Jaguar Heritage to build 6 new Lightweight E-types...

[Colin McKay]

Originally Posted by Clive Brown

I'm ever so sorry; I hadn't realised that they had ever been injured or unwell in the first place.

Clive, it's the wallets that need to be well-healed. In Just a Minute tradition I'd given Mike the benefit of the doubt regarding the spelling

[Adam43]

Originally Posted by Alan Cox

As 'The Ultimate E Type' is purely about the lightweights, and extends to more than 500 pages on the model, I feel it probably is the definitive book on the subject.

Sorry for the weak segue to be able to quote from the book I had in the same room.



Early on after this announcement I heard it suggested we'll see the first one in late summer. Any ideas when that may be? As it is partly a PR exercise, Goodwood FoS would have been ideal.

[Mike Bell]

Originally Posted by Colin McKay

In Just a Minute tradition I'd given Mike the benefit of the doubt regarding the spelling

Very generous! Problem nowadays is that you assume your device knows the context of what you are typing, and will adjust the spelling to suit!

Adam, I would be amazed if we see the first lightweight this summer. Unless they are sandbagging, apparently JLR have got as far as measuring an original car (which one, I wonder?) using 'modern methods', and they now have to make tooling suitable for a limited prodiction run.....

[GORDON STREETER]

They will probably be made in the back streets of Havana by the "experts" from old 50s Buicks !

[Colin McKay]

More likely laser-scanned the original and sent the data to a 3-D printer. Could have one done by the weekend!

[Clive Brown]

There's good news, and there's bad news....

The good news is that the factory has commissioned the construction of six new lightweight E-types.

The bad news is that the base car they're measuring up is Newey's.

[Tim Falce]

Originally Posted by Clive Brown

The bad news is that the base car they're measuring up is Newey's.

You beat me to it Clive, my thoughts exactly.

[John Turner]

Oh dear. Still, they won't be mistaken for originals then?

[Mike Bell]

Originally Posted by John Turner

Still, they won't be mistaken for originals then?

No chance!

I like Colin's suggestion of 3D printing one. Out of polystyrene then it would be truly lightweight!

[Adam43]

Originally Posted by Mike Bell

Adam, I would be amazed if we see the first lightweight this summer. Unless they are sandbagging, apparently JLR have got as far as measuring an original car (which one, I wonder?) using 'modern methods', and they now have to make tooling suitable for a limited prodiction run.....

cheers.

As an aside, it is interesting they are trying to perfectly replicate something. They weren't originally all made the same. Even the standard cars, let alone the lightweights.

[andy97]

Originally Posted by Adam43

cheers.

As an aside, it is interesting they are trying to perfectly replicate something. They weren't originally all made the same. Even the standard cars, let alone the lightweights.

It does remind me of one of the problems that BAe had with the conversion of the Nimrod MR2 maritime patrol plane to a new mk4 standard in the late 90s. Brand new wings wee built using cad cam techniques to fit to existing airframes. Unfortunately no one realised that the airframes had been largely hand built and differed in key dimensions by as much as 20cm. 20 sets of perfect wings had to be scrapped, and of course the entire programme was eventually scrapped.

Moral of the story - don't try to mix 60 technology with latest technology!

[Mike Bell]

Originally Posted by andy97

Moral of the story - don't try to mix 60 technology with latest technology!

Yes. Sounds like JLR are trying for 6 new indentical cars copied from one of the existing. Will that car be a very original but slow one or a developed but quick one?

Good story BTW- I guess we all paid for that debacle....

[Peter Mallett]

This was a point raised in the Lister thread too. How can modern techniques replicate hand crafted original builds? Back when I were a lad I went on a trip to Brookland where we saw them drawing an d machining Airbus wings. So I suspect the problem with the Niro was because the Comet, on which it was based was actually 50 technology.

