Innholdsfortegnelse for December - January 2022 i Classic Jaguar

Happy 61st Birthday! I will confess to not being greatly attracted to the editorial trope of celebrating anniversaries, they can easily lead to an information overkill. A glance across the newsstands revealed a bewildering array of publications featuring such high profile birthdates as E-type 60. I believe even our sister Kelsey publications, ‘Fishing News Weekly’ and ‘Practical Pigs’ carried in-depth coverage of that event. To show that I refuse to be influenced by this kind of behaviour, this issue carries a range of articles paying homage to 125 years of the Daimler Car Company, or indeed, 61 years of Jaguar ownership. I have always wondered why Jaguar dropped the ‘upmarket’ Daimler brand in 2010 and what connection German Mercedes Benz owners, Daimler AG have to do with the British incarnation.…

NEW PRODUCTS LATEST ARRIVALS PRODUCT NEWS We catch up with the latest must-have products and accessories aimed at today’s classic Jaguar owner DAIMLER V8 WATER PUMPS David Manners has been the go-to supplier of Daimler V8 parts since the company’s inception. For many years they provided reconditioned water pumps on an exchange basis, but over time, the quality of the core units being returned deteriorated to the point they were no longer suitable for reliable rebuild. DMG has addressed this problem by instigating the manufacture of brand new, outright sale pumps (part number C28329N). To keep the cost of the new units to an affordable level, the pumps are supplied without a pulley. This part is usually reusable and with care, can be removed from the worn assembly and pressed…

HAVE YOUR SAY READERS’ LETTERS HAVE YOUR SAY Got something to say about anything Jaguar-related? Then we want to hear it! Send an email to cj.ed@kelsey.co.uk or write to: The Editor, Classic Jaguar, Kelsey Publishing Ltd, The Granary, Downs Court, Yalding Hill, Yalding, Maidstone, Kent, ME18 6AL RANDOM THOUGHTS (AND A QUESTION) Classic Jaguar is very fortunate to have an editor who is able to combine technical expertise with an excellent command of the English language. Furthermore, added to that is a somewhat wacky sense of humour. What more could one ask? My already high opinion of Classic Jaguar would be superlative if you avoid some of the clichés and errors that appear only too frequently in similar magazines. In particular, I would mention the following: - XJSs do not…

FROM THE CLUBHOUSE JAGUAR DRIVERS’ CLUB REVIEWING THE SEASON Against the odds, the Jaguar Drivers’ Club looks back at a surprisingly busy year WORDS: GAYNOR CAUTER PHOTOGRAPHY: JDC What was shaping up to be a frustrating year of lockdowns and restrictions has turned into one of the busiest six months in years for the Jaguar Drivers’ Club and its members. Once we were finally allowed out again, we couldn’t get our events up and running fast enough, starting with a great three-day London Classic Car Show at Syon Park in West London, where the Club staged a magnificent timeline of rare and historic E-Types. In July we were at Bicester Heritage to celebrate the iconic sports car’s 60th birthday with a magnificent showing of 1600 cars and a few weeks…

TECH TOPICS PLATING SECRETS OF: PLATING PROCESSES Some tips on what you need to know to restore small components to their former glory WORDS & PHOTOGRAPHY: RAY INGMAN In the last two issues, we exposed the secrets behind blasting processes, these result in bare metal components which will then need some form of refinishing. When undertaking a restoration project, many methods are employed to achieve the desired external visual finish, the most obvious being paintwork and chroming. But as the saying goes ‘the devil is in the detail’ – so such methods as powder coating and plating are used to restore a vehicles’ smaller components. The term plating covers a huge range of processes, the common factor being they all involve the deposition of a metallic surface covering over another…

AUTOMOBILIA DAIMLER 125 Automobilia COLLECTING DAIMLER EPHEMERA Ian Cooling reminds us that Sir William acquired more than just real estate when he bought Daimler in 1960. WORDS & IMAGES: IAN COOLING It has been a sad sight to see the way the light of Daimler, the oldest British car manufacturer, has flickered and died over recent years. There were hopes that when Sir William bought Daimler and Lanchester from BSA in 1960, this would be the beginning of a new era for the company. There is little doubt, from press releases at the time, that this was certainly in Sir William’s mind. To this end, he maintained production of the current range of Daimlers and within two years, the Daimler 2.5 V8 was launched. However, as Jaguar itself was subsumed first…

