In 1922, William Lyons (1901-1985) later Sir William, founded Swallow Sidecars which in 1935 became SS Cars.  One of their models was called Jaguar and after the company was sold in 1945, it was this name that was used for his new company which also began in 1945.  Both saloon cars and sports cars were built, with five wins at the Le Mans 24-hour race in the 1950’s establishing their sporting reputation.  The Jaguar E-Type was a best-seller as was the Mk II.  At one time part of British Leyland and then owned by Ford, Jaguar is now owned by Tata Motors of India.  The company continues to build GT cars, luxurious saloons and an SUV.  (Shown above are the 1953 C-Type and 1955 D-Type, both Le Mans winners.)