1972 Jaguar E-Type

1972 Jaguar E-type V12-

This car belongs to one of my favorite clients and a dear friend. He is an orthopedic surgeon who just reluctantly retired due to some very serious health issues.   If not for these health issues this car would definitely not be available at this time. He purchased the car from its original owner. another orthopedic surgeon. who the current owner did his residency under many years ago.

The current owner has maintained this car with great care and an open checkbook (As did the original owner). It very literally needs nothing. I would not hesitate to drive this wonderful car to Alaska and back. The car's startling lack of serious rust can be attributed to the fact that it has lived in Georgia the great majority of its life and has almost always been kept under cover. the last several years in a climate controlled garage at the owner's home. The car comes with both sets of original keys. a clear Georgia title. current registration. a Georgia Bill of Sale and a thick file of records dating back to 1972.

As a young man. the original owner. just like all of us. always wanted an E-type. He joined the Navy out of High School. completed his hitch. and then went on to college. From there he decided to become a doctor and set about working his tail off to put himself through Medical School. The day finally came in 1972 when he graduated Medical School and decided to reward himself with a brand new Jaguar E-type of his very own! He drove the car regularly up until 1995 when he parked it to help preserve her solid nature. Though he has had several other cars over the years. his Jaguar was always his favorite. Life got in the way for a while and the Jaguar sat in his garage (1995 to 2005). In 2005 he decided to bring her to Speedwell to get her back on the road.

What follows is a description of the car along with the details of the work Speedwell performed on this special car. The car comes with an extensive file going back to day one. starting with the original Bill of Sale. receipts describing all the work my client have ever had done on the car. including the work Speedwell performed. After the original owner drove her for a while he got to a point in his life where he needed to streamline his life and get everything in order that he could. To that end. he sold his precious E-type to a colleague who had long admired it. Speedwell remained the servicing shop though the new owner resides nearly two hours away. The distance did not deter the second owner from maintaining the car exactly as his friend had done previously. This car has a clear Georgia title in my client's name and the lucky winning bidder of this exquisite machine will be purchasing directly from the owner. thus becoming the third owner of a very well cared for. ready to drive. 45 year old V12 Jaguar E-type.

Appearance: The car was repainted about 8 years ago in it's original British Racing Green (Glasurit # JAG-602). At that time. all the glass and trim were removed from the car and the body was taken down to bare metal. Once the car returned from the paint shop. all the original trim was cleaned. polished and re-installed. All rubber gaskets and seals were replaced at this time as well. The paint is holding up well and still shines very nicely (as you can tell from the photos) but it has acquired a few small nicks from use and shows just enough patina to make her interesting. While this car would not likely win "Best of Show" at a Concours d'Elegance. she is still extremely well received anywhere she goes and makes a first class driver. This Jaguar retains its original engine. gearbox and differential.

The interior is very nice and was treated to new wool carpets about six years ago. The seats received new leather (in their original green) about 15 years ago with the cushions and diaphragms being renewed just two years ago. The rest is simply well maintained and original.

Driving experience: The driver's door opens easily. As you settle down into the soft leather of the driver's seat and take in the smell of leather. wool and history you are reminded of the olfactory pleasures only a vintage Jaguar can provide. Next. simply push up on the choke lever and turn the key. The engine comes to life immediately and idles smoothly. You let her run for a few moments. push the choke back down and listen as the engine settles into a cadenced idle. Foot on the brake. you move the gear selector down into Drive and the gearbox smoothly engages exactly as you would expect. Off the brake and onto the throttle she pulls away easily from the curb. The car's eagerness along with the pleasant resonating sound of the quad exhaust tips at the rear of the car. give you a slight hint of what she is capable of. All the gears transition smoothly as you accelerate to speed. without any fuss or strange noises. Step down on the accelerator in a deliberate fashion and moves with great alacrity. While you can feel yourself being propelled at a quickly increasing pace. there is always a reassuring refinement about it that inspires confidence and brings a smile. With grace. this car delivers whatever speed you require. whenever you want it.

The brakes operate evenly and deliberately. hauling her down from a brisk pace to fully stopped quickly and without becoming unsettled. The steering is smooth and the suspension offers up both a supple ride and decisive handling. The recent front and rear anti-sway bar upgrade from SNG Barratt really shines in this respect.

This car leaks NO oil. fuel or coolant. There is no smell of fuel or burning oil that is often associated with driving a vintage British car. just the scent of the English leather and wool carpets. Everything works on this car. The wipers function perfectly. the switches are all crisp and deliberate. All the gauges work properly and have clear lenses and faces. The Air Conditioning is very cold. The lighting works very well and the refurbished clock keeps very good time (loses about 2 minutes a week). The wiring is unmolested and original save two modifications. the electronic ignition and the driving lamps (these could easily be reversed if desired). The driving lamps are wired through two relays mounted in the left headlamp cavity. with a switch easily within the driver's reach. With the headlamps on. you can turn the aux. lighting system on. The fog lamp is on while the low beams are used while the driving lamp comes on (fog lamp goes off) when the high beams are used. The wiring for it is elegantly simple and a diagram will be provided to the winning bidder along with the other paperwork. Also. interestingly. the car still sports the pair of French Cibie headlamps that the owner had installed when new and they are in excellent condition. The original type British Leyland radio even works.

