If you're one of the many longing for a redesign of Jaguar's aging XK platform, wait no longer: the Growler E, Vizualtech's latest re-interpretation of the E-Type, will be built, in very small numbers, according to a new report.

Just a handful will ever be built, as each car is expected to take six months to assemble by hand, and only three to four cars can be built at once. The first one won't be available until mid-2012, even if everything goes according to plan. It will get its power from a tuned-up version of Jaguar's own 5.0-liter supercharged V-8 engine, expected to produce about 600 horsepower.

The Growler E is based on the XKR's underpinnings, and while the Vizualtech E-Type-inspired car won't be sold under official auspices, it will give Jag lovers an object to focus their past-meets-present hankerings.

Many aspects of the design are definitely successful, though we might like to see less...blingtastic wheels. The wire spokes are a nice tough, but gigantic 20-plus-inch rollers seem a bit much for the classicallly influenced lines.

As for pricing--expect it to reflect the amount of work and custom fabrication that will go into the car. Preliminary estimates range from $680,000 to nearly $1.4 million, depending on the total volume ordered and built.

[TopGear]