Like any other sports car from the '60s, the Jaguar E-Type is a phenomenal, utterly thrilling vehicle. But in a modern world with plug-in hybrids and adaptive driving systems, the E-Type is unpractical and only befitting as a show car. Eagle, a small British car company, took out all the unreliability of this vintage sports car and did a 360-degree restoration, into a beautiful restomod better known as the Eagle Low Drag GT E-type. James Walker of Mr. JWW took this retro-modern sports car on the road.
Eagle tweaked all the E-Type’s imperfections to develop the Eagle Low Drag GT E-type. Allegedly, Ferrari Enzo once described the Jaguar model as ‘the most beautiful car in the world,’ and he was right.
The Eagle E-Type is a work of art on its own, transforming the classic motoring experience into a retro-modern work of perfection. Among classic car circles, the Eagle Low Drag GT E-type is the best you can get from Jaguar when it comes to modernized classics.
From the exterior, the changes done by Eagle are not that apparent, and you might have to put the Low Drag GT side by side with a Jaguar E-Type to appreciate the refinement.
Under the colossal hood lies a naturally aspirated 4.7-liter straight-six engine cranking out 345 HP. It’s an upgrade from the 3.8-liter or 4.2-liter found in the E-Type Mk 1 and Mk 2, respectively. But it’s not just the power that makes this retro-modern speedster awe-inspiring; Eagle did a fantastic job with the engine bay fiddling and polishing the internals.
The Eagle Low Drag GT E-Type has an aluminum block with magnesium components and Formula 1-type Inconel manifolds attached to a titanium exhaust system that results in pure naturally aspirated niceness and an awesome exhaust sound.
For driving assertiveness, the Eagle Low Drag GT E-Type doesn’t come with the non-conventional cross-ply tires popular with the E-Type but with modern radial replacements. To match, it’s linked to an Ohlins adjustable suspension system fitted on the front and rear.
Behind the wheel, the Eagle Low Drag GT exhibits none of that ;60s incoherentness. It is aggressive, punchy, and responsive on turns -a rarity with vintage sports cars of the era.
“It is from a different era, yet there’s something about the way Eagle have fondled and fettled this thing that gives it that sort of contemporary touch,” Walker said.
So, does the Eagle Low Drag GT drive like an E-Type? Yes, but only if the E-Type was in production today.
Humphrey is a car enthusiast whose love and passion for automobiles extended into collecting, writing, driving, and working on cars. He got his passion for cars from his Dad, who spent thousands of hours working on his old junky 1970 E20 Toyota Corolla. Years later, he would end up doing the same with a series of lemons he’s owned throughout his adult life. Full profile
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