Have you heard? There’s a new hit among wealthy classic car enthusiasts. It’s called restomod and, as its name implies, combines a full restoration of a retro vehicle with modern parts and technologies. This philosophy is inspired by the timeless appearance of a classic beauty, but benefits from the modern performance parts of today. Simply put, you achieve the same great look of a vintage car, but have the dynamics of a new model.

The restomoded E-Type in detail

There’s one important thing we need to clarify. There’s a difference between hot rod and restomod – while the first uses mostly original parts designed and built by the respective automaker, the newer tuning philosophy relies on custom parts designed to fit in stock locations. This way, the owner of the car, or the tuning company, can either add new parts or return the vehicle to its stock form with all factory parts. What started with a few niche companies selling air conditioning kits and digital gauges is now a whole new aftermarket industry making classic cars usable as daily drivers and reliable for long-distance journeys.

E-Type UK Jaguar S3 V12

With that in mind, let’s take a look at what we’ve got for you here. This is a restomoded Jaguar E-Type, which now features a 6.1-litre V12 fuel-injected engine. It generates almost 300 bhp channelled to the rear wheels through a five-speed manual gearbox.

E-Type UK Jaguar S3 V12

The company responsible for the project, simply called E-Type UK, has also installed a custom stainless-steel exhaust system, new comfortable leather seats, premium audio system, engine start-stop button, and many, many more. There’s also an adjustable suspension, as well as four-pot AP Racing brakes. Overall, the project took more than 3,000 man-hours to complete.

E-Type UK Jaguar S3 V12

Of course, mechanically, it’s nothing like the original thing, but – trust us – that’s a good thing. It's all we love about the E-Type, combined with modern technologies. This is perfection. 

Gallery: Jaguar E-Type V12 restomod