The 'E' Type Forum

Hi,

Apologies for the lengthy introduction & as per the below Classic & Sportscar article my name is Dave & I'm based in Bristol UK, I am not sure how my Series 3 2+2 car will be received by the 'established' community as I have received lots of very different responses from 'wonderful' to 'it's a disgrace' so I've so far chosen not to join any E Type Forums so here goes.

This car has allowed me to meet some truly inspirational people such as Petronella Payne (June 2012) & Norman Dewis (June 2012) as it won the 'Wooden Spoon Award' at the 2012 Jaguar Day at Prescott UK which Norman presented to me.

As per my introduction elsewhere I am keen to assist other members wherever possible with my personal experiences as I have undertaken many of the common upgrades myself since the car 'found me' on Friday 13th 2012 including fitting a 5 Speed XJS Getrag Manual Gearbox, fitting a 2.88 XJS HE Differential, fitting EFi to the original E-Type Engine, fitting an O/D Jaguar Gearbox (as more original) & now temporarily fitting a late XJS 5.3 HE Engine to keep the car on the road whilst I work on the original engine.

As per the below published way back in March 2012 the Series 3 2+2 found me entirely by accident & was a true Barn Find having been unused since March 1987 (25 years unused). The car was bought with only a cursory look & was the only one I saw as time was against me however once it was home I realised how lucky I was.

The Heritage Certificate identified the original owner as Victor Gauntlett (who later became Chairman of Aston Martin) as his Company Car when he owned PACE Petroleum in the 70's & was originally Azure Blue with Biscuit Interior but was changed to Red with Red Interior circa 1985, just before being taken off the road. There is no blue paint on the Bonnet or either of the doors so I assume these were changed when the car was repainted so there is absolutely no rust in any of these area's.

I originally intended to restore the car but it was so rust free & mechanically complete I decided to try & use it as it was pending more time to restore it properly however it desperately needs a respray as can be seen from the photo's.

The car was collected Saturday 14.01.12, running (roughly) by Wednesday 18.01.12, Presented for MOT in April 2012, on the road by May 2012 & in Le Mans for the Classic in July 2012, it has since then been on the road continually & has been to the Italian Lakes, Monaco, Switzerland, climbed the Stelvio Pass & in 2016 undertook a week long 2500mile road trip from UK to Le Mans Classic 2016 via Gibraltar without a single mechanical issue despite the 40 degree ambient heat.

I will let the pictures explain some more, apologies if they offend anyone:-

As found Jan 2012:-


Classic & Sportscar Article March 2012:-


Unrestored Exterior June 2012:-




Unrestored Interior June 2012:-





Framehead Removed prior to XJS HE Engine Install May 2016-


XJS 5.3 HE Engine Installed May 2016:-


Gibraltar Roadtrip July 2016:-


Cheers,

Dave

I recall seeing this car for the first time at Prescott in 2012, and again (I think) the following year. I think it is a fantastic car as it is. It always made me smile when I saw it. If it was mine I'd keep the ratty bonnet and flakey paint, but I'd plaster everywhere else with waxoyl to keep the rot at bay.

Hi Chris,

Many thanks for the prompt & positive reply, I was genuinely concerned as I know some have a very different & perfectly understandable view regarding unrestored cars however I simply don't have the time to restore it at present & the kids genuinely enjoy using it without me having to shout at them every time they go near it.

I consider it a rolling Preservation rather than Restoration & one thing for sure is it is certainly a car people are likely to remember if they ever see it & underneath it is a very good car that I keep regularly covered in 'Duck Oil' to prevent further corrosion.

It always makes me smile to see the look on the kids faces when they see the working 8 Track Technology in this modern Smart Phone age.

Depending on dates I hope to be at Prescott this year so maybe see you there I hope.

Cheers,

Dave

I think you'll receive nothing but respect on this forum, Dave. You've brought a dead E type back to life and now you're using it properly. As long as it's sound structurally and mechanically, as it obviously is, I wouldn't touch it either. It's an honest working car with character and history and will always attract more attention than yet another concours restoration which has lost all that.

I think it's brilliant, Dave. It's always nice to see a beautifully restored car, but at the same time there's a certain character to a car like yours. It tells a story, and is still as much an E-Type as anyone else's out there. Please continue to travel with the car and keep us up-to-date.

Out of curiosity, did you repaint the under bonnet Azure Blue because you intend on respraying the rest of the car that colour or because you are again retaining the history of the car?

Best wishes

Simon

Hi Simon,

Thanks for the positive comments & well spotted regarding the under bonnet repaint.

To be honest I'm not really sure of the long term colour as converting it back to Azure Blue would require a replacement interior as to my knowledge Jaguar never built a Red car with Red Interior so this was probably something converted in the 80's to the owners personal preference?

As you can hopefully see from the below when the colour was changed in 1985 the frame-head was crudely hand painted red (where it was accessible & could be seen) & the remainder was left blue, the bulkhead was also covered in under-seal to save the effort of a repaint.

As I didn't know the paint code of the current Red (guessing it not to be a Jaguar Colour) I chose to use the original Jaguar Azure Blue as at least I have a reference & it allowed me to remove the under-seal & the reality is when I do repaint the car it will probably be a full strip & repaint anyway.

Whilst not the original aim in addition I do like the surprise caused when the perception of a 'rough car' is replaced by the reality of a mechanically good, leak free, reliable mechanical vehicle.

Frame-head when engine removed, Jan 2016 (note blue where engine prevented paintbrush access):-


Frame-head when under-seal removed, Feb 2016:-


After DIY repaint (blue in 2k; black hand paint), April 2016:-


Cheers,

Dave

Hi from Seville,
Congratulations,
first to have had the great luck to find such an unique piece
and second for the idea, to let her show the wear of 43 years of life and driving and not to convert her in a concourse Barbie.
I found my beauty 2013 in the USA and worked only in tecnical aspects like brakes, radiator, new tyres and such things. I made the aircon work, because it is a must here in Spain, but did not touch Paint with scratches and bumps.
I think, a 45 Years old Beauty has the right to show signs of life.
I wish you a long, nice and satisfying relationship.
Regards
Helge