2014-04-24 07:43:43 | Andy writes:

This is actually 875726. I have 875722 in the UK awaiting restoration, and I can add all details when this one is edited.

2024-06-15 11:53:55 | pauls writes:

Car now offered at:

www.carandclassic.com/auctions/1961-jaguar-e-type-series-1-38-ots-flat-floor-gLe ...

Seller's description:

1961 Jaguar E-Type

Colour Dark green

Odometer 14,931 Miles

Engine size 3800

Auction DetailsSeller Type Private

Town Templecombe

Location Somerset

Country United Kingdom

Very early LHD OTS and a genuine flat floor car

Fully restored with recent £25,000 of mechanical and body work 

Original Opalescent Green metallic over Cinnamon leather

Retains its early flat floor features

Rare, desirable and beautifully finished E-Type

The History and Paperwork

Acquired by the seller in 2004 from Illinois

Various Oregon Certificate of Title and Registration documents 

Importation documents confirming correct and legal arrival in UK 

Chassis number 875722

One registered keeper in the UK since first registration in June 2019 

Original tool kit, jack and hammer included 

Body, chassis and cylinder head are matching numbers according to JDHT certificate

Speedometer replaced in 1966 

Vendor believes that the displayed 14,932 miles is in fact 114,932 miles 

E-Type enthusiast keeper who is only selling due to mobility issues

Restored between 2016 and 2019 by owner with professional repaint and engine rebuild

Invoices for over £25,000 covering the respray and engine rebuild 

Further invoices documenting parts and other maintenance work shown in photos 

We are told that the bonnet is original 

Fitted with replacement engine block from a pre-November 1961 E-Type with scroll type main oil seal 

Matching hard top available by separate negotiation 

Factory maintenance and servicing handbook 

Factory specification recorded on Jaguar Daimler Heritage Certificate number:

Opalescent Dark Green 

Car 722 of the first LHD OTS examples 

Built on 6th October 1961 

LHD car despatched to USA on 28th October 1961 

Retains the following flat floor features according to seller: 

Flat front floor pans

Welded bonnet louvre panels 

Straight rear bulkhead behind the seat

Double boot lid hinges because the singles were very weak 

Slightly different profile to bonnet power bulge

Bonnet inner ducting is spot welded to centre panel rather than bonded

Early bonnet support frame with stud hinge pivots rather than removable bolts

Bonnet ‘bump stops’ on bulkhead like the earlier outside lock cars

Mounting points for the outside lock catches but later internal lock flat floor car

Door tops are separate spot welded panels 

Early steering wheel 

Thin dash top 

Moulded fibreglass glove box 

Early A post top chrome trims with rubber pads

Early dash grab handle without chrome mountings 

No chrome moulding between lower A post trim and dash 

Large diameter hollow rear driveshafts

Early three piece throttle linkage

Smooth plenum chamber on air filter

Round hydraulic fluid reservoirs

Boot seal attached to underside of the boot lid 

Short exhaust tail pipes

Round brake and clutch bottles

Interior has early rear view mirror rod, early aluminium trim patterns and early type glove box lid

Original bucket seats

No sun visors

Aluminium floor-hinged accelerator with no rubber trim

The success of the E-Type caught Jaguar unawares. This was a car designed for low volume, crafted construction. Demand led to modification and simplification to speed up production. 

All of which makes the early ‘flat floor’ cars very rare. Even amongst this rarified group, changes were underway, which means that the earlier the car, the closer it is to the original ‘pure’ specification. 

This car was the 722nd LHD OTS built so retains many of the original features. These are listed above. It was originally supplied new to the USA where it spent much of its life in Oregon.

The current keeper repatriated it in 2004, undertaking restoration work over the next years culminating in a £25,000 professional respray in Opalescent Dark Green and an engine rebuild. He is an enthusiast so was careful to retain or replicate the car’s original flat floor features. 

The colour is factory correct and the retrimmed Cinnamon leather cabin close to the original beige trim. The body, chassis, bonnet and cylinder head are also original. The engine block has been replaced with a correct pre-November 1961 E-Type unit and the Moss gearbox is also a rebuilt replacement item. 

The car is now only for sale because of the keeper’s mobility. 

The Condition 

Factory correct Opalescent Dark Green metallic paintwork in very good condition

Professionally resprayed costing over £19,000 in 2019 with little subsequent use 

Bodywork presents very well with excellent panel fit and finish and original bonnet 

Retains its original flat floor features which are detailed above 

Modified to European specification lights 

New Beige fabric roof in very good condition with matching new tonneau 

Buyers should anticipate some minor marks or aging due to use

Chrome wire wheels in good condition with vintage specification tyres of correct profile 

Underside in very good order following restoration

Wooden cross member fitted to front of car to prevent jack damage 

Retrimmed Cinnamon leather interior in superb condition 

Cabin retains its flat floor features which are detailed above 

Such is the trainspotting, detail appeal of this flat floor E-Type that it can be easy to miss the elephant in the room: it looks fantastic. Finished in factory correct Opalescent Dark Green - arguably one of the best colours for these cars - it looks resplendent. That is due to a combination of the seller’s own restoration work and a high end £19,000 respray in 2019. 

Inside the appeal continues with a smart Cinnamon leather interior in very good order. The car appears to have been barely used since the work was completed. 

But lets return to those details. Armed with the checklist above and the photographs, buyers can tick off all the flat floor features that this car retains inside. It is extensive. Very original and in superb condition, this car is a great example of one of classic motoring’s favourite models. 

The Mechanics 

Rebuilt 3.8litre XK engine with triple carburettors

Engine block from correct pre-November ‘61 E-Type with original cylinder head

Replacement 4spd ‘Moss’ gearbox rebuilt by specialist 

Reported to hold very good oil pressure 

Quiet engine with no knocks and no transmission whines according to seller

Upgraded three-row aluminium radiator with multi-blade fan 

High torque starter motor 

Well maintained but sparingly used since restoration 

Said to drive very well with no reported running or driving issues 

Tempting as it surely is to simply stand and admire this E-Type, key to the appeal of these early cars - and later ones too, of course - is how they drive. The smaller 3.8litre XK engine is said to be sweeter-revving than later capacities. This car’s motor has been comprehensively rebuilt - there are invoices dated 2019 in the history file - and the car runs a pre-November 1961 E-Type engine block from a different car with the original cylinder head. It retains a Moss box, which has been professionally rebuilt but is not original. 

The knowledgeable seller has introduced some useful upgrades to the cooling system as well as a high-torque starter. The car is said to run very well with no untoward sounds and good oil pressure.