Did that wonderful Jaguar shape spring solely from the mind of William Lyons? Or might a previous design have influenced him, consciously or otherwise?
I don't know for sure. But it's possible that Lyons was influenced by the styling of the 1941 Chrysler Newport show car (some background here).
Let's take a look:
Establishment photo of an early Jaguar XK120. Key items are the fender design and the side profile of the cockpit opening.
Side view of a "for sale" XK120.
Side view of a Newport, Gooding photo. Note these similarities: fenderline; cockpit coaming profile; aft end profile; spatted rear wheels.
Front quarter view of a X120, Bonhams photo.
Front quarter view of a Newport, perhaps an Automobile Quarterly photo of a car in the Harrah collection.
Rear quarter Jaguar XK120 view.
Rear quarter view of a Newport.
I don't know if the fenderline and cockpit coaming profile of the Newport were, in turn, influenced by an earlier car's styling. If there was such a car, I am not aware of it, but comments regarding this are welcome. In any case, the Newport was given a good deal of publicity when new, so it's likely that Lyons knew of it.
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