One-of-a-kind Jaguar to make UK debut

The subject of a one-off classic Jaguar restoration project that took thousands of hours is heading to London for its first British public outing this weekend.

Experts at Classic Motor Cars (CMC) spent a painstaking 6,725 hours to return the 1954 Jaguar XK120 SE to its former glory.

Nigel Woodward, CMC’s managing director, says 'the classic’s history is something of a mystery, with its whereabouts since 1955 relatively unknown.'

The firm picked up the Jaguar from a German man in 2015, who had bought it in America as a restoration project back in 1978.

Mr Woodward continues: “We took on the challenge of restoring it and an epic 6,725-hour journey then began. “This was one of the most challenging restorations ever undertaken by CMC. We managed to restore every aspect of it, from the unique body and structure through to paint, trim and mechanical elements, whilst saving as much of the original car as possible.”

A unique transformation

Practically every inch of the unique motor has been restored, from the structure and bodywork, straight through to its inner mechanics, such as the engine, transmission, suspension and brake systems.

Using the original XK body as the base, the bodywork has been created by renowned Italian design house, Pininfarina to complete the unique chassis S675360.

CMC hand-crafted unavailable bodywork from photographs, including the bumpers and chrome fixtures.

A tiny part of the original paintwork was found when the car was being dissembled, and this was used to colour match the grey-green pebble tone.

This was also applied to the interiors of the car, using a small sample to recreate the Ochre tan leather that featured as new.

International showcase

The rare project will take one of the most prestigious spots at CMC's stand at the London Classic Car Show on February 15-18 at the ExCeL.

Although this will be the classic’s marque’s first outing in the UK, it’s no stranger to taking centre stage.

As Mr Woodward explains: “It turned heads when it was unveiled at the 1955 Geneva Motor Show, at its second unveiling at Pebble Beach and we are confident it will do the same six decades later at the London Classic Car Show.”