FINAL ENTRY
Historic Racing E-Type Coupe 503BBO
PS5 RAYTRACE
Comment: Not the most complex of liveries, but I spent ages getting as much detail right as I could.
Context: 503BBO was one of the earliest E-Types to try their hand at racing LeMans - before the more famous company lightweights and couple specials (nearly all derived from the drophead version) came along a couple of privateers tried their hands are racing Jaguar's new pretty car.
And lo, the E-Type's pitiful Le Mans record was begun. Compared to the all conquering C- and D-Types that came before, the E-type never ran well at Le Mans regularly ending up as a DNF and later simply out muscled.
503BBO was a standard E-Type coupe with some modifications made. The chrome trim was removed, the bonnet, doors and boot lid were replaced with lighter alloy versions, the brakes were upgraded and a new larger fuel tank from a D-Type was fitted in the boot (something I couldn't model). Much of these modifications were made at the factory, through the car was not an official factory entry. It was entered in the 1962 running of the race by one Maurice Charles. The car did not do well. Before the race started the original engine, a hybrid of E-Type block and D-Type head with triple Weber carbs, threw a valve before the race began. The spare engine, a Jaguar Works D-Type engine, let go after just four hours, and 503BBO retired and was never raced again - Charles swiftly selling the car and it disappearing from view until 1989 when the bare shell was found on a farm in the channel islands. Spotting that the shells didn't seem quite right for a factory car - holes cut in the monocoque to facilitate access to the brakes being just one of the oddities - the car was purchased, researched and has since been restored back to its 1962 racing spec - 3.8l engine producing 296 HP.
You can find out more information about this very special car
HERE and some more source pics can be found
HERE.
Things I didn't get right:
- The non-standard grille that was fitted to protect the Weber carbs .
- the tiny perspex wind deflector in front of the bonnet louvres (only on the driver's side for some reason so maybe something more to do with visibility than protecting the engine?)
- The D-Type external filler cap sticking through the boot door.
- The rear slot vent in the back door.
- The additional driver's mirror and window fairing.
- The back wheels only being painted red (GT7 doesn't allow for individual wheel colours).
Hey ho, this one ain't gonna win, but it was a fun afternoon's project