Estimate: £80000 - £110000

Sold: £108,000

Registration Number: OXK 7 Chassis Number: 6600032

It was at the 1948 London Motor Show that Jaguar virtually threw the sports car world into turmoil with its stunning XK120. Here was a car with incredible style and looks, a powerful six cylinder engine installed in an outstanding chassis and a remarkably low price - a quarter that of a V12 Ferrari with similar performance. The combination was unbeatable and without doubt the XK120 was an absolute milestone for both Jaguar and the motor industry as a whole. XK120 orders flooded in, ironic as it was designed as an interim model to publicize the XK engine for the new Mk VII saloon. The first 57 right hand drive cars and 183 left-hand drive cars were hand-produced in lightweight aluminium alloy on an ash frame. Jaguar had only planned to produce around 200!

At the heart of the William Lyons styled roadster was that all-new 3,442cc twin overhead camshaft XK engine, producing 160bhp via twin SU carburettors - sufficient for 126mph and 0-60mph in 10.0 seconds. The XK120 became a massive success - both on the road and the track where it scored numerous victories, the many drivers including Stirling Moss, Peter Walker, Peter Whitehead, Leslie Johnson and Ian Appleyard; indeed, in XK120C/C-Type form it won Le Mans in both 1951 and ‘53, while its engine was to power three more Sarthe winners and a whole host of Jaguars right up to the present day.

Jaguar built 240 of these alloy bodied cars prior to moving to a more mass production XK120 in order to meet the demand for this popular model. With the 1950 model year a production version had a steel pressed body with alloy doors, bonnet, and trunk skin. Other features included torsion bar front suspension, and a removable windscreen.

The car on offer here, built as a right hand drive model was exported and first registered in Sweden where it was kept until 1988 at which time it was re-imported to the UK. Manufactured and first registered in 1949, chassis number 6600032 is finished in Red with biscuit and red leather interior with a fawn hood.

In 1987 it was purchased for £82,000 and returned to the UK whereupon it underwent a total ground up restoration carried out by Jaguar Specialist Nigel Dawes putting the car back to its original factory specification at a cost of some £54,000. Since its restoration the car has covered a mere 6301 miles.

With the car is a stunning history file which includes a photographic record of its rebuild, a Jaguar Heritage Certificate and the old Swedish log book, as well as full wet weather gear (pram hood, side screens, and tonneau), tool roll and the cherished registration number OXK 7.

This fine example of an early lightweight bodied XK 120 is being described by the vendor as correct in every detail and would stand out in any collection.