It may not be the most surprising bit of news this week, but word has come in that Classic Motor Cars Ltd is going to build more than just one of the 'Ian Callum' edition MkII Jaguars. The thus-far-one-off MkII was created for and at the behest of Jaguar's chief designer, the aforementioned Ian Callum. Callum is a proper, dyed-in-the-wool car nut and aside from the fact that he can have literally any model from the current Jaguar range (all of which he designed) as his company wheels, he wanted something a little more special.
A little more very special in fact, taking the faultless lines of the original MkII Jaguar saloon, the work of his legendary predecessors Sir William Lyons, Bill Heynes and Malcolm Sayer, Callum commissioned Classic Motor Cars to take the sixties beauty and modernise it, without spoiling it.
The exterior changes, limited to a bulkier set of vented wheel arches, a new front air dam and some tasty wheels, make it look very much like an original that has been lightly modified for racing.
Under that endless bonnet is a 4.3-litre, much-modified Jaguar XK straight-six engine mated to a modern five-speed manual gearbox. All the electrics have been suitably upgraded (there's a whopping Clarion sound-system and media player too) and, thankfully and possibly most importantly, the brakes have been upgraded.
Anything else?
Interest in the car from around the world has been predictably excitable and so CMC has agreed to produce more for customers who will doubtless have to be staggeringly well-heeled. Prices of between €400,000 and €500,000 have been bandied about.
"The car was only unveiled to the public just over a week ago but has attracted interest from all over the world," said Peter Neumark, Chairman of CMC.
He added: "In my remarks at the launch of the car I said that we would love to build more, but little did I think the response would be so great. Within hours we had received calls from people all over the globe asking if they could buy one. We asked Ian Callum if we could produce a limited run and he has said 'yes.'"
Ian Callum said: "I redesigned the car and CMC rebuilt it and reengineered it for my personal use. I wasn't sure how it would be received but I have been both astounded and delighted with the response. I am pleased that a few more cars are going to be built."