Jaguar XK120 DHC
The present owner went all the way to Sweden to get this beautiful example.
If I was asked to think about a British car manufacturer that epitomises style, speed and engineering prowess, I’d immediately think of Jaguar. Particularly in the early postwar years and through the 1950s as this was when Jaguar’s talented engineers had penned the remarkable XK straight six engine range and fitted it into incredibly beautiful cars of the time. Beautiful cars like this XK120, a car that does exactly what it says on the tin – it was called the XK120 simply because it houses a 3.4 XK engine and is capable of reaching 120mph.
However, it’s not just about the speed, because this is the marriage of a famously wellengineered power plant with the stunning grace of one of this country’s most beautiful two seater sports cars. You may think that I sound a bit biased here and figure that I must own one. Unfortunately not, and as much as I’d love to, I'm forced to revere them from afar. That is, of course, unless I am given the chance to get up close to one so I can share the experience in a magazine. Kind of like now, in fact...
This particular XK120 is owned by a very lucky chap called John Moulds, someone who adores a bit of classic British motoring and who has a very definite style preference because he also owns a delightful Triumph Roadster from the late 1940s, which I have also had the pleasure of photographing. However, we are here today for the Jaguar.
John had found this one for sale on the internet in 2015. And you know how cars on the internet always seem to be located at the other end of the country? Well, in this case the right hand drive version was even further away, way over in Sweden in fact. John got in touch with the owner and had a chat, but soon learnt that he wouldn’t consider selling unless the car had been viewed. So John and a mate found themselves winging over to Sweden for a closer look.
The then owner, Christer Jernkrrok, very generously met them at Stockholm Airport, took them to see the car and wined and dined them. The red carpet treatment must have paid off because John bought the car, but not without a bit of a hiccup – it was a Bank Holiday
in Sweden and so the money wouldn’t transfer until after the boys had got back home. Christer must have had an incredibly trusting nature or John an extremely honest face because Christer let them drive away before the funds had cleared. I’m not sure I would have done that, but then again maybe I just have a more suspicious nature!
The return trip home was not entirely without incident, even though the car was in very good order and still looking great after its last restoration back in 2007. The problem was that it had been garaged for the winter and was now pulling first to the left and then to the right under braking. 'It also stuttered to a stop at least ten times due to a temperamental fuel pump,' John admits. 'The strange thing is that we kept looking for a different cause each time it stopped instead of just giving the pump a whack with a hammer straight away. That could have saved hours.'
Despite these hiccups, two days and 2000 miles later the car was home. At that last full restoration in Sweden in 2007, the car had been finished in
Jaguar 735 Green Metallic, just as you see it now, except that wasn’t the original colour when new. The first owners were Cinque Ports Aviation Ltd, who were owners of Cinque Ports Flying Club at Lympne Airfield in Kent, (who also incidentally were part of the group that ran Brooklands after the war). Quite a prestigious and historic start for our XK. Anyway, it duly arrived as one of the last XK120 DHCs (Drop Head Coupés) in early 1954 finished in French Grey with a red leather interior.
1967 saw the arrival of another owner and another colour, as a Mr D. J.R. Ellis of Devon bought it and had it painted dark blue. By 1976 he'd had the car restored and put it up for sale, but by this time the colour was Old English White!
An advert from 1977 shows the finished car up for sale at a mere £3500, a price low enough to entice the next owner, a French chef by the name of Bertrand Wilmart. Bertrand had it re-registered to a Swedish plate and kept the car for some considerable time, apparently travelling between Sweden and France regularly. The car finally ended up in
If this car looks sleek and graceful today, imagine what a sensation it caused when introduced in 1948, a time when most manufacturers were still churning out lightly warmed-over prewar motors.
WORDS AND PICTURES: ANDY STARKEY
Sweden permanently in the hands of Christer Jernkrrok, who undertook another full restoration of it between 2007 and 2008.
I have waxed lyrical about this car, but it’s not without good cause so if you don’t mind, I’m going to remind you all how great these cars and that XK engine truly are with a bit of a history lesson. You at the back, sit still and pay attention!
I’ve already extolled the virtues of the XK engine, but it is worth noting that the same design in various capacities was used extensively throughout the Jaguar range right up until 1992. And of course you also need to remember that Chairman William Lyons was very much attuned to racing, just as much as he was with the luxury market, and the XK120 had racing at its heart. You only have to look at those slinky smooth lines down the flanks to see that speed is built into its DNA. In fact, you can virtually see the leaping Jaguar mascot penned into those lines.
