1967 Jaguar E-Type 4.2
- Full restoration carried out between 2017-20
- Bodyshell restored by Martin Robey Engineering
- Delivery mileage since rebuild
- Heritage Certificate and matching numbers
YEAR | 1967 |
MAKE | Jaguar |
PRICE | £120,000 |
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION
The Series 1 4.2 is regarded by many as being one of the most desirable of all Jaguar E-types, retaining the style of the early cars but featuring a number of significant improvements.
The beautiful example being offered for sale here has completed only a handful of miles since a complete restoration. Chassis number 1E 14549 was originally a left-hand drive car that was dispatched from the factory to Jaguar Cars New York on 24 February 1967. Finished in Willow Green with a black interior, it was then delivered to its first owner – a William H Wilson.
During the 1980s and 1990s, the E-type was owned by an enthusiast in Alameda, California, but by the time it was exported back to the UK in 2015 via a Florida-based specialist, it was in need of a total rebuild.
The work was completed with no expense being spared. Renowned specialist Martin Robey carried out a full restoration on the Jaguar’s bodywork, while new engine side-frames and the ‘picture frame’ crossmember were also fitted–plus reinforced inner sills.
The car was converted to right-hand drive, the engine, suspension and braking system were all rebuilt, the interior was retrimmed in its original colour, and the bodywork was treated to a painstaking eight-layer paint process during which it was refinished in black.
The total cost of the restoration was more than £100,000, and the E-type was first registered in the UK in March 2020. It retains its matching-numbers engine (7E 11905-9) and is supplied with an extensive file of invoices and photographs that document the rebuild.
Few cars from any era can match the style of a Series 1 E-type Roadster, and this example remains in exceptional condition following its return to the road. It’s a beautiful, fast and extremely usable choice of open-top sports car – just as it was during the 1960s.
MODEL HISTORY
Three years after the E-type’s sensational launch at the 1961 Geneva Motor Show, Jaguar introduced the first significant change to its flagship sports car when the 3.8-litre, twin-overhead-camshaft, straight-six engine was replaced with an updated 4.2-litre version of the same unit.
Also developed for use in the Mark X saloon, the bigger engine provided a boost in torque – up from 261 to 283lb ft – and retained the triple-carburettor set-up of its predecessor. The old Moss gearbox was replaced by a new all-synchromesh, four-speed Jaguar gearbox, and more comfortable seats were installed, plus improved electrics and a new brake servo.
Elsewhere, the basic layout was retained. With its monocoque centre section and a subframe to carry the engine and front suspension, the E-type owed much to the legendary D-type sports-racer of the previous decade. Independent rear suspension was employed, and disc brakes were fitted all round. Two body styles were initially offered – a roadster and a fixed-head coupé – and a 2+2 model was added to the range in 1966.
When Motor magazine tested a 4.2 E-type, it said that the new model ‘creates its own unique position among the world’s most desirable cars with a combination of performance, handling, looks and refinement that is still unequalled at the price’. The acceleration, in particular, caught their attention, especially ‘the tremendous punch in second gear which would fling the car past slower vehicles’.
Demanding motorists such as Motor Sport magazine’s Denis Jenkinson considered the 4.2 to be a considerable improvement over the earlier 3.8, and that was backed up by ever-increasing sales in vital export markets such as the US. The Series 1 4.2 remained in production until 1968, with Jenkinson’s editor Bill Boddy concluding that it was ‘very near perfection’.