UP FRONT NEWS AND VIEWS XK8 25TH ANNIVERSARY For their September meet, the Jaguar Breakfast Club joined forces with the Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust (JDHT) to host the now annual ‘Jaguars at Gaydon’, the largest dedicated Jaguar meet to be staged at the British Motor Museum, although ‘breakfast’ came and went with the event continuing in full swing until 4pm! Over 750 Jaguars arrived to create the spectacle including an astonishing 500 XKs that created a dedicated display to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the model and demonstrate its transition to ‘Classic’ status. ‘Jaguars at Gaydon’ also welcomed all models and that’s certainly what was seen with classic and modern Jaguars in equal abundance, including fifty XJSs which formed an impressive line spanning the grass bank above the main show…

FEATURE CAR XK120 A CAR FOR ALL REASONS Road XKs are cossetted and Race XKs are trailered – Geoff Ottley’s 120 bucks the trend. WORDS: RAY INGMAN PHOTOGRAPHY: MATT RICHARDSON & RAY INGMAN If there was a prize for the longest period competing in the same Jaguar car, Dr.Geoff Ottley GP would be in hot contention for it. The only other challenger would probably be Derek Pearce with his Mk2, but most racecars have the ‘triggers broom’ factor and I suspect that a far greater percentage of RDU867 is the actual metal that left Coventry in 1951. HISTORY From the factory, the XK120 roadster’s first journey was to South Africa, but strangely the car was previously allocated with a Coventry registration. Little is known of its early history until it…

WHERE IS MY XK120? Maybe someone can help (please!) I found some old photos of my Jaguar XK120, and it is possible make out the license plate on it: LB4596 which relates to Illinois back in 1963. The car was registered in my father’s name. I contacted the secretary of state for Illinois and they found the microfiche records relating to the plate. The registration document shows the chassis number to be 674566. I would love to know if this car survived all these years as I sold it in late 1963 or 1964. If it still exists, I would love to see a recent picture of it. I have two photos I took in 1962 or 1963. Thanks in advance for any help you may be able to provide.…

FEATURE CAR DAIMLER 125 DAIMLER DROPHEAD LIVES THE HIGH LIFE DOWN UNDER The stylish good looks, sweeping lines, low slung suspension and the fact that it was designed and built in England suggests only one thing – this is a Jaguar sports car. But it isn’t – does that leave you guessing? WORDS: RICHARD HOLDSWORTH PHOTOGRAPHY: RICHARD HOLDSWORTH, PETER HOLLAND Peter Holland’s Daimler ‘New Drophead’ Coupe graces the streets of Adelaide the most English of Australian cities, and wherever we go, the car turns heads. One observer thought it must owe its heritage to an Italian design house. Another would risk his wage on the fact that it would be a forerunner of the XK series. But Peter and his wife Ros are proud of the fact that this is…

WORKSHOP V12 IGNITION V12 IGNITION SYSTEM CONVERSIONS Jaguar’s early ‘pre HE’ V12s were let down by their ignition systems – we investigate the cure WORDS & PHOTOGRAPHY: RAY INGMAN The acknowledged weak point of all V12 pre-HE models, both carburettor and fuel injected, has been the Lucas Opus electronic ignition system. So much so, the epithet ‘Opless was coined! The major issue was (and still is) reliability, but added to that, an intrinsic lack of power in the form of ‘spark energy’ is another shortcoming. Many will be familiar with the way early cars seem to struggle into life, with various cylinders taking their time to join the party – compared with the later cars’ propensity to burst instantaneously onto ‘all 12’. HISTORY In the late 1960’s, Lucas developed its…

MARQUE HISTORY LIGHTWEIGHT E-TYPE BEHIND THE CLOSED DOORS Only 12 ‘Lightweight’ E-types were built by Jaguar, but their fame and appeal has spread worldwide. Former Competitions Department engineer Peter Wilson tells the inside story. WORDS: PETER WILSON IMAGES: AUTHOR'S COLLECTION AND PAUL SKILLETER ARCHIVES Strictly No Admittance! Those three words on the notice fixed to the door of ‘Department 21’ Jaguar’s Competition Department, meant exactly what they said. Behind that closely guarded door in the Browns Lane plant was my place of work between 1961 and 1966, so let me take you back to those far off days which I knew so well. Then, with the help of my surviving former colleagues and grateful access to the magnificent archives of the Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust, I will describe how the…

