XK70 Jaguar Festival
Huge continental turnout, hill climb demonstrations and big name appearances made this a fitting birthday party for Jaguar’s groundbreaker
Jaguar’s XK120 took the world by storm – selling in far larger numbers than expected and introducing an engine that took five Le Mans wins – and this two-day event did a magnificent job of celebrating the car’s legacy.
Philip Porter and his organising team at the XK Club aimed to gather 700 XK-engined cars in order to celebrate 70 years of the XK engine and did that with ease. With more than 400 XK120s, 140s and 150s
’XK70 organisers aimed for 700 XK-engined cars and did that with ease’
present, they filled the car parks with other classic Jaguars of all shapes and sizes and put on an event that had something for everyone, from competitive hill climbing and car parades to fashion shows.
The show was particularly notable for its huge turnout of classic Jaguars from continental Europe, including a group of Swiss marque devotees who brought along 24 of their cars.
But the high points were the seminars given by luminaries connected to Jaguar’s heritage – including former test driver, Norman Dewis, and ex-CEO, Sir John Egan – and the car parks filled with beautiful Jaguars. Motoring presenter, Edd China, was there too, accompanied by the E-type that he and Al Cox are restoring on their new show, Built By Many.
And if you weren’t content with exploring the vast car parks filled with classic Browns Lane metal, you could even blast up the hill climb in it too – who wouldn’t want a passenger ride up Shelsley Walsh in Willie Green’s Ecurie Ecosse long-nose D-type?