"Launched in 1955, the Mk. I extended Jaguar's domination of the high-performance car market in Britain, slotting neatly into the Coventry firm's range alongside the big Mk. VII M saloon and the XK140 sports car. The medium size newcomer broke new ground for Jaguar, being its first model to employ unitary construction of the chassis/body. Jaguar's engineers were understandably cautious in their approach, making the bodyshell stronger than in fact it needed to be and employing rubber mountings just about everywhere to insulate occupants from vibration and noise. The Mk. I was released with a new, short stroke, 2.4 litre version of the proven XK 'six', but demands for more power, especially from American customers, prompted the introduction of the 3.4 litre version early in 1957. With 190bhp on tap the 3.4 litre Mk. I was good for a top speed of 120mph and could reach 60mph in nine seconds, though if used to the full, this greatly improved performance severely taxed the drum brakes. All-round disc brakes were hurriedly announced as an option, becoming an almost universal fitting thereafter. The Mk. I was progressively updated throughout its life before a wholesale revision of the basic design saw it re-launched as the Mk. II in October 1959.
This very nice example is presented in black with red leather interior and was originally supplied to Eric Williams Ltd with the original registration number of OFK 26. The present owner has an original sale letter when the car was sold to its third owner in 1960 which is a nice part of its history. The car has been fitted with new Michelin XAS top of the range tyres, it has a full stainless steel exhaust system, all new headlining, its interior wood is in superb condition, new carpets and new door cards. It has had new sills, jacking points, front floor and 99% of the chrome has been re-chromed by Silva Bronz Ltd in Hampshire. The car comes with its original toolkit (although some items are missing). There are a few items that need a bit of attention including the horn which is not working and the driver's door lock button is broken but another one is supplied with the car. The car could do with a tune and clutch adjustment but apart from that, a very good and rare car, like the model shown on the TV series ‘Endeavour’."