Photo of the day: Jaguar’s Le Mans history

This weekend, the Le Mans 24 Hours runs for the 85^th time. The perfect time for Jaguar to open the doors to its new Jaguar Land Rover Classic Works facility in Coventry, then.

That's because three cars are sat proudly in reception – a C-Type, D-Type and XJR-9. All are Le Mans winners, the D-Type a nice round 60 years ago. In fact, 1957 saw Jaguar D-Types finish in first, second, third, fourth and sixth. Wow.

Jag’s first Le Mans victory dates back further, though, the C-Type taking victory in 1953. The most modern car in the line-up above is the XJR-9, which won Le Mans in 1988 with Andy Wallace, Johnny Dumfries and Jan Lammers on driving duties. Wallace is back on Jag's books, having been hired by JLR’s classic programme as chief test driver.

Don’t they look wonderful? And if you’re pining for a Jaguar return to the 24 Hours, here’s a vision of what that could look like…