The Eagle Lightweight GTR is a minimalist expression of racing car aesthetics

There are many outfits dedicated to enhancing and maintaining Jaguar’s timeless icon, including the US-based ECD Automotive Design and the UK’s Helm. You can even electrify an E-Type, courtesy of Electrogenic, while over a decade ago, JLR's own Special Vehicle Operations tackled a short run of six scratch-built Lightweight models.

But of all the companies keeping the E-Type firmly in their sights, Eagle E-Types of Sussex, UK, is perhaps the most acclaimed. Founded in 1984 by Henry Pearman, the company started ‘remanufacturing’ the E-Type in 1991 and has gone on to become the world’s leading specialist restorer of the model. At one point, there was a seven-year waiting list for an Eagle.

From the turn of the century, Eagle has also delved into creating unique E-Type Special Editions of its own design, starting with the Eagle Speedster, followed by the Low Drag GT, Spyder GT and Lightweight GT.

Now the company has gone further with this, the Eagle Lightweight GTR. Taking the original 1960s racing Lightweight E-Type as the template, the GTR was commissioned by an exacting client to explore the limits of lightweight performance design.

The voluptuous curves are all present and correct yet pared back to sublime minimalism, with flush details, and precision panel gaps. The E-Type is a familiar and feted form, a beautiful, era-defining machine that’s also the aesthetic straitjacket Jaguar never quite managed to escape from. Eagle doesn’t need to worry about all that, however, and has instead focused on stripping out weight and creating an exacting, driving-focused specification.

All in all, the Lightweight GTR tips the scales at just 930kg, less than the original E-Type convertible weighed back in the day. It’s an impressive achievement, with the minimalist approach extending to the black Alcantara-trimmed interior.

Lightweight racing seats with four-point harnesses, a subtly revised dashboard with magnetic phone dock and even air-conditioning all serve to upgrade the driving experience without succumbing to OTT restomod styling.

According to Eagle’s client, the car was intended as the antithesis of the modern performance car, with its complex electronic systems and outrageous power outputs. ‘I'm not sure those cars will age very well, so I commissioned Eagle to build me a car that is as light as possible without sacrificing comfort, devoid of screens or other electronics,’ they say. ‘With incredible performance, long-distance comfort and timeless beauty, I couldn't be happier with the result.’

Performance comes courtesy of an all-aluminium 4.7-litre straight-six with triple Weber carburettors, housed beneath the E-Type’s signature forward-hinged bonnet. Bespoke suspension and carbon-ceramic brakes, as well as the use of durable magnesium and titanium components keep weight down.

As a one-on-one expression of bespoke performance engineering, the Lightweight GTR will take some beating.

More details at Eagle E-Types, EagleGB.com, @Eagle.Etypes