Update! New-old Jag makes production

Last week, Jaguar's design director Ian Callum and restorer Classic Motor Cars Limited revealed the fruit of an 18-month long collaboration on a new car.

It's a restored Jaguar Mark 2, redesigned by Ian Callum for his own personal use and announced at the unveiling of CMC's new premises in Shropshire. And after a rapturous reception, it's being put into limited production. There's no word on actual numbers, but a price tag of "between £350,000 and £375,000" will ensure it remains a very scarce sight.

It's a Jaguar that Callum has wanted to update for a very long time, and takes in a modified and uprated 4.3-litre V8 from the Jaguar XK, mated to a five-speed manual gearbox driving the rear wheels.

It sits 30mm lower on 17in split rim spoke wheels, because, as Ian notes, though "the stance of the Mark 2 is already excellent, I wished to make it even better".

In fact, the entire suspension setup has been reengineered by CMC. The front gets a bespoke power assisted rack, uprated coil springs, roll bar and wishbone bushes, with adjustable dampers and solid subframe mountings (repositioned to improve anti-dive characteristics).

The rear? That gets coil springs, blade control wishbones, outboard disc brakes, and anti-roll bar and adjustable dampers too.

The outside gets a new set of bumpers that are now "part of the overall form", together with louvres on the side of the car, designed in a low-pressure area for better airflow for that V8.

You'll see from the pictures that the interior has been reworked too, and features a Clarion single DIN multimedia station with a 16cm flip-out touch-screen, together with component loudspeakers.

"This is a very personal statement," explains Callum, "a long held notion that, although the Mark 2 has always been a beautiful car, it could be even more exciting in shape and performance.

"Simplification and clarity was my objective," he added. And there can be no one happier than Callum that positive reaction to the car has ensured a production run. "I wasn’t sure how it would be received but I have been both astounded and delighted with the response. I am pleased that a few more cars are going to be built."