1949 Jaguar XK120 Alloy ‘Lightweight’ Roadster (more pics below 👇)
Only 240 of the XK120 roadsters were built with hand-crafted alloy coachwork over ash frames before Jaguar switched to steel production bodies in early 1950, making these early cars particularly sought-after.
The XK120 debuted at the 1948 Earls Court Motor Show as a way for Jaguar to showcase its new XK engine while the Mk VII saloon was still in development, and the reaction from the public was immediate.
The body design came from Jaguar founder Sir William Lyons, fitted over a separate chassis with independent front suspension using wishbones and torsion bars, a live rear axle, and four-wheel hydraulic drum brakes.
Power came from a 3.4-liter (3,442cc) twin-cam inline-six producing 160 hp (180 hp with the optional Special Equipment package), sitting in a lightweight alloy body that gave the car an exceptional power-to-weight ratio.
The “120” in the name referred to its 120 mph top speed, backed up in May 1949 when a lightly modified car reached 126.4 mph on a closed Belgian highway, and later 132.6 mph in streamlined form.
Over 12,000 XK120s were built through 1954, with more than 85 percent going to export markets.
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