Description
This is quite simply the very best Jaguar XK140 SE DHC we have offered onto the market in 35 years of buying and selling classic cars. This is a truly first-class, matching numbers example that has been rebuilt to show winning standards with an incredible attention to detail. On completion of a full nut and bolt restoration, in 2024 the XK140 took first place at the Jaguar Driver’s Club Concours event, true testament of the high standards of restoration.
The Jaguar was built on the 1st of June 1955 and first registered to a George Culberson, a member of the Board of Directors of the Central Carolina Region of the Sports Car Club of America. From 1983 to 2016 the 140 SE was stored in a garage in Sacramento and when it landed in the UK the restoration began in mid-2018. Over the following 6 years, the most outstanding, exquisite restoration was carried out with absolutely no expense spared.
Upon the commencement of the restoration, the car was carefully stripped back and parts were labelled accordingly. With the car having spent a lot of its early life in California, little panelwork was required with all 4 original wings being retained with some minor repairs to the rears. The chassis and box sections have benefitted from cavity wax following the blasting and have been finished in Black chassis specific paint. The doors were completely rebuilt with new timber frames and door skins, additionally new door hinges were engineered with provision for lubrication. The paintwork has been carried out by Cawthorn's of March in Jaguar Mist Grey. In addition, all of the original chromework for the car was removed and replated retaining as much originality of the aesthetics as possible.
Mechanically, the Jaguar SE has been fully renovated , the original SE engine has been rebuilt, the cylinders rebored, and the compression ratio increased to 9:1. The machining work had been carried out by David Knight Engine Services to include a full dynamic balancing of the rotating assembly and work to accommodate a 9. 5" E-Type clutch. The original cylinder head was rebuilt with new valves, tappet guides, valve guides and seat inserts. Brand-new Newman camshafts were fitted along with new valve caps, collets, shims and springs. All the timing gear was completely renewed at the same time along with a Rob Beere hydraulic timing chain tensioner conversion. For the transmission, a T5 5-speed gearbox has been fitted from Elite Racing Transmissions allowing for comfortable high-speed touring. The rear axle has been rebuilt by Alan Slawson of AJS engineering which retains the 3. 54:1 ratio. The braking system has been overhauled with a Coventry Automotive front disc brake conversion with four-pot calipers.
Stepping into the Jaguar you are met with a beautifully retrimmed interior that was carried out by Aldridges of Wolverhampton in Dark Blue Leather with matching wool carpets matching with the mohair padded hood and hood cover. For the in-car entertainment, the original Motorola 200X unit has been uprated to facilitate DAB and Bluetooth by Tadpole Radios.
Since completion of the restoration the XK has covered around 2, 000 miles where the running-in period has been completed successfully. The XK now has U. K. and European touring under its belt having completed a West Country tour and the Britassist Tour de Bretagne. As you'd expect the car is truly first class to drive, further enhanced by the subtle performance modifications that make this car incredibly impressive on the road. The car is mechanically, electrically, bodily and cosmetically top class in every respect and a rebuild to this standard literally costs hundreds and hundreds of thousand pounds. Accompanying the car is a full photo album of the restoration works carried out in addition to a substantial number of invoices for the work carried out.
691 RK truly represents an unrepeatable opportunity to own a car that has been restored with the most acute attention to detail, this is without doubt up their with the best of the best.
