Jaguar D-Type 1956 Reims Winner in 1:18 scale
This is the Jaguar D-Type 1956 Reims Winner in 1:18 scale by Amalgam.
The Jaguar D-type was designed and constructed with one specific goal in mind: to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Although the C-type had decisively beaten Europe’s best at Le Mans in 1951 and 1953, the threat from Alfa Romeo, Aston Martin, Ferrari and Mercedes-Benz made it clear to Jaguar Team Manager “Lofty” England and engineer Bill Heynes that a new car was required. The D-type was the result – stronger, lighter and faster than the C-type, yet powered by a 245 bhp development of the same XK engine. This meant that private owners could easily buy and maintain these cars, which provided a useful back-up to the works team. The D-type proved extremely successful in its mission, becoming one of the most dominant cars in Le Mans history, with victory in three of the four years it competed between 1954-1957. The success of the D-type was not confined to the track either, eventually becoming the road-going XKSS and inspiring many of the most famous cars of all time in the legendary E-type.
This fine 1:18 scale model of the Jaguar D-type precisely replicates chassis XKD 605 exactly as raced to victory in its classic British Racing Green by Duncan Hamilton and Ivor Bueb in the 12 Hours of Reims at Reims-Gueux on the 30th of June 1956. Built in March 1956 as one of twelve Longnose cars, XKD 605 is the penultimate D-type and was allocated to the Jaguar Works racing team after its completion. Reims was the car’s competitive debut, where Hamilton and Bueb piloted the car to a commanding victory. Bueb and Mike Hawthorn raced XKD 605 at Le Mans the next month, but were kept back by persistent misfiring that was eventually traced to a cracked fuel injection pipe. They finished sixth, completing 280 laps, and setting the fastest lap. The car was rebuilt after Le Mans and fitted with a five-speed gearbox. After Jaguar’s withdrawal from racing, the car was supplied as a used car to the Briggs Cunningham team. Painted in their white with blue stripes racing colours, and fitted with a new works 3.8 litre engine, XKD 605 played a part in Walt Hansgen’s second consecutive SCCA Championship for Class C modified sports cars and was driven by Mike Hawthorn and Ivor Bueb to third at Sebring. The car stayed in the USA until 1961 and then returned to England, subsequently being re-painted to its original British Racing Green colour. It was then lent to Italy’s National Motor Museum, where it remained for almost twenty years before its return to the Jaguar factory. One of the most original D-types in preservation, XKD 605 still has the 1956 Le Mans windscreen, passenger seat and door. It proudly wears its original trade plate 393 RW, having been re-registered with the DVLA in 1996, and the race number 25 from its win at Reims.
The Jaguar D-type was designed and constructed with one specific goal in mind: to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Although the C-type had decisively beaten Europe’s best at Le Mans in 1951 and 1953, the threat from Alfa Romeo, Aston Martin, Ferrari and Mercedes-Benz made it clear to Jaguar Team Manager “Lofty” England and engineer Bill Heynes that a new car was required. The D-type was the result – stronger, lighter and faster than the C-type, yet powered by a 245 bhp development of the same XK engine. This meant that private owners could easily buy and maintain these cars, which provided a useful back-up to the works team. The D-type proved extremely successful in its mission, becoming one of the most dominant cars in Le Mans history, with victory in three of the four years it competed between 1954-1957. The success of the D-type was not confined to the track either, eventually becoming the road-going XKSS and inspiring many of the most famous cars of all time in the legendary E-type.
This fine 1:18 scale model of the Jaguar D-type precisely replicates chassis XKD 605 exactly as raced to victory in its classic British Racing Green by Duncan Hamilton and Ivor Bueb in the 12 Hours of Reims at Reims-Gueux on the 30th of June 1956. Built in March 1956 as one of twelve Longnose cars, XKD 605 is the penultimate D-type and was allocated to the Jaguar Works racing team after its completion. Reims was the car’s competitive debut, where Hamilton and Bueb piloted the car to a commanding victory. Bueb and Mike Hawthorn raced XKD 605 at Le Mans the next month, but were kept back by persistent misfiring that was eventually traced to a cracked fuel injection pipe. They finished sixth, completing 280 laps, and setting the fastest lap. The car was rebuilt after Le Mans and fitted with a five-speed gearbox. After Jaguar’s withdrawal from racing, the car was supplied as a used car to the Briggs Cunningham team. Painted in their white with blue stripes racing colours, and fitted with a new works 3.8 litre engine, XKD 605 played a part in Walt Hansgen’s second consecutive SCCA Championship for Class C modified sports cars and was driven by Mike Hawthorn and Ivor Bueb to third at Sebring. The car stayed in the USA until 1961 and then returned to England, subsequently being re-painted to its original British Racing Green colour. It was then lent to Italy’s National Motor Museum, where it remained for almost twenty years before its return to the Jaguar factory. One of the most original D-types in preservation, XKD 605 still has the 1956 Le Mans windscreen, passenger seat and door. It proudly wears its original trade plate 393 RW, having been re-registered with the DVLA in 1996, and the race number 25 from its win at Reims.
- Each model hand-built and assembled by a small team of craftsmen
- 1:18 scale model, over 22 cms/8 inches long
- Available in the iconic British Racing Green exterior paint scheme
- Made using the finest quality materials
- Over 800 hours to develop the model
- Precisely engineered parts: castings, photo-etchings and CNC machined metal components
- Built using original CAD designs developed from a scan of an original car - chassis XKD 505/601
- Archive imagery, paint codes and material specifications supplied by Jaguar Heritage
- Officially licensed 24 Hours of Le Mans product
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