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An E-Type in the garden: rotting '63 Jaguar heads for auction

There's something about formerly gorgeous cars in dilapidated states from which the eye cannot turn away. The devastatingly cruel fate of this Jaguar E-Type is an illustration. Next week, it likely begins a new life. Still voluptuous after decades rotting in a garden, this 1963 Series 1 fixed head coupe will be offered for sale at the Coys auction Tuesday in London. The car has 44,870 miles on the odometer and has passed through several owners, including one with a tangential connection to the Beatles and another man who used the Jag to pull his MG to Brands Hatch. He would race them both, according to Coys' listing, wringing the most out of the E-Type's 265-horsepower inline six. Ivor Arbiter was owner No. 1. His link to history is that he designed the Beatles drop-T logo in the early '60s and was reportedly paid five British pounds for it. He bought the E-Type new in 1963, used it, and then sold it to in 1965. The E-Type passed through a couple of owners until motorsports enthusiast Frank Riches bought it in '67. He tracked the Jag at some of Britain's iconic circuits and drove it until he fried the clutch. Coys cites a story from Riches' brother recounting when the E-Type hit 150 miles per hour on a public road, its listed top speed. It was in storage until the 1980s, and then Riches relocated it to his garden, where it has sat for years. Considering its long dormancy, the Jag appears to be in reasonable shape. It's never been restored, obviously, and Riches still has many of the original parts he replaced, including the center console and radiator bar. Coys notes that the seats have a "lovely patina" and are worth saving, too. The buyer also gets a brown logbook, the sales invoice to Riches, two service books (it is a '63 Jag) and a spare parts catalogue. A Coys auctioneer told ITV.com that the car could net about $140,000. Related Video: Jaguar Auctions Coupe Luxury Performance jaguar e-type

Editors' Choice: Top Five 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show Debuts

Consider the 2015-16 auto show season officially kicked off. The Frankfurt Motor Show offered a great look at the newest crop of production cars and conceptual machines, and brought some old favorites back into the spotlight for a closer look. (The Alfa Romeo Giulia, for example, debuted in June, but this was the first time most of us saw it.) Now that the dust has settled and we're all on flights back to the US, our editors cast their votes for their personal favorites from the Frankfurt show. These are the cars we truly loved seeing the most. But unlike other shows, there was no one runaway winner – all of the Top Five received positive praise from our team. We won't spoil the results, though. Scroll down to see what we liked most from this year's Frankfurt expo. 5th Place – MERCEDES-BENZ IAA CONCEPT View 12 Photos MIKE AUSTIN: The clean lines on this concept have me excited for a more elegant beauty to future Mercedes-Benz vehicles. Next to the Concept IAA, the lovely S-Class Coupe looks like an overstyled barge. DAVID GLUCKMAN: Yeah, the extendable rear is neat and all, but I'm more interested in the front-end styling of this one. It looks like the Tron version of a 300SL, in a good way. I'm hopeful it portends the future of Mercedes design. STEVEN EWING: I was super impressed when Mercedes said that, with the rear end extended, this concept has a drag coefficient of just 0.19. That's crazy aerodynamic. I'm not head-over-heels about the styling, but I think the lessons learned from this concept are really important, and will play a huge role in the future of Mercedes' products. 4th Place – ALFA ROMEO GIULIA View 15 Photos SEYTH MIERSMA: I can hardly express how in love with this car I am. The styling feels creative, modern, and evocative, without going over the top. The proposed performance is spectacular. And the Alfa badge speaks to a legacy of romantic motoring. DAVID GLUCKMAN: Pretty Italian car makes big promises and will probably deliver on about three quarters of them. I think that will still be enough for me. JEREMY KORZENIEWSKI: I'm really intrigued by the Giulia. It looks great, sounds awesome, and I'm expecting it to have a load more character than its German rivals. I hope I'm not disappointed. 3rd Place – JAGUAR F-PACE View 15 Photos GREG MIGLIORE: It's the first SUV for Jaguar, and I think they nailed the design, capability, and electronics. It's the right car at the right time.

2017 Jaguar F-Pace is on the prowl in Frankfurt [w/video] [UPDATE]

UPDATE: A previous version of this story indicated that rear-wheel drive was standard. This was incorrect. The F-Pace uses a standard all-wheel-drive system with a rear bias. The story has been edited to reflect this. After much teasing, Jaguar finally introduced the new F-Pace, the company's first ever crossover, at the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show. Of course, we had to trek over to the Jaguar stand to have a look. As we already know a very great deal about the new F-Pace, we'll just recap some of the finer points. Prices for the five-place CUV begin at $42,390, which will score you a model with a 340-horsepower, 3.0-liter, supercharged V6. If you'd like the 380-hp version of that engine – along with a lot more equipment – prepare to pony up $56,700. The very cheapest way into the F-Pace, though, will be with the 2.0-liter, turbodiesel four-cylinder, which starts at $40,990, offers up a modest 180 hp, 317 lb-ft of torque, and an on-sale date of sometime late in 2016. An eight-speed automatic transmission is the sole gearbox for the two V6 models, although Jag hasn't said what gearbox it will pair with the diesel mill. The standard, rear-biased, all-wheel-drive system will feature brake-based torque vectoring that can switch up to an even 50:50 split. Adaptive dampers promise, meanwhile, promise a leaper-worthy handling character, while wheel sizes vary from 18 to 22-inch wheels. Speaking of that all-wheel-drive system, while this may not be a Land Rover, it still promises a degree of off-road ability. The wading depth is an adequate 20.7 inches, while the approach and departure angles are 25.5 and 25.7 degrees, respectively. As we said, that's not the equal to even the lowliest of Land Rovers, in this case the Discovery Sport, which can wade up to 23.6 inches, manage angles up to 25 degrees on approach, 31 degrees on departure, and features an advanced Terrain Response system. Those that were worried Jaguar's CUV would be stealing the thunder from the off-roaders at Land Rover – like your author – look to have been mistaken. Unsurprisingly, that handsome body is mostly aluminum, although there's some high-strength steel, and even a bit of magnesium and composite material, all of which contributes to a torsional rigidity on par with the lower-riding XF sedan. We have a wide lineup of live photos of the new CUV. Take a look, and keep an eye open for the F-Pace in dealers next spring.