Another point raised by these cars is the HTC. I and I guess most of us, thought it meant the car was either an original racing car, or that it was built to the original specs. It seems that actually the HTC is no more than a confirmation that the car is what it says. Ergo a modern build version would be treated as an equal to the original restored car.

[PeterMorley]

A friend had someone copy the wings from a pre-war Riley and complained that one was significantly longer than the other, the response was "you asked me to copy them".

[john ruston]

Just knocked out a copy of a painting called Mona Liza or something like that.

Did all the numbers correctly and someone has told me that I used the same type of brushes and canvas that the bloke used 500 years ago or so.When paint drys should be able to flog it for quarter of wedge that the old ones worth?

[Clive Brown]

Why was Lisa moaning?

Had she just had the HTP for her new(ey) lightweight E-type rejected, or what?

[Mike Bell]

Mmmm, according to Octane the new 'state of the art' JLR centre is to be called the SOTC- Special Operations Technical Centre- so someone has got it wrong!

And they are suggesting the first new Lightweight will be shown at Pebble Beach in August...

Still curious as to how it / they will be styled. My imagination pictures 'low drag' long nose Coupes with altered screens, and roadsters with massive wheels under extended arches, diff cooler in boot with open lid to cause a low pressure area- like the ones racing today- but were the original 'lightweights' similar in appearance to normal E Types- just lighter?

[simon drabble]

Funnily enough today I was flicking through a 1962 magazine report of that years TT and it shows Roy Salvadori in an E Type with boot open overtaking a Corvette, maybe we have an ex F1 designer all wrong.....

[john ruston]

Was that in BUY1!

[Mike Bell]

Originally Posted by simon drabble

Funnily enough today I was flicking through a 1962 magazine report of that years TT and it shows Roy Salvadori in an E Type with boot open overtaking a Corvette, maybe we have an ex F1 designer all wrong.....

I doubt it! I can remember the slightly open lids but not the aero fillets round the sides seen at Goody.... Wasn't the normal arrangement a rear facing vent in the lid itself?

On the other hand maybe Salvadori's boot lid was just a less well made standard item...

John, there was some old white and green 356 on the Rollers this afternoon when I arrived at Wimpole. Sounded very healthy- and noisy!

[john ruston]

Do you want to buy it?

Not a bad bus.Now see if it works at Le Mans.

It's in one of the Tenths Teams.

Lot cheaper than a pretend E Type.

[John Turner]

Yeah, it's a great little car, and quick in the right hands and I'd like to see it back in FISCAR!

[grantp]

Originally Posted by Peter Mallett

This was a point raised in the Lister thread too. How can modern techniques replicate hand crafted original builds? Back when I were a lad I went on a trip to Brookland where we saw them drawing an d machining Airbus wings. So I suspect the problem with the Niro was because the Comet, on which it was based was actually 50 technology.

That may well have been part of it.

Rapidly advancing computer technology making the under performing and overweight stuff they tried to cram in obsolete before the programs had been coded was another factor.

And the specs, I was told, changed constantly and were somewhat over ambitious in the sense that the level of ground detail demanded made it impossible to interpret what came back. Could not separate the required information form all the noise, so I was told.

But the bigger problem, most likely, was the the entire part of the contract as run by the UK General Electric Company was based on Cost Plus. In that particular deal it was cost plus 10%. In perpetuity. Until development was deemed to be finished.

A more reliable source of cash flow than having to design and flog washing machines and refrigerators.

[grantp]

It occurs to me that these days technology might allow them to machine the E type tubs form a solid block of aluminium.

Or maybe 3D print them in some modern composite material and then cover the result with a thin spray on sheet of aluminium.

A great way to showcase technical advances.

Maybe.

[PeterMorley]

Originally Posted by grantp

Or maybe 3D print them in some modern composite material and then cover the result with a thin spray on sheet of aluminium.

In the 80s there were a bunch of French E-types that had fibreglass bonnets with aluminium foil glued inside them.
Apparently that counted as an aluminium bonnet and was acceptable!