Vehicle Description
ORIGINAL SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA FAMILY OWNER CAR - RECENTLY PURCHASED
FROM THE SON OF THE ORIGINAL OWNERS! West Coast Classics are proud
to present a rare and original southern California family owned and
rust free example of this coveted and highly desirable 1953 Jaguar
XK 120 SE M Coupe Left Hand Drive U.S. delivery model FHC with the
optional 'M package' Special Equipment Package 180HP matching #'s
and original 3442 cc 6 cylinder engine and which was the
beneficiary of a mechanical restoration with a rebuilt engine and
clutch etc in the mid 2000's before being stored. The car was built
on 12/5/1952 and dispatched to 'Hornburg Jaguar' of Santa Monica,
CA on 12/15/1952 in original 'Cream' exterior paint over 'Red'
leather trim and sold to its original and only southern California
family owners in 1953. We recently acquired the car from the son of
the original owner with the car sporting an excellent body with no
signs of any damage history and no rust! The car has its all
original interior which will need restoring and its older repaint
is now showing its age and the car should therefore be considered a
good running car in need of restoring. It still boasts its original
matching #'s SE engine, five steel wheels, spare wheel, roadside
jack and its original matching numbers engine as verified by the
Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust Certificate.This rare US Left Hand
drive model was exported to the U.S.A. to its original and only
southern California family owners in 1953 from whom we recently
acquired the car. The car's engine is it's factory installed inline
six cylinder engine with twin SU carburetors matched to a 4 speed
manual gearbox and the original engine was removed and fully
rebuilt and rebored with new cylinder head, pistons, rods, valves,
cam, rings, seals, head gaskets etc with no expense spared in
2004/2005 along with the clutch, brakes, master cylinder, timing
chain, upper/lower ball joints, exhaust/mufflers,
suspension/shocks, rebuilt carb etc and with service records
showing over $45K invested in the rebuild at a renown independent
Jaguar specialists of Fullerton, CA and the engine runs as smooth
as silk with the 4 speed manual transmission shifting smoothly
through the gears and the car driving exactly as it should with
only very few miles should since its mechanical restoration. The
car shows no signs of any previous accidents and has a razor
straight body with no rust although there are some very small
parking dents and imperfections. The car is presented in its
'White' color paint with a painted Red Hardtop and matching steel
wheels and its original leather seat interior has deteriorated to
the point of needing restoration and the wood will need restoring
too. The XK 120 was produced by Jaguar between 1948-54 and caused
an absolute sensation when launched and was immediately destined to
become one of the most collectible cars of all time. Its name
referred to its straight six, 3442 cc 120 mph (193 km/h) top speed
(faster with the windscreen removed!) engine which was insanely
fast for its day and made the XK120 the world's fastest standard
production car at the time of its launch and a very successful
racer which spurred Jaguar onto breaking many world speed
records.The first 242 XK 120s made had wood-framed open-top
aluminum bodies with two seats; Perceiving the design line from the
front wheels, over the hood, and to the rear was like watching a
rolling wave: smooth, calm, powerful and this design was to set the
tone for all post war sports cars and continues to influence to
this day, just look at the taper from the hood to the rear on
Jaguar's 2018 F-Type. Production switched to all-steel construction
better for making the cars in volume by 1950. It eventually came in
three versions: as an open two-seat roadster (OTS) and later, as a
fixed-head coupe (FHC) in 1951 and a drop-head coupe (DHC) in 1953.
The XK 120's are more desirable than the later-model XK 140's and
150's, especially the ones designed before 1950 because those had
aluminum skins, with racing history examples commanding many
millions of dollars, but these days any of these early XK120 models
will truly capture the imagination and investment dollars of the
worlds premier sports car enthusiasts and collectors. When the
model debuted in 1948 at the Earls Court Motor Show in London,
England it was the darling of the show and remains today as much of
a show stopper as it did then, over 73 years later! The car set
numerous and now legendary speed records and was the fastest
production car in the world in it's day and Jaguar used its engine
for decades to come. In terms of design, the two-seater roadster
with its classically simple flowing lines, slender tail and exotic
flush-sided body was a massive leap forward for sports car design
at the time and in many ways its styling remains unparalleled.
Combined with new standards in terms of performance, Jaguar had
obviously built what was destined to become this milestone and
eminently always collectible classic car.Engine # W6838-8SChassis #
S680463Body # J2467Gearbox # JL14421In summary, this original
southern California family owned matching #'s example with a
comprehensive mechanical overhaul prior to being stored some ten
years ago will make an ideal candidate for a full cosmetic
restoration by the Jaguar enthusiast.