While it didn’t carry the name until later, the company we know today as Jaguar was started by William Lyons and William Walmsley in 1922 – making 2022 the company’s centenary year.
Today the company is undergoing a period of change like many of its rivals, but has a history of both desirable road cars and racing success that only a handful of other companies can match.
It’s also more diverse than many expect, so we’ve put together a short quiz that delves into not just the familiar but also the unexpected. Just how much do you know about Jaguar?
![Who founded Jaguar?](https://hagerty.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Jaguar-badge.jpeg)
#1. Who were the founders of the company that led to Jaguar?
![1936 SS Jaguar 100](https://hagerty.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/jagheritagessjaguar1001936.jpg)
#2. What does the SS in early Jaguar models stand for?
Jaguar started out as the Swallow Sidecar Company, lending early models the SS moniker.
![Jaguar C-types lined up before the start of the 1953 Le Mans](https://hagerty.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/J_Classic_Ctype_280121_1953Le-Mans_CopyrightJDHT.jpg)
#3. Which company did Jaguar co-develop its first disc brakes with?
Slow down a moment! It was Dunlop.
![Jaguar XK-120C Le Mans](https://hagerty.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/jagjhrimages01120312.jpg)
#4. When did Jaguar win its first Le Mans 24 Hours?
Jaguar’s first Le Mans win came in 1951 with the XK-120C of Peter Walker and Peter Whitehead.
![Jaguar XK180 concept](https://hagerty.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/jaguar-concept.jpeg)
#5. Jaguar attempted to replace the E-type on more than one occasion. What name did they give this striking roadster?
Jaguar unveiled the XK180 concept in 2000.
![Jaguar XJ40 XJR](https://hagerty.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/jaguar-xjr-3-6.jpeg)
#6. Which well-known motorsport outfit was involved in creating the first XJ40-based XJR?
Tom Walkinshaw Racing was part of the JaguarSport enterprise set up to develop the XJR.
![](https://hagerty.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/b99-concept.jpg)
#7. Which Italian styling house created this sleek Jaguar saloon concept?
The Bertone B99 concept was first shown at the 2011 Geneva motor show.
![Jaguar XJR 100](https://hagerty.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/jaguar-xjr-100-drift.jpeg)
#8. Which of these brands was not in Ford’s Premier Automotive Group, that Jaguar was a part of from 1999?
The odd one out here is Mercury, which unlike its cousin Lincoln, was not part of the Premier Automotive Group.
![Jaguar](https://hagerty.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/xj11myplatinum75detail06081014.jpg)
#9. What is the popular term for the ornament once fixed atop the grilles of Jaguar cars?
Jaguar’s famous mascot is known as the “leaper”.
![Jaguar E-Type driving](https://hagerty.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/2pl2dhqzq5qav3msknvv6ut1.png)
#10. What is special about this E-Type Roadster, wearing the 77 RW registration?
77 RW is the car Norman Dewis drove overnight to the Geneva motor show, ahead of the car’s original unveiling to the press.
![Italdesign Jaguar Kensington](https://hagerty.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Italdesign-Jaguar-Kensington-Concept-Car-5-e1652299693782.jpeg)
#11. The Italdesign Jaguar Kensington never became a Jaguar, but what car was the design eventually adapted for?
After Jaguar turned it down, Italdesign repurposed the design for Daewoo for its 1997 Leganza saloon.
![The story of the Jaguar XJR-15 supercar](https://hagerty.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/1991-Jaguar-XJR-15-_8-scaled.jpg)
#12. Which well-known car designer crafted Jaguar’s short-lived XJR-15 supercar?
It was Peter Stevens that designed the XJR-15, in conjunction with TWR.
Results
Well done – you clearly know your big cats from your swallows…
Better luck next time – perhaps you’ll do better after the next 100 years…