Lot Ended
Description
1952 Jaguar XK120 FHC
From the Tresham
Collection; fully restored in the late 1990s and carefully maintained by one
owner since; LHD; veteran of several European tours; matching numbers; superb
condition throughout
Three years
after the launch of the XK120 Roadster, Jaguar had finally caught up with demand
for their sensational sportscar and in 1951 they released a Coupe version more
suited to year-round use. Aside from the obvious addition of a roof, the biggest
difference was the use of a mostly steel floorpan in place of plywood. The dash
was also wood rather than leather.
Power came
from the magnificent XK twin-overhead cam 3.4-litre straight-six that had proved
its worth in the Le Mans-winning C-Type. With 160bhp on tap, it gave the car a
top speed of 120mph making it the fastest production car of its day (hence the
XK120 name). Only 2,672 Coupes were produced before it was replaced by the
larger XK140 in October 1954, of which all but 195 were LHD for the export
market.
As the Heritage Certificate confirms,
this XK120 Coupe was built in July 1952 for the export market and was originally
Pastel Green with a Suede Green interior. Nothing is known of the early history
of the car, but the story picks up again in 1995 when it was imported back to
the UK from Pennsylvania by XK specialists, Twyford Moors of Hampshire.
Our vendor acquired the car from them in
January 1996 and promptly set about a total nut-and-bolt rebuild that took four
years to complete and resulted in the fine specimen you see today. Ably assisted
by a retired motor engineer friend, the pair did much of the work themselves,
enlisting professional help where required although there are only invoices for
some of this work.
The chassis was
commendably rust-free and required little more than cleaning and painting. The
bodywork was also mainly good but £4,043 was spent on new panels supplied by
Classic Parts & Panels of Aylesbury before the car was expertly repainted in
silver metallic.
The original engine had done
fewer than 50,000 miles and was found to be in excellent condition, needing
little more than a thorough service, as was the Moss gearbox. All the running
gear was fully rebuilt as required, keeping everything pretty much factory
standard.
The interior was retrimmed in the finest Connolly hide by
ex-Brown’s Lane trimmer Mick Turley of Suffolk & Turley fame – even the door
cards and the rear parcel shelf are leather. The dash instruments were rebuilt
by Vintage Restorations of Tunbridge Wells and a new cotton braided wiring loom
was fitted. As the car was mainly going to be used for Continental touring, it
was kept in LHD.
The vendor estimates
that over 4,000 hours were spent on the restoration and the quality of the
workmanship still shines through over 20 years since it was completed. Used
regularly until 2010, including trips to the Le Mans Classic and tours of
Germany and Italy, the car has been very little used in recent years although it
has been started and run regularly to keep everything free.
Kept in a heated showroom as part of a collection of fine cars, it
was fitted with new batteries shortly before the auction and has been running
beautifully as we have moved it around on site with good 60psi oil pressure.
Although it no longer needs one, it has an MOT until May 2023 with no advisories
recorded.
Currently registered as JLC 140,
this number is to be retained by the vendor and the car will revert to its
previous number, PSJ 615, prior to the sale.
Only reluctantly for sale due to illness, this magnificent
‘matching numbers’ XK120 is every bit as good as it looks in the photos. All it
needs now is an enthusiastic new owner who can continue to cherish it in the
manner to which it has become accustomed.
This is one of nine Lots entered from the Tresham Collection.
For more information contact James on 07970 309907 or email
james.dennison@brightwells.com
* All charges are subject to VAT