SERIES 1 4.2

Martin Brundle

RACER AND BROADCASTER

The best roadgoing E-type I’ve ever driven was my 1965 Eagle 4.2 fixed-head coupé. I picked it up from Henry Pearman at Eagle and immediately drove it to Monza and back via Spa for the Formula One races. It drove just as well as it looked; we called it Elvis.

Julian Barratt CEO, SNG BARRATT GROUP

My favourite E-type changes after each one I drive, but if I had to pick one I would go with a Series 1 4.2 roadster. I know the purists love a 3.8, but a few of the areas that were improved on the 4.2 – such as the seats and the brakes – swing it for me in terms of the driving experience. I also love the look of all E-type roadsters with a hardtop fitted – even though, in the six-cylinder cars, it means that I bang my head on the roof!

Mike Brewer WHEELER DEALERS

The purity of the Series 1 4.2 fixed-head coupé is the one. A big dose of power under the right foot, a gearbox that’s a delight, and the lines of the roof and rear haunches make me weak at the knees. Designer Malcom Sawyer must have had a beautiful wife or girlfriend – you can see it in the metal: a poem in steel.

Damian Jones H&H CLASSICS

My pick would be a Series 1 4.2 fixed-head coupé. Yes, the headlights are pathetic and the brakes marginal, but the 4.2s feel a bit more muscular than the 3.8s and have the benefit of the sweet-shifting all-synchromesh gearbox. The S1s are better looking to my eyes than their later siblings, with their enclosed headlights and taillights sited above the bumper. That said, any E-type feels special – even a Federal-spec S2 2+2 auto on twin Strombergs!