Gear Patrol

Only 59 more E-Types were made after Dave Paddison’s V12 Series 3 convertible rolled off the Coventry assembly line in 1974. “Last of the Breed”, indeed — nearly the last entirely. And what a specimen for a guy like Dave to own.

Some concept cars are the stuff of dreams, and some make a justified beeline for the crusher. But then there are the truly glorious ones: the concepts built just for show, never meant to be anything more than the Paris runway model of the automotive world, or those lucky few that see their design elements actually influence production cars, even if they themselves never make it to the street. Tragically, for many of the best, somewhere between an auto show debut and the fevered, hopeful dreams of auto enthusiasts, some kind of childhood-hating shutdown switch gets flicked by faceless bean counters. In honor of the fallen, we take a look at 10 of the best concept cars that only ever got to lay rubber on the auto show floor.

Imagine spending years designing, redesigning, engineering and finally building a car — only to have public opinion weigh in on your baby. No pressure, right? Well, at this year’s New York International Auto Show, plenty of brands did a damn good job. We were tantalized by some of what’s to come: cars that will certainly hit production in some form or another (and thank goodness for that). From track beasts to practical and attractive sedans, we rounded up the cream of the crop, in our humble opinion. Take a look at the 10 best in show.

Car guys dream of acquiring their own personal track monster. Some are bare bones beasts, as comfortable as a ride on the Coney Island Cyclone; others bear witness to modern sport-luxury. The Jaguar XKR-S GT clearly falls into the latter category, and the automotive world is a better place for it. Check out the nifty bits that $174,000 buys the fortunate in our breakdown of this masterful vehicle.

If you needed any more proof that Jaguar is serious about performance driving, the newly unveiled 2014 Jaguar XFR-S ($99,000) should wake you up. Yes, it’s as serious as it looks. With a 5.5-liter supercharged V8 that provides 550 horsepower to the rear wheels, this top-of-the-line XF cat gets 0-60 in 4.4 seconds and tops…

One speedboat designed by a carmaker: awesome concept. Two speedboats designed by two carmakers: a watery challenge. That’s right. Jaguar, following Mercedes-Benz’s nautical lead, has just released images of their Concept Speedboat. The baby of Director of Design Ian Callum, the just-unveiled Concept Speedboat coincides with the release of the gorgeous XF Sportbrake (wagon). The…

The venerable Jaguar E-Type will never be replaceable, thank goodness. That would be like trying to remake Michael Caine’s Get Carter with Stallone as the lead. See how that went? Yet count on Jaguar to create a modern roadster with the same spirit of beautiful open-top motoring with the brand spanking new 2013 Jaguar F-Type….

Jaguar cars, long known for their sexy lines and classic proportions, were growing extremely long in the tooth with their XJ platform, a design that was pulled, smoothed out and tweaked since the Series 1 cars in 1968. In cat years, that’s food for worms. Well, in 2009, Jaguar took the much needed leap into…

Every car guy’s dream is to find a dusty vintage classic in a barn somewhere. And it does happen. The 1969 Maserati we featured here a few weeks ago was actually found, covered in an inch of bird guano, in a barn on the eastern end of Long Island. Well, today we’re featuring another “barn…

Jaguar has officially sloughed off the traditional designs that stood for decades. The new design era is officially in full swing, and they’ve not only penned but created the next star in their lineup, the Jaguar C-X16 Concept, which will show up in Frankfurt next week. This one’s got some big shoes to fill, as…

The Jaguar E-Type will forever stand as an automotive icon. The fact that it still gets copied half a century after it first bowed is a testament to its timeless beauty. British restorer, Eagle, has just done up another version of their 2009 E-Type homage. This time, it’s the Eagle E-Type Lightweight Speedster, scaling in…

Somewhere Between Hot and Scalding The 2008 Paris Motor Show is well underway and there have been a few stars and duds. The XKR-S does not belong to the duds. Nay, it belongs to the fu$#ing hot category. Of course, buying a car is probably the last thing you’re thinking about doing now. Not that…

Jaguars are quintessential luxury. In the case of the XJR, an Eaton supercharged 400 horsepower, pure aluminum bodyshell, luxury. The XJR comes standard with 19″ Sabre wheels (or 20″ Sepang), radar based adaptive cruise control, self-leveling and adaptive air suspension, acoustic laminated glass, and unfathomable 16-way adjustable front seats. What this means to you: Alfred……