2006-05-02 08:25:13 | pauls writes:

Ebay item 5/2/06
cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Jaguar-XK140-MC-OTS-Roadster-1955-Jaguar-XK140-MC-OTS-Co ...
Current bid $10,677 reserve not met 6 bids, 6 days left in auction.

Sellers description:
Rare, numbers matching, 1955 Jaguar XK140 MC OTS roadster in relatively un-molested condition. Originally, the car was Blue with a Biscuit colored interior . Currently, the car has 46,795 miles on it. This is an OTS (Open Two Seater) convertible roadster with the RARE *SE* (MC) package which includes the following options:

Wire wheels
Fog lights
Twin exhaust system
Larger 2 inch SU carburetors.
C-type heads (20 extra hp up to 210 bhp versus stock 190): The "C" type head was developed in 1953 as an offshoot of Jaguars racing program with the XK120C racing car. The exhaust valve size was increased to 1-5/8 inches and both inlet and exhaust porting was increased in size.

Here are the Vehicle ID numbers:
Chassis #: S811084
Body #: F11108
Engine #: G2192-8S
Trans#: JL27224

All of the numbers match to the numbers specified on the VIN tag.

Vehicle History:
A local gentleman who lived down the road from my store originally purchased this vehicle in California. Apparently he was an engineer who worked for McDonald Douglas of airplane fame. Around 1966-1967 he drove the car cross-country from California to Connecticut where he eventually retired. From about that time on, he used the car rarely- if ever. He came to my Foreign Car Parts store (which opened in 1972) and would buy the occasional part for the Jaguar. He died about 1990 and his sister took over the estate. She asked me if I was interested in the car. I purchased the Jaguar from her and began to collect parts to restore it. I had a few parts in my NOS inventory, but I continued collecting parts over the past decade at swap meets all across New England. Aside from the sheet metal and interior parts, I have collected quite a few of the parts to restore it. I also went through the brakes and rebuilt the drums, shoes, flex hoses, and cylinders. I filled the system with Silicone fluid. I also took off a few parts (the interior, a few firewall parts, voltage reg, and clutch pedals), and have them in storage in my shop (see photos).

In the time that I have owned the car, it has been in a climate controlled garage. I was preparing remove the engine and transmission to paint the frame, firewall, and inner engine compartment, but my son’s college education forced me to abandon my plans of restoring this beautiful and rare car. Thus, it has sat for the past 15 years in storage at my shop. Well, I’m getting older now and don’t think that I’ll have the time to restore this car, so it is now up for auction to the highest bidder.

Vehicle Condition:
Drivetrain:
As stated above, this car has the 3.4 liter motor with the optional MC (SE) package ‘C’ heads which, along with the dual exhaust and 2 inch SU carbs, provide 210 bhp. The engine turns over just fine. The engine may have been rebuilt, I have receipt from a shop that was included with the car’s paperwork, but I can’t tell if the receipt is from a quote or actual work done. The sister had told me it was rebuilt.

According to lore, the MC package came with overdrive, but this car has the original manual Non-Overdrive transmission and the numbers match. Not sure how that figures into the equation, but that’s how it is.

Brakes redone in early 1990s and work just fine. Tires hold air, but obviously will need to be replaced. The wire wheels are in good shape (little to no pitting) but are not chrome. You could easily have them chromed however given their good condition. They might need to be blasted to provide a good paintable surface.

Chassis:
I know that it may be hard to believe that a car this old from the Northeast would have such a solid chassis, but the frame on this car is impeccable. There is NO ROT on the frame (unlike a few OTS roadsters that sold recently on ebay from southern states where the frames had literally rotted in half). Clean it and paint it. The main chassis is in great shape. There is some pitting rust on the front where the radiator mounts, but that is the worst of it. There might need to be sand blasting to provide a good paintable surface.

Body:
The two front fenders, cowl, and tub are in good condition. The body will need the following:

1.) Metal repair behind vertical section the door striker plates.

2.) New battery tray or repair old one

3.) Rear trunk floor or repair section under spare tire. It is dented and cracked, but it is all there.

4.) Dent repair on passenger side door and crease in one front fender.

5.) One rear fender has a tear. Two bottom dog legs on both rear fenders are rusted (see photos)

6.) Grill and taillight chrome will need replacing.

7.) Many parts will need to be re-chromed such as the bumpers and windshield frame.

I replaced the rocker panels under the door, between the front door hinges and rear striker plate. They are welded in nicely and fit properly. Also, the door hinges have been reworked (not by me). The doors do not sag and swing and close nicely. Probably the worst of the bodywork needed will be to straighten the door and repair the rear fenders. That’s about all for the body.

I have the top frame and the side curtains and any other factory accessory from the original car. This car came with fog lights which I have, but one of the fog light lenses is broken. I have replaced it with a Lucas FlameThrower driving lens instead. You might be able to find a replacement. I also have the tool bag kit (a bit rusty but appears to be all there) and a bent jack.

Interior:
Obviously, the interior will need a complete replacement of the leather which is quite stiff. But it is the original Biscuit (optional) colored interior and it is intact and in surprisingly nice shape considering its age. But, given what I have seen sell on ebay recently, this interior could be considered cherry shape. You could easily reuse the frames without much repair, or at the very least, you would have original seats to go by when restoring the interior. The gauges are all there as are all the inner door workings and side curtain plates. The wooden floor panels are usable for templates but obviously you’ll want to replace them.

Additional Goodies included:
As stated, I’ve managed to collect a bunch of choice parts for this car, mostly NOS Lucas (AKA: "Prince of Darkness") electrical parts. I have Original NOS tail lamp lenses, Voltage Regulator, distributor cap, Vacuum advance, clutch disc, pressure plate, new rug kit complete, exhaust complete (not stainless), etc.

Bottom Line:
There were only 3350 of these OTS roadsters ever made between 1954-1957. I don’t have the production numbers for the MC model (and I don’t think that anyone else does). Of those limited MC “SE” edition roadsters, how many are this solid with matching numbers, and with the original C-type heads for greater HP? Own a true legend from Jaguar’s LeMans racing history. Obviously, this car could use a total restoration to bring it to Concours level, but the repair work necessary is not nearly as overwhelming as others that have sold on ebay recently. I’d restore it myself, but don’t have the time or energy anymore. Besides this car really deserves a ground up, Concours level restoration that I can’t provide for it at my age. So, take advantage of my loss as your gain.