This was a California car until the 60’s when it went to the Alberquerque, New Mexico area. The seller has owned it for 5 years but had to give up the hopes of restoration due to an injury. Prior to his ownership, it was owned by a well known racing family. It’s been in dry storage in NM for about 40 years.
To say that this car is a time capsule (of sorts) is putting it mildly. The interior has had a re-do in the past in white, but the dash has remnants of green. The original paint is poking through a newer paint job (in the 60’s) and is green. This is a numbers matching car showing as near as I can see of the far left digit, has 35,211 miles. I HOPE this is correct and from all indications of use, may be. The plywood floors are intact, but the upholstery and padding is shot. It probably got wet a few too many times and needed replacing early-on. No matter. It has a heater. The engine turns and is intact. The picture of the M/C shows that the frame is still wearing it’s original paint, I’d guess 90% of it. The battery boxes are nearly perfect!
There is ONE small rust perforation near the right rear fender mounting hole. That’s it. It does have it’s share of dings and dents and a half-assed schmear of Bondo at the front apron, that’s just par for the course. It has a white steering wheel. The springs are still wrapped.
It’ll be shipped home in the next 2 weeks or so. I can’t wait. If you’d like to know what I paid, PM me, I’d rather not post it. It wasn’t cheap, but it’s worth getting a head-start in the process.
I would be embarrassed by the poor maintenance as well. Yes, fun to talk about a good deal, gut wrencher to relay a bad one. I’ve got more than my share of those.
cool…take lots of photos of how it is now…looks like it will be a super car…one day, the grille is from an XK140…likely a re pop one…there were many that had that replaced part…mine did when I got it., is the top frame there? You have cleaned the chassis frame top just ahead of the brake mast cyl…so assume you did find the chassis number stamped there. it may also be on the cross frame in front of the radiator. Recently posted here are bumpers…if you need em, Make use of the archives here via the search magnify symbol at top rite . Maybe you said prior…what part of the world are you in? ahh N W Carolina.
Nick
Do you have any photos of the engine bay. It would be interesting to know if any modifications were made by the “well known racing family.” That white interior with a white wheel could be quite the look. Do you know if that color scheme was original?
Looks like a fine project. Chassis number appears to be S673752, is that right? That would be a March 1953 build date.
That grille appears to be the cast metal replacement that was offered by JC Whitney and Warshawsky of Chicago in the 1970s, which has come up in our discussions a few times.
Heaters were standard beginning about Sept '51.
I don’t know that we have much research on the white steering wheels. They are usually seen on much earlier cars.
I toured the Unser museum when I was in Albuquerque a few years ago. I noticed that there were a couple of the cars there that were running xk engines. Maybe this was one that avoided becoming an engine donor and became a survivor.
Congratulations. From what I can see of the bodywork, the car appears to be very straight. When you get the Heritage Certificate, lets us know the original colors. The white leather on the instrument panel is unusual.
I’m reminded - not a bit painfully - of bringing my own XK120 OTS barn find home. I had visions of getting it back on the road in two years. That was from September, 1991.
Newest ETA is July, 2020.
Congratulations, Mitchell. Looks like a great starting point. Lots of originality. Not messed with too much. Enjoy the challenge. It will be worth it in the end, whenever that may be (At least that’s what I keep telling myself).
I would think very carefully before pulling that apart and ‘restoring’ it.
These cars have a history, a story to tell. Increasingly that is valued more and more than just becoming yet another immaculate, perfect car which is a million miles away from what Jaguar produced as a mass-produced sporting car for the general public. I would give serious consideration to doing only a sympathetic mechanical refurbishment, retaining as many original parts as possible whilst ensuring it’s safe to use. Forget modifications, these cars are not fast or fine-handling by modern standards anyway. And - if it has any sort of history, motorsport family or not - there’s your decision made for you, right there. Once you remove history you never get it back. Speaking personally, I don’t view that car as a starting point - I view it as one that needs a bit of sorting for use. The market is trending that way too, certainly in Europe. As the pressure on fossil fuels increases, this car has something most don’t. Don’t lose it.
Must have missed that question, Wiggs. Was it an edit to the post?
The engine was last running in 1966 when the original owner parked it in her garage before passing away, 20,000 miles on the odo. Back in ‘92 I pulled the head off to grind the valves and change their springs and attempted in situ rear and front seal replacements. A mechanic buddy examined the bores and pronounced the odometer reading accurate. As I tilted the engine/gearbox back to reinstall it oil fairly poured out of the rear seal so I didn’t attempt to start it up. So, long story short, engine, gearbox and diff all turn freely but it’s been 53 years since the mechanicals have turned on their own power. This winter I’ll dismantle the engine and replace all seals and bearings, inspect for and address other needs as found and fire it up in the spring. I’ll likely tear down the gearbox as well, just for giggles.
An opinion I respect, though I posit the decision to be made - to restore (or over-restore) or leave as-is - goes to the perspective of how the owner will best enjoy his car. One perspective (perception) is almost entirely psychological and intangible, as in one’s head. The other is more practical and aesthetic, recognising that an aesthetic preference could go more strongly to ratty and incorrect interiors, dents and surface rust than pristine paint and new leather. I also recognise that strong appreciation for things strictly original in a car - original atoms, matching numbers, factory colours, nuts, bolts, screws, hose clamps, etc - and unrestored general condition is limited to a relatively small percentage of very knowledgeable enthusiasts deeply steeped in the (for lack of a better word) marque culture while the majority of people will see no farther than a tired, beat up old car.
Myself, I’d restore that car to its former glory. It looks like a great candidate. I would further correct any poor panel fits and trim glitches as they left the factory. Call it bringing the car to design specification, as one might blueprint an engine.
Archival footage indicates that few, if any, finished XK120s rolled off the assembly line with everything perfectly assembled to design. There was variation, greater in some cars and lesser in others. Some had good panel fits, others poor, and the differences were entirely unplanned and circumstantial. No body man actually set out to fit a bonnet poorly.
All that said, if the price one might have to pay to buy any given car is a proxy for its value - or “worth” - then a fully restored example will be much more valuable than a scruffy original. However, the price differential will generally be less than the cost of a total restoration so, if you’re motivated more by investment potential you’d best leave the car as-is.
Just to be clear - my comments are not referring to any car, or cars, in particular…
they are a gorgeous shape, congratulations!