instrument fascia that assured passengers they were riding in a replica of the car that had been timed at 132 MPH at Jabbeke, Belgium. The leather upholstered cockpit had a businesslike decor, with large, easily read instruments that kept one informed regarding the Jaguar’s vital signs. Pushing an unmarked button converted the gasoline gauge to one that told how much oil remained in the twelve quart sump, as if the driver would ever drive off without physically checking the dip stick. Next to the centrally positioned shift lever was a chromed “fly off” parking brake.

Among the XK120’s other characteristics was the starting carburetor that made a unique hiss when in operation, but, as often as not, it malfunctioned. That was responsible for the creation of a cottage industry comprised of mechanics who installed auxiliary choke switches underneath the dash board. Nearly a decade would go by before I would own a Jaguar roadster, and rue fully I confess not having done it justice.

At Watkins Glen, Thompson, Bridgehampton and elsewhere, I observed Bob Grossman. Harry Carter and others demonstrating the Jaguar’s speed and handling capabilities. On the west coast, Phil Hill was among the early drivers who recognized the new Jaguar’s competition potential, with outstanding performances both at Pebble Beach and Torrey Pines. My first sighting of a made for competition XK120 C Type was at Floyd Bennett Field, where Masten Gregory drove one to victory. And, Gordon MacKenzie was memorable: he wore kilts in that pre-Nomex era when racing his C Type. In the pages of enthusiast magazines like Road & Track. Motor and Autocar, I followed Jaguar’s victorious record in the hands of Stirling Moss. Mike Hawthorne, George Abecassis and Ian Appleyard. Circuits like Brands Hatch. LeMans, Spa Francorchamps and Zandvoort were added to my vocabulary, as were rallys, the RAC, Alpine, Monte Carlo and Licgc-Rome-Liege. What mental pictures those events conjured in the mind of this youthful enthusiast! In 1953, George Cook loaned us his gray XKI20 coupe for a trip to “The Glen”… I particularly recall a spirited dice with an Oldsmobile 88 through a twisty section of Route 17 south of Binghamton… and, near Elmira, an impromptu session with a Justice of The Peace who assessed a $10 fine for too exuberant a driving style.

Then in 1955, when YT was on the General Motors payroll, Buell Starr, Pontiac’s general manufacturing manager, asked me to locate an XK 140M roadster; white paint, black leather seats and chrome wire wheels, please. My reward for locating the car and delivering it to Michigan was enrollment at General Motors Institute for a course that would qualify me for promotion to instructor at a GM Training Center. Mr. Starr admonished me to keep the revs below 2,500, to check the oil when topping off the gas tank and to drive only during daylight hours while in transit to his suburban Detroit home.

Wilbur Tallmadge, a Korean war buddy, who fulfilled a fantasy by buying a new Mark VII upon his return to civilian life, followed his Jaguar sedan with an XK 140MC roadster, the most powerful customer version. As concessions to the American market, the XK140 series Jaguars were fitted with more substantial bumpers, more lavish applications of chrome to grille, boot lid and tail lamps. Brakes also received some welcome attention and the Moss gearbox was redesigned for shorter throws and quicker shifts. Steering and engine cooling also received some welcome attention. Most powerful and best handling of the numbered XK series were the 150s. With this model, disc brakes appeared for the first time on a Jaguar meant for customer purchase. But, from an aesthetic standpoint, no later evolution achieved greater beauty than the XK120. In making the car more practical, the lines had been compromised, and while catering to perceived American tastes, Jaguar had sacrificed a degree of the Britishness that had made the earlier XKs so desirable.

Even some of the undeniable improvements produced less than the hoped for result. For there is a degree of satisfaction that comes from overcoming a somewhat cantankerous automobile, from driving it well, that cannot be equalled by being able to manage a vehicle that presents no challenges. As any owner of an early XK Jaguar will attest, these cars were not easy to master, making the reward all the sweeter for a job well done.