A genuine piece of Hollywood automotive history will be auctioned in January at Mecum Auctions Kissimmee. The 1967 Jaguar E-Type Roadster, better known as the ‘Shaguar,’ was used in all three Austin Powers movies.
The Union Jack-liveried icon, which appeared in the Austin Powers trilogy “International Man of Mystery”, “The Spy Who Shagged Me”, and “Goldmember” was driven by the titular character played by English-born, Canadian-raised comedian Mike Myers, the creator of “Wayne’s World”. Myers took spy movie parody to another level, as toothy Brit Powers saved the world across the decades from his Nemesis, Dr Evil. The grand total of box office receipts for the three movies exceeded $675 million.
Like all super spies, Powers required a car that reflected his personality. To match his groovy 1960s lifestyle, the production team picked this 1967 Jaguar E-Type Roadster at the advice of Ray Claridge, owner of Cinema Vehicle Services, and Josh Hancock, owner of Joshcar – after director Jay Roach and Myers had wrestled with which Jaguar to choose.
Hancock sourced and prepped the E-Type, creating a car that was a character in its own right throughout the movie series. It was known as Shaguar, mainly because the rear decklid badge actually spelled the joke out.
The Shaguar was also used in Madonna’s “Beautiful Stranger” music video, which starred Myers driving at the beginning, with the word ‘Swinger’ replacing ‘Shaguar’ on the plate.
The car has been in a private collection since filming concluded, and was occasionally loaned out to Jaguar Land Rover for company events. The car, which features a blue interior (its original exterior color was opalescent silver blue, before the red/white/blue repaint) and boasts a 4.2-liter inline six-cylinder engines, has recently undergone a comprehensive mechanical restoration.
It comes with authentication letters from Hancock and Claridge to underline its unique history, and crosses the block on 18 January.
