The battle of the two Jaguar D-Types
12/27/2017
There were probably 71 Jaguar D-Type racing cars built (and 16 road-going variants called XKSS). So how likely is it that two of them will go under the hammer in one weekend? Low? Well, maybe, but it will still happen on the weekend of January 20/21, 2018.
RM/Sotheby's and Gooding & Company will each be auctioning off one of the elegant racers with streamlined bodywork.
RM/Sotheby's seems to be able to bring the more prominent vehicle to Arizona, as it is a factory car with chassis number XKD 403 from 1954, which was driven by Stirling Moss and Peter Walker at Le Mans in 1954 and was later used by the factory as a development vehicle.
Gooding & Co, on the other hand, will pilot one of the 53 customer cars to Scottsdale. XKD 518 from 1956 has a long British racing history (with a start at the Vienna-Aspern airfield race in May 1958) and once even passed through the hands of the young Bernie Ecclestone.
RM/Sotheby's have estimated USD 12 to 15 million for the works car XKD 403, Gooding USD 10 to 12 million for the privateer D-Type XKD 518.
Will the fact that two D-Types are going under the hammer have an impact on the price? And if so, in what way? In any case, the flight to Arizona should be worthwhile for interested parties, as it is rare to find such a generous selection.
