How Jaguar's design boss Ian Callum became a secret hotrodder

“I don’t know what box you put it in and, actually, I don’t care. It is just the car I wanted to do,” says Jaguar design boss Ian Callum of his personal project: a revived and reinvented 1963 Jaguar MkII built in conjunction with classic specialists Classic Motor Cars (CMC) in Shropshire.

The MkII is a car that’s wrinkled a few brows, because, instead of treading the well-worn path of classic restoration, Callum has decided to weave in a few more modern styling touches and a great deal more modern technology. Basically, a high-profile design director birthing a bespoke restomod in his spare time.

“Defining the car is simple,” he says. “It’s how I think a MkII should be. The ‘R’ version. I love the hot-rod culture [Callum also owns a fully-rodded ’32 Ford Hi-Boy Coupe] because it takes potentially exciting and makes it exciting. It’s about seeing that potential. That’s what rodding or customising is about. We do it all the time with things in our life. Or we should!”

It’s not exactly the usual ’rod starting point, mind. The Jaguar MkII is a pretty car, so it’s not just a case of lowering the stance and deseaming. Callum’s MkII has been the recipient of a raft of changes, some a little bit less obvious than others. First up, there’s the period 4.3-litre, 260bhp XK engine breathing through a set of SU carbs, this time with modern electronic ignition and a custom exhaust exiting through a set of slightly controversial twin central tailpipes at the rear.

The ’box is now a Tremec T5 5spd (replacing the old Moss unit), and the rear suspension has morphed from the leaf springs of the original to a multi-link independent set-up based on a heavily modified version of the modern X-Type. This is more re-engineering than restoration, adding in the vital modernity that allows for daily driving without the need to be able to change a cylinder head at the side of the road. 

Gone are the old-style bumpers and swathes of chrome, and arrived are bumper ducts and functional vertical vents aft of the front wheels. No huge wheels here, either, the ‘MkII by Callum’ sitting on modest – at least by today’s standards – 17-inch split rims with a decent height of tyre.

But the stance is a bit more lively than any early Sixties Jag ever managed, the result of offsets to equal the tracks, modern springing and channelling the body on the front subframe by some 30mm. It sits well, and yet is still recognisable as nothing other than a MkII. 

“I dreamt of doing this car when I was 12 years old. Taking a MkII and simplifying it: de-chrome, great stance, vibrant interior. Better mechanicals and definitely better suspension and brakes. This was one of my favourite cars of the era and influenced my entire design life. I learned so much from them and loved Jags more than anything – although hot rods and Porsches came a close second!

"But I’ve always admired the proportions and surfaces of the MkII, because they really are quite perfect... and I always wanted to make the rest of it as good: less chrome, take out these heavy bumpers... integrate. Don’t forget, this stuff is not new – hot rodders were doing it 60 years ago – but, basically, that was very American, and I simply wanted to apply it to the hottest British car. I recognised it when I was a teenager – my ideas have changed and matured since then, but the principle’s the same.”

It’s interesting that when Callum talks about the car, he’s completely certain of what he was trying to create – that the plan may have started many years ago, but that he always had a clear image of what he wanted to portray. But what is it about doing a car that’s so obviously retro that appeals to a man who gets to immerse himself in the most modern kinds of design every single day? What is it about a retro car that appeals to Ian Callum?

“I think it is mostly nostalgic. For those who don’t have the personal reference, then it is the craving for something simple and exotic. The past has wonderful charm and, in this digitally perfect world, there is a genuine desire for texture. I’m not sure about the word ‘retro’, as it has connotations of professional designers copying the past. Actually, the best retro modern designs are very modern: Fiat 500 and Beetle. They only refer to the past, but they reinvent. The S-Type looked as if it was from the past! However, to my mind, older cars, modified, and that hint at the modern, are fine.”

The MkII by Callum also does its fair share of parts appropriation, common in custom circles. The dash borrows the dark oak trim from an XFR, the badging uses modern Jag items and the seats, underneath their re-trim in eye-popping semi-quilted red leather, are actually nicked from an Alfa 156. It’s different, but recognisable. It wasn’t without its challenges, though, because for once, the design director didn’t have the resource might of Jaguar to fall back on.

“Reducing the bumper to a form I liked was the most significant change... and the hardest part. It took a long time to do as I was on my own. No studio or facilities to fall back on. This was a wholly independent venture, albeit not huge… but time was the biggest issue. I don’t have much spare time at present. I also love the body crease along the side without the chrome on it: there was a beautiful section lying under that chrome trim.” 

So successful are the changes, that there’s been talk of a limited production run of 11 cars, all under the ‘Mark II by Callum’ banner, though the likely cost of around £300k means they’ll have to be committed Jaguarphiles. But doesn’t that take some of the shine off a bespoke and very personal skunkworks project?

“This car was something for me. Not to sell to a customer or a market. With those who do get it, then I am grateful. If people don’t like it, there are plenty of standard and excellent MkIIs around. It makes me very happy and makes me smile. It’s a realisation of something from many years ago and something I never thought I could afford to do properly. But I have, and it gives me huge satisfaction and inspired me to do more of the same. It was such a joy creating something for me without judgement from others! Saying that, I’m perfectly happy that there may be at least a few cars in the world with my name on!”

Whatever people think of the actual car though, there’s something hugely inspiring in Ian Callum’s MkII. It’s the kind of project we all dream of creating: personal, special and beautifully engineered. The kind of car that embraces lots of different aspects of car culture. And the fact that it comes from one of the men who decides what our daily drivers might look like just adds to a warm sense of satisfaction. He’s into cars, this bloke. One of us. And for that we should be thankful.

As you may have noticed, Jaguar isn’t exactly shy of pilfering its heritage for design direction, but it has recently gone down a slightly more direct path and produced new-old cars through the Engineered To Order specialist programme. Specifically, the legendary Lightweight E-type. These are not recreations, but six newly forged cars to go with the original 12 built in 1963, and using sequential chassis numbers. There’s priority for customers wishing to buy, evidently centred around established Jaguar collectors and those with a passion for historic racing – which was, after all, the entire point of the upgraded and weaponised original. The correct 3.8-litre straight-six lives under that long bonnet, produces some 300bhp and provides drive through a five-speed manual gearbox via the rear wheels. The modified bodywork panels are aluminium – as you might expect. Interestingly, experts believe that six new-old Lightweights, even sold at a reported £1 million, won’t adversely affect the value of the originals; instead highlight the rarity of the ’63 dozen. Lucky for some.

This feature originally appeared in the Top Gear magazine Retro supplement. MKII photography by Charlie Magee