Classic Classified: 1962 Jaguar E-Type SI 3.8L Flat Floor Convertible

From: Road & Track

Date: June 1982

Price then: $12,500 ($31,000 adjusted for inflation – about the cost of a new 2014 Chevrolet Camaro V-6 convertible today)

Price now: $121,000 – $415,000

Approximate dollar difference: $192,500 (assuming #3 condition)

Approximate annual rate of return: 9.4%

1962 Jaguar XK-E. Early (S/N 876001) California car. Never any rust. New white lacquer, red hides, top, Vredesteins. Most original available. $12,500 or trade.

Flat-floor E-Types are red-hot  in today’s market, but  at one time they were just 20-year-old used sports cars and these out of date E-Types (XKE in the US) were priced accordingly. The $12,500 asking price was a lot for what was just an old Jaguar  at the time, but it was still one-third the cost of a new XJ-S. The seller’s statement that this  car is “for the collector” proved prescient.