News : CMC to restore ‘barn find’ flat-floor E-type

E-Type Chassis No 60 at CMC - 1

A 1961 Jaguar E-type ‘Flat Floor’ roadster which has lain dormant in a garage for more than 30 years is to be restored by Classic Motor Cars Limited (CMC) of Bridgnorth. This car was the 60th to leave the production line and is one of the earliest 3.8-litre right hand drive E-types left.

The car, which was unrestored and has 65,000 miles on the clock, is thought to be one of the most original examples of its kind left. These early E-types were labelled ‘flat floor’ due to the lack of a dropped floor area that increased the leg room and was added in subsequent cars. It was expected to make £20,000-30,000 at Bonhams’ RAF Museum sale on 29 April, but sold instead for £110,000 – more than three times its highest pre-sale estimate.

Nick Goldthorp, Managing Director of CMC, said: ‘Chassis number 60 will be undergoing a full nut-and-bolt CMC restoration. We will restore every detail of the car to bring it back to the original specification. Once finished, it will be just as it left the factory.’

He added: ‘The amazing about this E-type is that every original part is there, although in a very rusty and corroded condition.’ CMC is famous for having restored some of the most historic E-types, including Lofty England’s Chassis number 4, the Lindner-Nocker Lightweight and 1VHP, the first RHD Coupe off the production line.

More at CMC’s website.

E-Type Chassis No 60 at CMC - 2

Keith Adams

15 Comments

  1. Splendind project but 110 000 in that state is …..a bit too much (nobody see a crises)….is still a total restoration where every -EVERY- screw and bolt must be taken off, all the gaskets and rubbers replied, a body respray and a total internal and roof restoration and all the chromes…..i think that a lot of money have to be put into…….buts a beauty

  2. I really cannot imagine what the buyer was thinking of, because restoration destroys the originality , and there are no other unique features of this car which give it added value, since outside bonnet lock cars are still around in reasonable numbers, although of course the majority are left hand drive cars . It is a very strange phenomenon which one sees time and again at auctions, where absolute heaps ( and this is one such ) go for a great deal more money than nicely turned out cars

  3. I do not believe for a minute that restoration destroys the originality.

    Many old cars, in racking up the miles (and 65,000 miles in those days was considered ‘high milage’) would have had a few nips and tucks here and there to keep them roadworthy, and certainly quite a few mechanical parts.

    So long as the restoration is done sensitively, restoring as many original parts as possible, then no damage will be done. Old cars can often accommodate the odd modern ‘tweak’ such as a modern stereo hidden behind a panel, halogen headlights, electronic ignition, etc. Cars are meant to be driven, not put in a museum. I don’t believe in concourse showing either- as very often the vehicles are actually in a better-than-factory condition that does not reflect actual road usage.

  4. That does seem rather steep for a complete heap! “Original” isn’t always best. I have a TV stand in “original” condition, complete with period woodworm and dry rot.
    Maybe I’ll auction that 😉

  5. The debate on originality vs. restored is interesting as for some the latter means finishing it over and beyond how it came out the factory. At some point there will be original candidates that will have eventually deteriorated to a state whereby the restoration will go way beyond simply welding in new metal or aluminium and giving it a new coat of paint. Think of the debate over that Mini Clubman found in the underground tunnel at Longbridge. I, for one, am pleased it will be restored.

    I often think what I would do if I found a completely original Rover P5B Coupe or a late registered Rover SD1 Vitesse twin plenum finished in black in need of a rebuild. Engine and gearbox strip down and rebuild, modern gaskets fitted but still keeping everything to the original specification? Definitely. However, I personally frown on some of the highlift cam mods and bigger versions of the V8 engine that are used. I even dislike unnecessary engine transplants that many Rover SD1 owners were undertaking back in the 1990s.

    So what about stripping the body down to a bare shell, removing rust and welding in new metal? Then having it chemically stripped and zinc phosphated to give it better anti-corrosion protection before a high quality respray, which provides the same consistency of finish throughout? And applying copious amounts of cavity wax way beyond what the factory could (or would) offer? It makes perfect sense to address some of the shortcomings of the original preparation process in order to ensure even better preservation long term.

    Maintaining heritage is one thing, but with it there is still a need to maintain functionality and purpose, which modern day know-how and commitment can help achieve.

    Without this many of the cars we now see at classic car events would have died an undignified death a long time ago, resulting in a loss of motoring heritage. Some of it important.

  6. On the price subject,it is worth whatever the purchaser wants to pay,to some its worthless scrap to others its a long love affair/labour of love..
    Im very pleased the new owner saw fit to buy a unique of its kind car at that price-simply because he must be a enthusiast verging on obsessive!

  7. It’ll be nice to see it when it’s finished, it’s price reflects it’s rarety & it’ll be a £200,000 investment by the time it’s restored. I think it’s a shrewd move; The demands of the market exceed the amount of available car’s, it’s going to sell again for 1 million pounds in 5 to 10 year’s.
    Suddenly a LHD 2+2 automatic makes a lot of sense, could this be a resurgence of interest reflected into more ordinary old cars?

  8. There’s no point in a car being “totally original” if it won’t pass an MOT and you can’t drive it.

    I look forward to seeing this classic motor back on the road in as near original condition as possible.

    As for the price, if it brings the new owner pleasure then who are we to judge? Anything is only worth what someone will pay for it. I have no idea what it will be worth when restored but I expect the rarity value will put it in the region of £250k.

  9. Somewhat related to @2 where heaps go for more than nicely restored cars.

    On eBay, selling off a cupboard of old laptops in various states, I often found that the spares / repairs machines went for more than the fully working models! Maybe people looking parts and were afraid to pull apart a working machine?

  10. TBH it does not actually look that bad, but then the photos are not exactly detailed. Not sure it would need a full nut and blot rebuild athough I guess the engine will be seized, or have zero compression. Brakes will need work. But the bonnet does not look to be a shot as most, neother does what youc an see of the body (door asisde) they all rot round the base of the screen pillar. Difficult to say if it still has floors from the photo! looks like its full of leaves or somthing.

  11. Would be a crime to recover the inetrior though, that will come back with care, although the door cards will need new backing the covering is fine

  12. The screen pillar rot is not nice. It suggests that the angled diaphragms lower down the bulkhead will be in a similar state, and these are effectively impossible to repair because they finish in a 3 layer sandwich spot welded at the front face of the bulkhead. ( Ask me how I know !) This is why the car is very unlikely to have its “originality” preserved at the end of the operation , and why it was a very brave act to pay a huge premium . In any event, there are a number of non-original features that can be seen, the steering wheel ( no rivets ) and the 4.2 style gear lever knob just being two of them. And where the abortion of a hardtop came from ……?

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