The car on display was first registered in January 1972. It was bought by a local Coventry businessman, W.E. (Bill) Aston and stayed in the Aston family until it was gifted to the Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust in June 2014. It was restored in 1999 and has covered just under 14,000 miles.

For many years it sported the number plate FAB 1 which Bill Aston had acquired as an anniversary present for his wife Pauline who drove the car. FAB 1 is now owned by radio and TV presenter Chris Evans and is fitted to a pink Rolls Royce that is used to raise money for charity.

During the 1960s, Jaguar’s product policy became a little confusing. By 1967, there were no less than four basic saloon ranges in production, with a total of nine different models. Behind the scenes, a new policy and a new model were slowly coming to fruition. Broadly speaking, the existing unwieldy range would be replaced by a single basic design, with a choice of engines, and available in either Jaguar or Daimler form.

The project was code-named XJ4 but the production version, launched in September 1968, became the XJ6, for six cylinders, with a choice of 2.8 litre or 4.2 litre XK engines. The body was new in every respect, and was the pinnacle of the elegant Jaguar design which Sir William Lyons had refined over so many years. The new car was notable for its suspension which chief engineer Bob Knight had developed to reach new standards of handling and road holding, coupled with remarkable passenger comfort.

The XJ6 was a typical Jaguar in offering value for money. At launch the 4.2 litre car cost only £2,258, and high performance, with a top speed of 124 mph (200 km/h) for the 245bhp 4.2 litre model. The car was an instant success, and for a few years there were lengthy waiting lists. In its original Series 1 form, the XJ range was produced until 1973, and total production amounted to 98,527 cars of all models, including the XJ12 twelve cylinder car introduced in 1972, and the Daimler versions.