Vehicle Description
View more pics and Bid to win this vehicle at
www.WheelerAuctionGroup.com
1953 Jaguar XK120 Roadster
One of only 2,806 open two-seaters made in 1953; one of 2,018 made
with left-hand drive. Evidence suggests less than 1,000 examples
exist today
Fully restored to its present condition
Prior local Missouri ownership for the past 40 years!
Matching numbers 3.4L DOHC straight six-cylinder engine with double
side-draft SU H6 carburetors that makes 160 hp
Four-speed manual transmission
Bright Red exterior with tan top
Biscuit interior with Connolly Leather Seats and Wilton Wool
Carpeting
Original solid wheels and rear fender skirts (spats)
Documentation includes a Jaguar Heritage Archive Certificate
Looking like it is ready to pounce even while motionless, the
Jaguar XK coupes and roadster are among the most elegant looking
cars to come out of the 1950s. MotoeXotica Classic Cars is pleased
to present this Bright Red 1953 XK120 Roadster. This example was
built on June 11, 1953 at Browns Lane, Coventry, England, and it
was shipped on June 24, 1953. This stunning cat was a recipient of
a comprehensive nut and bolt restoration, ready to take to a car
show or JCNA judging!
Mark Trimble, long-time owner of the Shepherd of the Hills in
Branson, Missouri, owned this car for 40 plus years. Trimble had
had the car stripped to bare metal and repainted in the St. Louis
during his stewardship. He sent Cox to fetch the car when it was
ready to come home. Using a half-ton pickup truck and trailer, Cox
had the Jag, minus its trim and fittings, placed on the trailer for
the ride southwest. Neil Klinefelter completed the car's
restoration once it returned to Branson. Mr. Trimble, sold the car
in 2014 to an owner in Kansas City, where a local Jaguar specialist
shop took over the maintenance duties. It's been well-maintained
and is beautifully restored. The Jaguar once again became available
due to Mr. Trabon's passing and to settle his estate.
Dressed in Bright Red, which only serves to enhance this open-top
coupe's low-slung lines, the car's paint and trim are in overall
excellent order, with only minor blemishes visible upon very close
inspection. The car's windscreen is clear and intact. Its lights,
including the large fog lights perched upon the front bumper are
haze-free and intact.
The bodywork is straight and solid, the engine bay is extremely
tidy and the bumpers fit tightly to the body. This Jaguar rolls on
wide whitewall four-ply tires, size 6.00-16 at all four corners.
Most Jags came with wire wheels and center spinners but without the
rear fender skirts or spats as they're called across the pond. This
example has solid wheels with the fender skirts, which would not
fit over wire wheel centers.
Under the bonnet is the Jaguar's matching number 3.4L twin-cam
straight six-cylinder engine. With an alloy cylinder head,
hemi-spherical combustion chambers, inclined valves and twin
side-draft SU carburetors, the engine was comparatively advanced
for a mass-produced unit of its time. The XK engine's basic design,
later modified into 3.8- and 4.2-liter versions, survived into the
late 1980s. This engine is buttoned to a four-speed manual
transmission.
Inside, the biscuit leather interior is in borderline excellent
shape. The bucket seats, swathed in rich Connolly Leather, are in
great shape and the matching Wilton Wool Carpeting is excellent
order. The four-spoke steering wheel is in fine condition while the
leather-trimmed instrument panel is in excellent order while the
inner doors are in very good order. The shift lever echoes the rest
of the interior.
The XK120 was ultimately available in three versions or body
styles, first as an open two-seater described in the US market as
the roadster; as a closed, or fixed head coup� from 1951; and
finally, as a drophead coup� (DHC) from 1953, all two-seaters and
available with left or right-hand drive.
All XK120s had independent torsion bar front suspension,
semi-elliptic leaf springs at the rear, recirculating ball
steering, telescopically adjustable steering column and all-round
12-inch drum brakes, which were prone to fade. Some cars were
fitted with Alfin (ALuminum FINned) brake drums to combat fade.
The roadster's lightweight canvas top and detachable side screens
stowed out of sight behind the seats and its barchetta-style doors
had no external handles; instead there was an interior pull-cord
which was accessible through a flap in the side screens when the
weather equipment was in place. The windscreen could be removed for
aeroscreens to be fitted. All models had removable spats ("fender
skirts" in America) covering the rear wheel arches, which enhanced
the streamlined look.
Documentation includes a Jaguar Heritage Archive Certificate.
Competition to this Jag in 1953 included Chevrolet's Corvette,
Ferrari's 212 Cabriolet and Mercedes-Benz's 300 S Convertible.
Vehicle is located in Missouri, USA. Bidder/Buyer is responsible
for pickup or shipping from this location to wherever they want it
shipped to.