The Jaguar XK 150 Roadster personified boomer male lust to me. I remember seeing my first one (white) during my junior year in Eugene while attending the University of Oregon. It was 1973 and the tree-lined street my roommates and I lived on featured a white “low slung” beauty like the one above. And we were certain it belonged to some trust fund guy from SoCal, as usually was the case with any of the very cool cars we loved during that era. Of course you would see them driving around campus always with a smokin’ hot co-ed in the passenger seat.
2,265 Roadsters Born on the Coventry Production Line (1957 – 61)
Although bearing a family resemblance to the XK120 and XK140, the XK150 was radically revised. A one-piece windscreen replaced the split screen, and the wing line no longer dropped so deeply at the doors. The widened bonnet opened down to the wings, and on the Roadster the windscreen frame was moved back 4 inches (102 mm) to make the bonnet longer.
– Wikipedia
During its 4 years coming off the production line in Conventry, England, your eyes would be greeted with varying degrees of color for the XK150. The color palette included red, pearl grey, white, indigo blue, claret, cotswold blue, black, mist grey, sherwood green, carmen red, British racing green (of course), cornish grey, and imperial maroon.
Suspension and chassis were very similar to the XK140, and steering was by rack and pinion. The standard engine, the similar to the XK140, but with an new “B” type cylinder head, was the 3.4 litre DOHC Jaguar straight rated at 180 SAE bhp at 5750 rpm but most cars were fitted with the SE engine whose modified cylinder head (B type) and larger exhaust valves boosted the power to 210 SAE bhp at 5500 rpm. Twin 1.75-inch (44 mm) SU HD6 carburetors were fitted. 
All in all a killer looking car and one my buddy Steve and I also drooled over on the same Sandy Boulevard car lot where we found the Porsche Speedsters.
Let us know if you lusted after any particular car in your early years. Corvette? Porsche? Alfa? American muscle car? And we will continue to look at other favorite cars of our lives, from time to time.
Live well.
2 Comments
The XK150 is definitely a classic and worship-worthy.
My lust was for a BRG Austin Healey 3000 and I almost bought one in the 1980’s. Some force pulled me back from that purchase and probably saved my bank account, which I later squandered on a Jaguar XJ6L–another story for another time. We all have our flirtations with British autos, but we generally return to our senses when the repair bills appear.
Also loved the Healey! And like you made an offer on a 1958 100-6 (predecessor to the 3000) my senior year in high school, but the parents did not want to lend me the money due to the AH reputation for less than quality, shall we say. Meaning of course high repair bills!