1953 Jaguar XK120 SE M FHC Coupe Barn Find

[alsancle]

I've been around these cars my entire life.   We have had a 140MC since I was a little boy.    But I have never seen a two tone FHC before and I really really like this car for some reason.   The Red on White changes the look of the roof line.  

 

https://www.ebay.com/itm/384519557112

 

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 # W6838-8S
Chassis # S680463
Body # J2467
Gearbox # JL14421

 

[TAKerry]

Beautiful lines, I really like these cars. I particularly like the simple look of this one and the 2 tone paint. 

[supercub]

To me, this would be the keeper out of the collection shown.

[Bloo]

You might want to see if you can fit in first. I had an opportunity to buy a rough XK120 coupe back in the 90s, and I literally could not drive it. I lost interest very quickly when I figured that out. I am 6'3". Pretty surprising for an English car.

[supercub]

5'6" 160lb hopefully I should be able to fit inside. I almost brought an MG Midget. Had the seat all of the way back and still not enough room to move my arm to shift it.

[alsancle]

My 6-1 brother can barely drive our 140 roadster.  I think six even is probably max for comfort.

[Bloo]

29 minutes ago, alsancle said:

My 6-1 brother can barely drive our 140 roadster.  I think six even is probably max for comfort.

 

For context, I can drive MG Midgets, Saab Sonnets (with the pedals spread a little), Austin Minis, Fiat 600s, Honda AZ600/AN600s, and some versions of the Fiat X1/9. I have a Miata that I drive a lot.

 

That XK120 coupe was a complete non starter. The floor is too close The steering wheel is huge and almost perpendicular to the ground, blocking any place your legs might like to live. I don't mean it is uncomfortable, I mean they literally wont fit. It is way tighter than an XK140 roadster.

 

34 minutes ago, supercub said:

5'6" 160lb hopefully I should be able to fit inside.

 

At 5'6" I don't think you will have any trouble.

 

 

[supercub]

The only trouble I have with this car is I dont have $60k.

[Steve_Mack_CT]

Interesting.  Once inside, the deep footwells on an MGT series can accomodate really tall drivers.

[alsancle]

On 11/27/2021 at 7:47 PM, Bloo said:

 

For context, I can drive MG Midgets, Saab Sonnets (with the pedals spread a little), Austin Minis, Fiat 600s, Honda AZ600/AN600s, and some versions of the Fiat X1/9. I have a Miata that I drive a lot.

 

That XK120 coupe was a complete non starter. The floor is too close The steering wheel is huge and almost perpendicular to the ground, blocking any place your legs might like to live. I don't mean it is uncomfortable, I mean they literally wont fit. It is way tighter than an XK140 roadster.

 

 

At 5'6" I don't think you will have any trouble.

 

 

 

Because you mentioned it I'm going to post a Saab Sonnet for sale.

[JamesR]

The XK120 was the first foreign car I fell in love with. It was love from afar, of course...I could never afford one (either then or now.)

 

120 mph was really movin' back in '53! Still is, in fact. Beautiful car.

[Steve_Mack_CT]

The body is back on a freshly painted chassis guys.  I would imagine enough left to keep one busy a while, but look at comps some of the other big project dealers offer frome time to time.

 

https://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/dealer/jaguar/xk120/2412643.html