They know and very much care that the F-Type will follow the E-type that followed the SS 90 and 100 of the thirties, the XK 120 in 1948, and the XK 140 and 150 of the fifties. "The race-bred E-type," Browning said, was rightly "hailed as one of the greatest automotive designs of all time, and epitomized the mood of the swinging sixties." Consumers too young to remember this for themselves had it made plain to them in both of the Austin Powers movies, since there was no better car for the International Man of Mystery to drive. "With F-Type," Browning said, "the goal of the Jaguar designers is to create an uncompromised roadster which evokes the spirit of the legendary E-type, but with a style that is both functional and contemporary."
The man charged with making this happen, Ian Callum, Jaguar's director of design, admitted that F-Type "represents one of the greatest design challenges in Jaguar history. It must capture the spirit, sensuousness and passion of the original concept, reflect Jaguar's future direction and meet real world packaging and performance requirements. The challenge is to create a true 21st century successor to the E-type, the icon of the 60s."
They'll just have to make it "shagalicious."