Eagle Lightweight GTR: British Craftsmanship Reimagines a Classic with Less Weight and More Bite
Few carmakers embody mechanical purity quite like Eagle. The small Sussex-based company, hailed by TopGear as the standard-bearer of the E-Type renaissance, has unveiled its latest masterpiece: the Eagle Lightweight GTR. It’s a car that channels the raw racing spirit of the 1960s Jaguar E-Type, reborn through modern engineering and obsessive craftsmanship.
On its official site, Eagle describes the Lightweight GTR as a one-off commission that fuses the timeless elegance of the E-Type with contemporary performance thinking. The result weighs just 930 kilograms, more than 30 percent lighter than a standard E-Type Roadster.
That extraordinary figure was achieved through meticulous use of lightweight materials. The car’s structure and components combine aluminium, magnesium, titanium, Inconel and carbon fibre. Even the gearbox casing is made from magnesium, while the exhaust system is handcrafted from Inconel and titanium. As Classic & Sports Car noted, the Lightweight GTR feels like the E-Type engineers of 1963 might have built—had the materials and technology existed then.
Under the bonnet sits a 4.7-litre all-aluminium straight-six with three Weber carburettors and titanium connecting rods. The latter allows the engine to rev 500 rpm higher, sharpening throttle response. Car and Driver reports a power-to-weight ratio exceeding 430 horsepower per tonne, enough to embarrass many modern supercars.
Eagle completely reworked the suspension, fitting Öhlins adjustable dampers, titanium hubs and carbon-ceramic brakes. The result, the company says, is not only razor-sharp handling but surprising long-distance comfort. Eagle calls it “a road-legal GT with the soul of a racer.”
Inside, purpose meets poise. The cabin is trimmed in black Alcantara, with lightweight aluminium seats, four-point harnesses and an integrated fire suppression system. Yet there’s civility amid the race-bred focus: air conditioning, heated glass and sound insulation are all included. The most striking detail, according to Autocar, may be the switchgear inlaid with mother-of-pearl, “turning every drive into an act of art.”
Eagle’s technical director, Paul Brace, said the project was born from a passionate client’s vision. “Modern sports cars are becoming big, heavy and reliant on electronics,” he explained. “Our goal was to create the opposite: something light, mechanical and honest.” The collaboration, he added, “proved that true automotive dreams can still be built by hand.”
The Eagle Lightweight GTR is far more than another restomod. Where many brands hide their dynamics behind software and drive modes, Eagle pursues mechanical perfection. The car recalls an era when speed was forged in metal, not coded in silicon.
In a digital age obsessed with automation, Eagle’s creation stands as a handcrafted argument for human skill, precision and passion. The Lightweight GTR isn’t just a car—it’s a love letter to the analogue soul of motoring.
