Description
Kelham Hall | Newark, Nottinghamshire
Viewing: Tues 16th June from 12pm
Auction: Wed 17th June from 9am
Location: Main Street, Newark, Nottinghamshire NG23 5QX
Lot details
Registration No: PNC 399R
Chassis No: FH832620
MOT: Exempt
Purchased by the current registered owner in 2015, requiring restoration
Comprehensively restored thereafter over the following year
Notably nicely presented example
Supplied with body-coloured hardtop, hood, and hood tonneau cover
Evolving through five guises over the course of an eighteen-year production run, the final Spitfire variant, the 1500, arrived in 1974. With a reputed 71bhp and 82lb. ft. of torque on tap from its 1, 493cc OHV four-cylinder engine, the newcomer boasted genuine 100mph performance. Visually indistinguishable from its Mk. IV forebear save for some minor trim differences, the Spitfire 1500 was a decent seller on both sides of the Atlantic and the model remained in production until August, 1980.
Showing only twelve registered keepers from new, and one keeper for ten years from 2001 to 2011, since 2015 this lovely Spitfire has enjoyed a more salubrious period of long-term ownership. Prior to its acquisition the current registered keeper, it had been allowed to deteriorate until it was requiring restoration. The current keeper then stepped up to the challenge and fully restored over the first year of his ownership, spending in the region of £6, 300 on new parts alone. The work included a full bodywork restoration and repaint, a thorough engine overhaul, and the replacement of the soft-top and tonneau. The brake parts were renewed all-round, a new differential was fitted, and the interior was completely refreshed with new upholstery and a new lining for the colour-matched hardtop. Condition-wise, it is now surely within the best Spitfires extant, being a notably nicely presented example, and promises to be a very enjoyable car for the new owner. It is supplied with much documentation, including the V5C, assorted invoices, MOTs dating back to the early 2000s, an original owner’s handbook and period sales literature.
