Descrizione
H&H Classic Auction @ Pavilion Gardens | Buxton, Derbyshire
26th Apr, 2023 13:00
2011 Suffolk SS100
Among the best examples we have seen
Estimate
£48, 000 - £55, 000
Registration No: A504 YCY
Chassis No: DVLASWAthe details below
MOT: June 2025
In current family ownership from new
Recently subject to over 135 hours work and nearly £12, 000 expenditure with Suffolk Classic Services, and now correctly IVA tested and registered as a Suffolk SS100
Invoices on file totalling in excess of £80, 000, six page itemised spreadsheet documenting the build and more
Widely regarded as one of the most beautiful sports cars ever made, the Jaguar SS100 has been an object of desire for more than eighty years. Due to its rarity and value the model has inspired numerous imitations. Though, few - if any - have been as aesthetically accurate as the cars built by Terry Rowing of TRAC Engineering. By the late 1980s Rowing had established an enviable reputation for restoring genuine SS100s and learnt how to remanufacture components such as the solid brass chromed radiator surround, alloy louvered bonnet and folding windscreen etc. Deciding to create a Jaguar XJ6-based SS100 Evocation that combined the style and feel of the original with more modern road manners, he approached current Red Bull F1 designer Adrian Newey (a customer at the time) for permission to take precise GRP body moulds from the latter's superb 1938 car. Unveiled in late 1990 the resultant TRAC prototype was well received by the motoring press. The production version was predominantly supplied in 'home-build' form at the rate of four a year until 1996 when the manufacturing rights were purchased by Roger Williams of Suffolk Sportscars. Reborn and refined as the Suffolk SS100, the design remained in production until Suffolk’s demise in 2020 following a dispute with Jaguar Land Rover.
Presented in a very attractive combination of blue with contrasting red Connolly leather interior, this particular Suffolk SS100 is powered by the ever-popular Jaguar 4. 2-litre straight six DOHC engine with dual SU carburettors. Reportedly producing over 250bhp, this lovely example is driven through a four-speed manual gearbox with overdrive and benefits from a narrowed XJS differential, AVO suspension, new Blockley Performance tyres, and a stainless steel exhaust with stainless manifolds.
Built between 2007 and 2011, ‘OSV 448’ was driven, enjoyed, and thoroughly looked after by the vendor’s late husband for a period spanning ten years. MOT certificates were given most years, with only two advisories spanning the lifetime of the vehicle for wheel bearings having slight play. Regular maintenance was applied as necessary, with more recent invoices for servicing in 2019 demonstrating how well ‘OSV 448’ was looked after. Not only were engine oil and filters replaced, but gearbox oil, coolant, brake fluid, clutch fluid, and a re-greasing for good measure.
Following a successful IVA test, the Suffolk received a Type Approval number in April of 2022, there had, however, been a few hurdles to get beyond to reach that point. When the vendor applied for a change of keeper on the V5C document after her husband’s passing, she unfortunately encountered the same issue plaguing a large proportion of these wonderful motor cars. The Suffolk Sportscars website stated that ‘cars built for use on the UK roads must first pass an IVA test’. However, the majority of the 200 or so cars that stayed in the UK were registered using the V5C of the donor car and had only a standard MOT prior to road use. A number of cars have had the V5 withdrawn until a successful IVA test, and this particular example had, unfortunately, suffered the same fate.
Following this incident, the vendor had the car sent back to Suffolk Classic Services themselves for an extensive vehicular overhaul to pass IVA testing, with over 135 hours of work totaling nearly £12, 000. Within this work, the car was subject to a replacement petrol tank, bushes, the AVO shocks overhauled, the speedometer re-calibrated, the wheel hubs re-shimmed, replacement Blockley 3-Stud tyres, the carburettors overhauled, reverse lamps re-wired, spark plugs replaced, and much more. After its successful IVA test, the car was re-assigned a new DVLA chassis number as above, as well as the registration ‘A504 YCY’. Now correctly registered as a Suffolk SS100 on the V5C, this particular example is one of the best Suffolk SS100s we have encountered.
Accompanied by the newly registered ‘A504 YCY’, an impressive history file containing an itemized spreadsheet with 223 lines over 6 pages documents the parts and process of the build. As well as this, the Suffolk SS100 customer build manual, wiring diagrams, numerous technical documents and manuals, and a small collection of MOT certificates under its previous registration are included. Also included is a large collection of invoices for the car’s initial build, work since, and for the recent works with Suffolk Classic Services totaling over £80, 000. The paperwork for the IVA testing, including certification, also accompanies the vehicle, as well as the V5C document which displays '0' former keepers.