Many records, accolades and wins for Jaguar were to come with the XK120, such as a 132.5mph Flying Mile in 1949 during a demonstration to the press of a production car on a high speed autoroute in Belgium using only the second production car. Then, a year later and partnered by Stirling Moss, Leslie Johnson – who was famous for his associations and record attempts with Jaguar – drove another production car at an average of just over 107mph for 24 hours. After yet another feat of driving the same car at nearly 132mph for a solid hour in 1951, Johnson was heard to say: 'I could’ve gone on for a week.'
This off the cuff remark led to the most incredible feat of all when he, along with Stirling
Moss, Bert Hadley and Jack Fairman, drove an XK120 fixed head coupé for seven days and seven nights at an average speed of just over 100mph on the banked oval at Montlhery near Paris in 1952. That is a feat you just can’t comprehend when you consider the tyre technology of the time. It certainly makes me shiver at the thought, especially when you
realise that Johnson took on the Herculean task of driving a nine hour stint on his own when the car broke a spring and he was not prepared to risk the lives of the other drivers until it could be fixed. They were a different breed, you could say.
Race and rally wins and high placings throughout the same time period as the record attempts were also pretty prevalent. There were assaults too on events like the Silverstone Production Race, the Tourist Trophy, Tulip Rally, Alpine Rally, Nascar in America and of course Le Mans, world events that proved beyond any reasonable doubt the superb quality and performance of the Jaguar XK120.
Speaking of successes in the US with Nascar, the XK did particularly well in the American market too. In reality, far more XK120s were built for export than for the home market with only just over 1600 cars built RHD out of the 12,000 made. Just like the Beatles, being a hit in America was very important indeed, and this was helped in no small way by some pretty famous people opting to be seen in the very British sports car. Humphrey Bogart, Gary Cooper, Tyrone Power and
Gone with the Wind star Clark Gable all owned Jaguar XKs. Gable may not have given a damn about Scarlett O’Hara, but he certainly cared about what he drove.
Enough of the generic fame and history of this great car though, I think we should turn our attention back to John’s trusty steed. Naturally with all the major restoration work having been done some years before, the car was sound and apart from sorting out the problems encountered on the trip home after buying it, all John and his wife Mandy needed to do was enjoy their new purchase. And enjoy the car they did, but not without making it just a little bit more user friendly for the congested roads of today.
'After I had sorted out the reliability issues with an electronic fuel pump,' John tells me, 'I decided to improve the drivability by installing electronic ignition and fit a set of disc brakes up front, along with replacing the dynamo with a suitable looking alternator.'
All sensible things I guess, but the purists out there may have something to say about fitting disc brakes. Mind you, there’s no way of telling that the
conversion has been made because the original single piece wheels hide them from view. There's more to come, though!
'The one thing I’ve had fitted that really transformed the car was powered steering,' John continues. 'I’m not built like a racing driver, which means that the steering wheel is rather close and because the wheel is large and the steering is heavy to start with, I found it uncomfortable and hard work to manoeuvre. Powered steering was the only way forward for me, so I have had installed an EZ Power Steering system which attaches to the steering column behind the dashboard.'
I’ve seen these clever electric power steering conversions before and can assure purists that it is completely hidden and doesn’t affect the characteristics of the car other than providing the extra assistance. I’m always an advocate of anything that makes living with a classic that bit easier, more enjoyable and above all safer.
The solid steel wheels mentioned earlier were standard fitment to these cars rather than wire wheels often seen on sports cars of the era. This is because of the spats fitted over the rear wheels which not only helped with the aerodynamics of the car, but helped complete that sleek look. The fitment of these spats meant that there was no room for the knock- off centres of wire wheels. Although sometimes these extra panels could pop off when least expecting it, as John tells me. 'I was tearing around the country roads of Dartmoor in the Jag when I hit a dip in the road and heard a loud clang from the back, only to see the rear spat cart wheeling down the road in my mirror,' he relates. 'I stopped and picked it up, then carried on with my journey. I did another 250 miles before returning home, only to find that I had snapped the chassis near the spring hanger. Cheshire Accident Repair did a great job of cutting out the damage and realigned the slightly twisted chassis.'
This car may be one of the last 120s built and a rare one at that as only 295 RHD Drophead Coupés were made, but that doesn't mean it gets mollycoddled. John and Mandy enjoy their lovely Jaguar whenever they can, going on touring holidays all over Europe as well as taking in as many classic shows as they can in the summer months. If you get to see the charming couple and their beloved Jag at a show, stop and have a chat. You will have their adventures regaled to you with exuberant enthusiasm, as well as probably getting a nice glass of red pushed into your hand while looking around this simply delightful piece of Jaguar history.