JAGUAR XK140 (1954-1957)

Successor to the innovative XK120 sports car, Jaguar unveiled the XK140 at the London Motor Show in October 1954 alongside the new MkVIIM. Available in three body styles – OTS (Open Two Seater), DHC (Drophead Coupé) and FHC (Fixed Head Coupé) – this second iteration of Jaguar’s classic sports car featured an upgraded suspension set-up with thicker torsion bars and telescopic rather than lever arm dampers. Moving the XK engine and front bulkhead forward three inches improved interior space, providing room for occasional rear seats in the Fixed Head Coupé and more efficient brakes, as well as rack and pinion steering.

The 142kW 3.4-litre engine, as previously fitted to the Special Equipment (SE) XK120, would be made standard for the XK140. For the SE version of the XK140 (XK140 MC in the USA), the engine was fitted with the C-Type head and delivered 157kW.

As a sign of things to come, as well as being offered with an optional Laycock de Normanville electric overdrive operating on top gear, the XK140 would become the first Jaguar sports car to be offered with automatic transmission, a three-speed Borg Warner, in 1956.

Externally, changes from the XK120 included larger front and rear bumpers, a revised radiator grille and larger doors to ease access. Inside there was more legroom and a heater was now standard, while the Fixed Head Coupé’s roof was extended. The spare wheel was now housed in the boot floor, an improvement from the XK120’s underfloor tray. The chrome strip running down the centre of the boot lid included a red badge proclaiming ‘Winner Le Mans 1951-3’.