1966 Jaguar E-Type Series 1 4.2 Litre 2+2

Details

The Swallow Sidecar Company was founded in 1922 by William Lyons and William Walmsley. In 1934 Lyons formed SS Cars Limited to effectively take over the operation from Walmsley. The SS brand was quite successful; though they had a reputation for having ‘more show than go’. The Jaguar name first appeared as a model name on an SS 2½ Litre Sports Saloon introduced in 1936. For political reasons, Lyons changed the name of his company to Jaguar Cars in 1945.

Whilst the SS100 is indeed a fabulous car, it was with the launch of the legendary Jaguar XK120 at the London Motor Show in 1948 that really put Jaguar on the map. The car caused a sensation, which persuaded Jaguar founder and design boss William Lyons to put it into production. The XK120 morphed into the XK140 and ultimately the XK150 and in total, just over 30,000 cars were built over fifteen years of production.

In 1961 at the Geneva Motor Show Jaguar introduced the E-Type, which like the XK120 all those years ago, took the motoring world by storm. The body styling was simply gorgeous and technologically the E-Type was an engineering masterpiece and it set new standards in all areas.

Whilst automotive styling is somewhat subjective the E-Type is often ranked atop lists of ‘the most beautiful cars’ and in fact it has been described by Enzo Ferrari as ‘the most beautiful car ever made’. And it’s not just about the looks as the E-Type is often at the top of other lists such as ‘The best sports car ever built’ or ‘The most significant cars’. It is truly a motoring icon.

As a testament to the success of the E-Type, production evolved through three series from 1961 until 1974 during which time circa 70,000 cars were built.

Oldtimer Australia is delighted to offer a 1966 Jaguar E-Type Series 1 4.2 Litre 2+2.

The Jaguar Heritage Certificate confirms this factory LHD example was manufactured on the 16^th June 1966 with a date of despatch of 6^th July 1966. The original distributor is noted as Jaguar Cars, New York, USA. The car’s original colour scheme was opalescent light maroon with a black interior. The original dealer and first owner are not noted.

The car’s early history is not known, however, there is an import approval on file dated 13^th August 1992. The car is understood to have been imported into Australia by Jaguar E-Type specialist David Whiting. The car arrived into Australia in a ‘tired but drivable condition’. Whiting ultimately refurbished the car, which included a bare metal respray (there are photos on file), an engine rebuild, a conversion to right hand drive and fitting a manual gearbox (with overdrive) from an early Jaguar XJ6 4.2 Litre. There is a QLD Safety Certificate on file dated 14^th September 2005 at which time the mileage is noted as 9,165 miles. The car was kept by Whiting for a few years as his own personal E-Type. He used the car from time to time and it was seen occasionally at historic motor sports events in NSW and QLD.

The current owner purchased this E-Type from Whiting in September 2007 at which time the odometer was at 9,325 miles. The car was then on QLD registration 444 CXN. The new owners also used the car sparingly and it became laid up for some time before being given to Wayne Park Autos in Brisbane, QLD to ‘recommission’ in late 2016. From October 2016 through until February 2107 in excess of $30,000 was spent to return this E-Type to a roadworthy condition. Work included: significant electrical repairs, overhaul the overdrive unit, refurbish the brakes, clutch & suspension, replace the engine mounts & gear linkage bushes, engine out service, overhaul the carburettors, detail the engine bay and other miscellaneous works. The roadworthy certificate on file dated the 14^th February 2017 notes the mileage as 9,926 miles.

Today the odometer reads 10,386 miles which confirms this E-Type has again been sparingly used in the last eighteen months or so. As a result its owner has made the decision the time is right to pass the car on to its next custodian.

Today this Jaguar E-Type presents as a ‘nice driver’. The car starts easily with plenty of choke and it is immediately noticeable the engine has a ‘worked cam’. The exhaust note is ‘more aggressive than your average E-Type’! Once she warms up the car idles smoothly, but with a distinctive edge. The clutch is quite heavy, suggesting it has been upgraded. Given all of the money spent on this one would expect it to drive really well . . . and it does! The engine pull strongly through the rev range, the gear change is firm, the car handles well and it stops as you would expect.

Inside the cabin everything is clean, neat and tidy. The black upholstery is in excellent condition all round, as is the dash, steering wheel, instruments and controls.

The paint work on the car is presentable from say a metre. It has a reasonable gloss, but there are many nicks, scrapes and stone chips evident. Some of the panel gaps could be improved, particularly on the bonnet would benefit from being realigned. Structurally the car looks to be very good all round. There is no rust evident in the body and the car looks very clean and solid underneath. All of the exterior trim, chrome and the wire wheels are in reasonable condition.

Highlights:

–  a well presented ‘nice driver’

–  in excess of $30,000 recently spent.

–  mechanically sorted and ready to enjoy.

–  excellent original colour scheme.

–  matching numbers chassis and engine.

 The car is currently registered in Queensland (as 951 WZP) with an expiry date of August 13^th 2019 and it has a valid Queensland Roadworthy Certificate. 

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