AUSTIN POWERS ‘SHAGUAR’ IS GOING TO AUCTION

The annual ‘World’s Largest Collector Car Auction’ held by Mecum each January in Kissimmee, Florida, certainly lives up to its name. The 2024 Kissimmee sale saw 4,000 vehicles offered, with 4,500 expected at the 2025 auction, which runs from 7 to 19 January. Obviously, with an auction that large, the consignments will be diverse, but few are truly unique. This January, there will be one that qualifies for that description.

At Kissimmee 2025, Mecum will offer the E-type ‘Shaguar’ made famous by the Austin Powers film franchise. Unlike most other movies, where multiple cars are built for various production requirements, like stunts, distance shots and close-ups, only one Shaguar was built for Austin Powers, with the same car used for all three films.

Yeah, Baby!

One of the most memorable – and quotable – films of its era, Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery was released in 1997. The worldwide success of this comedic spoof of the James Bond franchise spawned two sequels – Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me in 1999 and Austin Powers in Goldmember in 2002. A fourth film was discussed, along with an animated series, but neither came to fruition.

Austin Powers was the creation of Mike Myers, the Canadian comedian who tapped into his heritage (his British-born father was a big fan of Benny Hill and Monty Python) to create the swingin’ shagadelic British spy.

At the time, Myers was already famous, thanks largely to the 1992 film Wayne’s World that had started as a series on US sketch comedy show Saturday Night Live (SNL) before being made into a movie. Austin Powers followed a similar path.

Myers first portrayed him on SNL as lead singer of the fictional ’60s-era British pop band ‘Ming Tea’. Alongside Myers, established musicians, including Susanna Hoffs of The Bangles and Matthew Sweet, each performed under a pseudonym. Myers chose ‘Austin Powers,’ along with the hair, medallion, ruffled shirts and bright velvet suits that would become visual cues for the cinema version of the character.

While Myers created Austin Powers, it was his then wife who’s alleged to have suggested building a feature film around him. Myers played the titular character and his nemesis Dr. Evil in all three films, as well as the ‘Fat Bastard’ and ‘Goldmember’ characters.

Choosing a Car

Being a cool British secret agent from the 1960s, it was only natural for Austin Powers to have a cool British car from the ‘60s. While they had plenty of stylish British-built cars from that period to choose from, the producers (of whom Myers was one) selected an early Jaguar E-type; specifically a 1967 roadster with the 4.2-litre six-cylinder engine and four-speed manual transmission.

In pre-production, Jay Roach, the director, and Myers thought a Jaguar would be a good fit for the character, but according to information provided by Mecum, they had no idea which model to choose. Vehicle providers for Hollywood, Ray Claridge of Cinema Vehicle Services and Josh Hancock of Joshcar, both recommended an E-type roadster. Hancock, who served as picture car co-ordinator on the first movie, sourced the car shown here and prepared it for filming.

Modifications to the E-type were minimal, consisting mainly of the bold Union Jack paintjob. Images provided by Mecum indicate this is actually painted and not a wrap or decals. Underbonnet shots show it was originally finished in Opalescent Silver Blue, a factory colour for the Series 1 E-type, with a blue convertible top.

A faux ‘SHAGUAR’ badge on the bootlid (made using a genuine ‘JAGUAR’ badge) was the only other notable change, along with the ‘Swinger’ number plate seen in the films, although the car now wears a ‘Shaguar’ display plate.

Wheels are genuine factory centre-lock wire spoke units, fitted with Remington ‘Cushion-Aire’ tyres. The lack of glass headlight covers lines up with this car’s build date of December, 1967, as this feature was being phased out then.

Being an E-type, this car has four-wheel disc brakes and fully independent suspension, both of which had been standard since the car was launched in 1961.

Inside the cabin, the dark blue leather seats, doorcards and carpets all appear to be period correct, as does the instrumentation, switchgear (rocker switches, not toggles) and woodrim steering wheel. Being right-hand drive gives an extra layer of authenticity to a vehicle for a British spy.

Three Starring Roles

As mentioned, the Shaguar featured in all three instalments of the Austin Powers franchise and would also be used in the music video for Madonna’s ‘Beautiful Stranger’ single, which was a song from the second film.

According to Hancock, after shooting of the third Austin Powers film was completed, New Line Cinema (the studio who produced the films) ran a competition with the Shaguar as one of the prizes. The winner didn’t want the car, so Hancock provided a car she did want (a minivan!) and kept the movie car.

Hancock adds that, despite the irreverent nature of the Austin Powers films, Jaguar approved of the E-type being featured and requested it for display at events in the UK on several occasions. While over there, it was mechanically refurbished, so comes to auction in good condition, but has been in storage with Hancock for the past few years.

While a number of Shaguar replicas have been made over the years, the car to be auctioned by Mecum is the original, genuine car used in the movies, backed by verification letters from both Claridge and Hancock.