I thought I’d share a few images of the 5k miles I put on my 120FHC last year.
While house/property hunting in the NE last summer I decided to use the Jaguar.
After making a trailer hitch and picking up a small pull behind I as ready to leave Ohio.
The car performed without any problems and I even managed to get the rig on a Ferry to an Island in Maine. The highlight was attending the British Invasion in Vt. and getting to meet some of my heroes from this site, (including the Brady’s, Mike Eck, Carl Hanson and more.)
I not only traveled in the Jaguar but used it as a work vehicle on a island organic farm and housing one night in a torrential September downpour! (if you’re 5’8" it can be done!)
So here are a few images to relate the experience…
This was not last year, but somewhere around 1965. My parents, just married on the way to Isola d’Elba in Italy…
But I really do not know why my Dad looked so concerned - either because of the traffic jam around Milano or because my Mom took place on the fender
Great Photos!
My Dad used his in 1955 to haul a ridiculous raft rig (consisting of 4 huge canoes) from New Orleans to Akron (OH). They put in outside Pittsburgh PA and drifted to New Orleans. He drove the Jaguar down and left it there, then trailed the raft back.
I’ve got some slides (buried in deep storage) of his trip and Jaguar. Hope to show them here when I find a place to live…
Hi Rob,
Thanks for sharing your story with the forum, it’s great to see another 120 being used as a car rather than a monument. We truly enjoyed meeting you at the British Invasion this past fall and sharing our stories and Jaguar experiences with you and fellow 120 owner and forum member Peter Candlish, who we also just met. The event has taken place in Stowe, VT for 32 years now and brings people together from Canada and the USA. The weather was perfect this year, unlike some years of torrential rains from remnants of fall hurricanes. It’s about a 260 mile trip (each way) for me, and includes route 100, a twisty mountain road following a river, which is fun in our old cars. At 6’ tall I have found that 260 miles is about as far as you want to drive in a 120 in a day, with an extended stop for lunch.
We noticed your coupe and trailer pass by the chalet we rent at the Stowe Motel on Mountain Road, selected purposefully so we can monitor all the British cars that pass by. That is generally a pretty unique sight, but was pretty common at the British Invasion, as Bruce Cunningham brought his 120 and trailer every year. You mentioned that you copied Bruce Cunningham’s trailer setup which he magnanimously shared with you. Bruce was a yearly participant in the British Invasion until the last three years, and helped with the field layout, and was famous for wearing his Scottish kilt and playing Amazon Grace on his bagpipes on the show field for many years. Bruce was also a knowledgeable contributor to this forum and sadly passed away this December. He will be fondly remembered by all who met him. Rest in peace Bruce Cunningham.
Mountain Road runs from the center of Stowe up to Smugglers’s Notch, and up and over the mountain. That is an interesting drive in a Moss box 120 as the road necks down to one lane as it passes by a huge rock that juts into the road near the top of the mountain. Bruce Cunningham lead a group of us through the Notch one year, I was in my automatic 61 MK 9, with great brakes and power, but there was a string of Moss box XK’s that all made it through. We all gathered at the chalet after the drive to compare stories of how great the tour was.
Hi Tom,
Great stories as usual!
I’m sad to hear about Bruce (I was hoping to see him in Stowe). I met him and Donna about four years ago while driving through Vermont (not in my Jaguar). They were both so delightful and we became fast friends. I wanted to meet Bruce since (just like you) his posts on this site were of enormous help to me. I planned to get back up to show him my finished car but, sadly, life and co-vid got in the way.
He was really a one of a kind, and I will think of him often.
Hi Felix
Unfortunately there are no picrures available of the hitch but I remember the design because it It layed around for decades in our storage room. It was basically a rectangular subframe which simply was bolted on below the rear chassis endings. If I remember right it used the holes, where the body and the rear bumperettes are attached and a simple ball hitch stud out of the rear end.
The construction itself looked pretty well constructed, I am almost sure it was an aftermarked ad on.
I believe in the 60s it was much easier TÜV wise…
Best Regards
Lukas
