This final-year Series III is the swan song of Jaguar's most consequential design—a 5.3L V12 automatic that proves the E-Type aged better than most marriages from that era. Red over tan is the only color combination that matters. Clean examples are getting harder to find, and prices reflect it.
The Series III gets dismissed by purists, but they're wrong. This is where the E-Type proved it could still seduce you at 50 years old.
The 90s and 2000s were the last gasp of practical performance—when manufacturers still believed wagons could be thrilling. An E39 M5 Touring, an RS6 C5, a 540i with a proper engine: these weren't compromises, they were statements. Today's crossovers pretend they've replaced them. They haven't.
Fast wagons died not because people stopped wanting them, but because SUVs were easier to sell to people who don't actually drive.
Before SUVs murdered practicality, fast wagons were the thinking enthusiast's move—real performance wrapped in understated sheet metal. The RS6 C5, E55 AMG, and V70 R proved you could haul a family and embarrass sports cars at the same traffic light. Values are climbing because people finally figured out what they lost.
Fast estates are the last cars that didn't apologize for being useful. Now that everyone's obsessed with crossovers, these actually make sense.
Autocar's staff went to war over which model defined each marque. From the MG ZT-T 260's sleeper credibility to whether a 911 variant beats the 356, they're parsing the real difference between good and generational. The gap between what journalists remember and what the market actually values keeps widening.
Ranking 'best ever' by brand is content comfort food—safe, divisive, and missing the point. The real story isn't the pick, it's that half these manufacturers peaked 15 years ago and everyone knows it.
This final-year Series III is the swan song of Jaguar's most consequential design—a 5.3L V12 automatic that proves the E-Type aged better than most marriages from that era. Red over tan is the only color combination that matters. Clean examples are getting harder to find, and prices reflect it.
The Series III gets dismissed by purists, but they're wrong. This is where the E-Type proved it could still seduce you at 50 years old.
The 90s and 2000s were the last gasp of practical performance—when manufacturers still believed wagons could be thrilling. An E39 M5 Touring, an RS6 C5, a 540i with a proper engine: these weren't compromises, they were statements. Today's crossovers pretend they've replaced them. They haven't.
Fast wagons died not because people stopped wanting them, but because SUVs were easier to sell to people who don't actually drive.
Before SUVs murdered practicality, fast wagons were the thinking enthusiast's move—real performance wrapped in understated sheet metal. The RS6 C5, E55 AMG, and V70 R proved you could haul a family and embarrass sports cars at the same traffic light. Values are climbing because people finally figured out what they lost.
Fast estates are the last cars that didn't apologize for being useful. Now that everyone's obsessed with crossovers, these actually make sense.
Autocar's staff went to war over which model defined each marque. From the MG ZT-T 260's sleeper credibility to whether a 911 variant beats the 356, they're parsing the real difference between good and generational. The gap between what journalists remember and what the market actually values keeps widening.
Ranking 'best ever' by brand is content comfort food—safe, divisive, and missing the point. The real story isn't the pick, it's that half these manufacturers peaked 15 years ago and everyone knows it.
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