Lot Ended
Description
Fresh from a total nut-and-bolt restoration; driven 30 miles to the
sale; triple Weber carbs; a fabulous example of this iconic British
sportscar
Although
die-hard E-Type aficionados will always claim that the Series 1 is the car to
have, in the real world there is no doubt that the Series 2, launched in October
1968, is the better car to drive.
Visually distinguished by its slightly
higher, uncowled front headlights, wider ‘mouth’ at the front and different tail
lights, it had twin fans for better cooling, an all-synchro gearbox, better
seats, better brakes, improved switchgear and slightly more room in the
cabin.
Power still came from the same magnificent 265bhp 4.2-litre
triple-carb XK engine which endowed the car with a top speed in excess of
130mph. Only 8,627 Series 2 Roadsters were made in total (all but 775 of them
LHD) before it was replaced by the V12-powered Series 3 in late
1970.
As the Heritage certificate confirms,
this particular S2 Roadster was built in December 1969 and, like the vast
majority of them, was a LHD model destined for the American market. Originally
finished in Regency Red with a black interior and manual transmission, nothing
is known of the car’s early history but a NOVA document shows that it was
imported back to the UK in November 2015 with all duties
paid.
Our vendor’s late-father acquired the car
soon afterwards and commenced a total nut-and-bolt rebuild which took over six
years to complete. An experienced Jaguar restorer with a few other E-Type and XK
projects already under his belt, the vendor’s father did some of the work
himself but enlisted professional help as required.
While there are plenty of invoices covering much of the
work done and many of the new parts fitted, these are by no means comprehensive
but rest assured, it was clearly an extremely thorough job and the car speaks
for itself – it really is as good as it looks in the photos. The engine was
rebuilt by Willenhall Engine Centre (invoice on file) and we are told that the
cylinder head was subsequently rebuilt by race engineer and ex-CMC director
Andrew Tart of Clows Top. Upgrades include triple Weber carbs, alloy radiator
and electronic ignition.
We are told that the
Signal Red paintwork was done by Reynolds of Rushock and cost over £14,000. The
interior was retrimmed by Hampton Coachtrimmers of Newport, including the boot
area and a new hood, at a cost of £10,400 (invoice on file). SNG Barratt
supplied a host of new parts at considerable extra cost but only some of these
invoices are present, the rest having been jumbled up with a huge file of
similar invoices relating to other Jaguars restored by the vendor’s father
before he passed away.
Our vendor, who is
himself a professional mechanic, has completed the final detailing of the
car and it sailed through its MOT in June this year with no advisories recorded.
It also has a V5C which records it as a Historic Vehicle so it is free to tax
and MOT-exempt.
Driven some 30 miles to the
sale on one of the hottest days of the year, we are told that the car drove
well, with good oil pressure and water temperature throughout, although the
vendor did note a slight rattle from the rear of the car as he neared his
destination. No doubt it will benefit from the usual post-restoration check-over
and running-in period before the performance is exploited to the
full.
Starting promptly and running very sweetly indeed as we have moved
it around on site, with good 45psi oil pressure, this freshly restored E-Type
looks as good as good underneath as it does up top and seems mighty
tempting at the sensible guide price suggested.
For more information contact James on 07970 309907 or email
james.dennison@brightwells.com