All the windows work exactly as they should. When the car was repainted. we removed the windows and thoroughly cleaned and re-lubricated all the moving parts. The windscreen is a very nice replacement (Pilkington) but the rest of the glass is all the original unmarked Triplex that came with the car. All doors open and close as they should without any undo effort.

Speedwell has cared for this car for the past 14 years and we have always enjoyed it immensely. During Speedwell's tenure with this car we have performed the following services (pdf of receipt for complete engine rebuild available upon request):

Dis-assembly and reassembly for respray.
Completely and properly rebuilt the engine.
Restored engine bay while engine out.
Jeff Schlemmer with Advanced Distributors rebuilt distributor.
Install modern electronic ignition and moved it from the engine valley to the firewall.
Replaced choke cable.
Rebuilt original dash clock. works great.
Had water pump rebuilt by XKs Unlimited.
Serviced and re-sealed the gearbox.

Rebuilt the carburetors. thoroughly cleaned the fuel system and replaced every flexible fuel hose.

Replaced all cooling hoses and heater hoses including new stainless clamps. All alloy hose flanges were reconditioned or replaced.

Removed. disassembled. rebuilt and re-installed heater box assembly (using new heater core).
Serviced A/C system (converted to R134a) and rebuilt A/C under dash unit.
Rebuilt the entire brake system (including new stainless steel pistons for the calipers. re-sleeved clutch and brake cylinders. a new booster. braided stainless brake hoses. all new or rebuilt parking brake hardware. new rear discs and new solid brake pipes).
Replaced rear sub-frame mounts with uprated units and new radius arm bushings.
Re-carpeted the car with original type wool carpets.
Installed new Falcon Stainless Steel exhaust system with OE type factory 4 tip outlet.
Cleaned and tightened nearly every electrical connector.
Had steering rack rebuilt by Coventry West and we re-installed.
Replaced upper ball joints and aligned.
Installed new horns.

Very recently:

Replaced seat diaphragms and foam.

New upgraded front and rear anti-sway bars

New seat belt webbing and restored buckles

Replaced radiator with very high quality aluminum unit (Precautionary due to age).

Remove differential assembly. reseal. install new E-brake pads. forks. etc. then re-install assembly.

Installed professionally rebuilt alternator

Here is a link to some video of the car:

VIDEO OF CAR

Here is a link to a Dropbox file so you can see a lot more pictures. including underneath:

LOTS AND LOTS MORE PICTURE

Two points I would like to make:

1) If you are thinking of restoring a scruffy E-type of your own. or one that can be bought for less money. the question that is begging to be asked is. "Why would one spend too many years and too many dollars restoring a tatty E-type when one can buy this special car right now for a smaller total investment?"

2) We have all seen beautiful E-types at car shows that you wouldn't trust to drive down to the corner store. While this car is gorgeous to look at. her real beauty comes from within. This car is utterly reliable and can be driven with confidence anywhere you wish to go. right now.

If the winning bidder is in the United States. we will be glad to meet with them to assist in loading and transferring all paperwork. Or. if you would rather fly into Atlanta to drive the car home. we can provide ground transport from the Airport to the car's location (Watkinsville. Georgia at our shop). The trip from Atlanta to Watkinsville takes about an hour and a half. The winning bidder would need to make all their own transport arrangements. That said. this car is Road Ready. meaning it can be driven anywhere. The winning bidder could fly into Atlanta from wherever they wish and simply drive the car home. We will assist in getting you from the Atlanta Airport to my client's farm in the country outside of Athens (about an hour and a half drive by car).

Speedwell is well acquainted with the procedures regarding shipping cars overseas and we will be glad to make sure the winning bidder has all the necessary  paperwork required for transferring the car in an orderly and expeditious fashion. The winning bidder will be responsible for making all of their own arrangements but we will be glad to serve as my client's agent to see to it the buyer has everything they need. Transport of the car from Speedwell in Watkinsville. Georgia to Port can be handled by Speedwell. via insured trailer. at an extra cost. The closest ports to Athens are Port Charleston in South Carolina. Port Savannah in Georgia. Port Brunswick in Georgia and Port Jacksonville in Florida. We recommend working out your shipping details prior to bidding in order to be less rushed when the time comes. This also helps eliminate any surprises.

I am certain that I have not addressed every possible question so feel free to email any inquiries you may have. Please don't contact me asking the owner to end the auction early. We consider it unsporting to do such a thing and will adhere strictly to Ebay policy. please note that we have a 100% feedback rating. We take out commitment to the Ebay community very seriously.

On May-23-17 at 07:50:56 PDT. seller added the following information:

The tires are 225/60R15 Michelin Pilots and they are in very good condition. The car drives very smoothly on them with no vibration. shake or shudder.

On May-23-17 at 08:17:59 PDT. seller added the following information:

* Anyone with a Zero (O) feedback rating who bids must contact me via Ebay or you will be blocked from bidding.  

Also published at eBay.com

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