STORYLINE HARRY WESLAKE HARRY WESLAKE AND THE SOUTH AMERICAN QUADRUPED Harry Weslake is an engine-tuning legend. His work with that well-known car builder in Cricklewood produced a total of five Le Mans wins for them between 1924 and 1930. William Lyons needed extra engine power and a name for the new 1935 SS Saloon. Weslake and the Foleshill body-shop came up with their own ideas… WORDS: LINDSAY ROSS LINE DRAWINGS: ENAR SAYATOVA The first thing that William Lyons did on the day in 1934 that William Walmsley told him he was resigning from the business, was to sit down and write a plan. He was just 33, and soon to be Chairman and Managing Director of a publicly listed company. He badly needed his own plan. The sidecars would carry…

ON TRACK JEC ON TRACK A pictorial view of Jaguars in competition, this time simply featuring the incomparable Goodwood Revival Meeting – 17th-19th September PHOTOGRAPHY: ROGER, CHRIS & NICK GAGE In September, there really was only one place to visit in order to witness an amazing array of Jaguars in action – If this montage leaves you wanting more, visit: www.rogergage.myportfolio.com where these images and many more can be viewed. In the next issue we will be summarising the final events of the JEC and JDC seasons. Results and timing: www.tsl-timing.com Full reports, calendars and regulations: www.jec.org.uk/racing www.jaguardriver.co.uk…

ANOTHER CON I received my latest edition of your magazine yesterday with great expectation, only to be very disappointed. Where was the Jaguar E-type 60th anniversary celebration at Shelsley Walsh? What an event, not just fabulous cars – the personalities, the trade stands, fantastic exhibition of British workmanship. I personally was proud to have worked on some of those exhibits. Meeting Peter Sutcliffe, who had signed a Jaguar picture for me about twenty years ago was a personal highlight. A picture I had purchased at the Donington Park E-type 40th birthday celebration! The ‘E-type Reimagined’ car on page 7 (on display at Shelsley) was not quite true to the spirit of originality, but it was good to see the ‘EGAL’ returned to home shores. On a more sarcastic note, had…

MARQUE HISTORY COMPACT SALOONS COMPACT CREATIONS From 1955 through to the end of the ’60s, an array of compact Jaguar saloons achieved major sales success for the company, a line-up that Paul Guinness pays tribute to here WORDS: PAUL GUINNESS PHOTOGRAPHY: KELSEY ARCHIVE Compact sporting saloons with a prestigious badge are nothing new. BMW has made the most of this sector since the 1970s, with different generations of 3-Series models being idolised over the last five decades, and it’s a market in which other German marques also do well. Interestingly though, compact sporting saloons played an important role in the Jaguar story much earlier, with a succession of different models to boost the company’s sales, appealing to those buyers who craved both practicality and a rewarding driving experience. The process…

JAGUAR HISTORY MOTORBIKE PROJECT WHAT IF? Rudyard Kipling certainly posed a few questions in his poem, If - If I could dream, it might well have been for a Jaguar motorbike. Far-fetched? Maybe not, in fact during the war years, it very nearly happened. WORDS: JIM PATTEN IMAGES: PAUL SKILLETER ARCHIVE. CONCEPT SKETCHES: MIKE HARBAR While Paul Skilleter was researching the biography of Sir William Lyons book, he turned up some very interesting documentation, which included a contract between Lyons and motorbike designer Edward Turner. Each had signed to produce a Jaguar motorcycle. EDWARD TURNER Born in London on January 24, 1901 Turner started his career with the Merchant Navy and even considered going on the stage. Many reckon that with his theatrical antics he would have been well suited.…

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ARCHIVE WISH YOU WERE THERE? WISH YOU WERE THERE? This is the place where you can share mementos of your significant Jaguar event, personality or memory from the past. Photograph or scan them, add a brief description then email them to cj.ed@kelsey.co.uk. This issue, a reader and more of our contributors share their special memories with us. Or send by post to: The Editor, Classic Jaguar, Kelsey Publishing Ltd, The Granary, Downs Court, Yalding Hill, Yalding, Maidstone, Kent, ME18 6AL Ian Cooling Driving along a country section of the A20 back in the late 1970s, I spotted a Police car closing on me. Sure enough, the blue light went on and I was pulled over. Worryingly, both officers got out. One of them said they had noticed my numberplate -…