3,442cc DOHC Inline 6-Cylinder Engine
2 SU Carburetors
160bhp at 5,000rpm
4-Speed Manual Transmission
Front Independent Suspension – Live Rear Axle
4-Wheel Drum Brakes

*In the present ownership since 1968
*An original Hoffman delivered East Coast U.S.A. car
*Subject of an extensive restoration by respect Jaguar expert Terry Larson
*Offered with Jaguar Heritage Trust Certificate

THE XK120

Told by the post-war Attlee government to "export or die", the British motor industry responded valiantly – none more so than Jaguar Cars, which was soon to become the UK's biggest US-dollar earner thanks in no small measure to the success of its XK120 sports car. Its striking appearance notwithstanding, the XK120 was conventional enough beneath the skin, being built on a separate chassis, featuring independent front suspension by means of wishbones and torsion bars, a live rear axle, and drum brakes all around. The body was the work of Jaguar boss William Lyons himself. The car's heart was, of course, the fabulous XK engine, a 3.4-liter six, boasting twin overhead camshafts running in an aluminum cylinder head, seven main bearings, and a maximum output of 160bhp. The XK120 set new standards of comfort, road-holding and performance for British sports cars.

THE MOTORCAR OFFERED

Dean Edmonds would recount that he had acquired this particular Jaguar in the late 1960s having spied it at Auto-Engineering Inc., the original Lindy Hansen garage in Lexington, Massachusetts where his Mk VII was maintained, and he so loved. From his notes it had been owned by a lady who had not taken particular care of the car and when the clutch failed had left it at the garage. Naturally as with his other Jaguars, the purchase invoice is on file and shows him to have paid $1,500 for it in September 1968.

His acquisition was timed at 16 years after the roadster had originally left the works, having been built on the British 'Guy Fawkes' day, the 5th of November 1952. Dispatched 6 days later, it was supplied straight to the U.S. and distributed through Hoffman of New York. Its Heritage Certificate denotes the same body color tone that the car has been refurbished to, being Birch Grey paintwork, as new those were contrasted with a biscuit and red interior and French Grey top.

In Mr. Edmonds custody the project would languish for some years, first with a restorer in Arizona and then later with noted Jaguar guru Terry Larson in Mesa, Arizona. Then, the chance sighting of another XK120 at a car show and its appeal to his wife reminded Mr. Edmonds that he still had one of these cars himself in storage and inspired him to finally get around to having the car restored. This process began in 1997 and was completed two years later. During the course of the work, the rear part of the chassis legs was found to be badly corroded and was professionally replaced, but in all major other respects the integrity of the car including its matching numbers engine was retained. When finished Mr. and Mrs. Edmonds campaigned the car on the 1999 Red Rock rally in Arizona, using it properly for the first time. This proved to be a major shakedown for the restoration, with patches of terrible rain and a typically precise 5 page 'snag list' was supplied to Mr. Larson!

More than two decades later, the Jaguar still presents extremely well, being a fine testament to the work carried out in its restoration, it is accompanied by many bills for its work and the subsequent maintenance. To a connoisseur such as Edmonds, we are sure that purity of the original lines of the disc wheels and rear spats would have appealed greatly, it would sit in the collection as the match to his Mark VII and he considered the pair of cars as a 'his and hers' set.