1962 Jaguar Mark X

‘3887 WK’ is a left-hand drive 1962 Jaguar Mark X that’s fitted with the 3.8-litre engine and the silky-smooth automatic gearbox. Exported to Belgium immediately after being finished, it’s believed to have had only one previous owner and comes with a history file that is said to contain “every piece of paper ever produced in relation to the vehicle.”

It arrived in the UK in around 2020, with the seller buying it three and a half years ago.

He commenced a sympathetic partial restoration/recommissioning in August 2023, and David Calderwood Restoration went through the braking and suspension systems, fitted a new stainless-steel exhaust, lightly fettled and serviced the engine, and popped a set of new whitewall tyres on.

Work to the fuel system included relining the fuel tanks, rebuilding the carburettors, and installing new fuel pumps, while the blue leather interior benefitted from having its leather reconditioned, some of the woodwork re-veneered, and the boot fitted with a liner kit.

This investment led to it gaining its second advisory-free MoT, therefore maintaining its 100% record.

No pressure there for the next owner then…
 

The colour gives the impression you’re looking at a Mark X-shaped ingot of solid pewter, an illusion that’s reinforced by subtle chromework and clear front lamp lenses.

The narrow rear lights (made by Lucas and proudly boasting the legend “Made in England”)  are placed at the very edge of the rear wings, helping  draw your eye to the car’s considerable width,

The Opalescent Silver Grey coachwork also serves to highlight the accuracy and consistency of the Jaguar’s shutlines, which are remarkable for a car of the period.

In fact, everything about the Mark X hints at above-average curation throughout its life, and the result is a compelling combination of colour, shape, and condition.

The steel wheels are enhanced by decent chrome hubcaps and a set of new and matching 205R14 Blockley tyres, rubber that has been further enhanced with a set of Atlas whitewall trims.

All of the tyres have very good tread but then the car’s only covered a handful of miles since they were fitted.

We will never get tired of telling you that experience shows that matching high-quality tyres are an infallible sign of a caring and mechanically sympathetic owner who is prepared to spend the appropriate amount in maintaining their car properly.

The reverse-rake front has picked up some stonechips over the years, but many of them have been carefully touched up. The chromework has collected some pitting and scratches too, and because this is a bit more obvious, we can see the new owner will probably want to improve it.

There are also dinks to the nearside front door and offside rear wing, plus a loss of paint to the panel between the boot lid and rear screen, the boot lid itself, the roof, and the offside rear door. There are scratches to the offside sill too, and rust at the junction of the offside A-pillar and the base of the windscreen.

Some of the glass is marked too, most obviously on the nearside rear window and quarterlight. However, the seller has replaced all the window and windscreen rubbers, so these are all in a very good condition. 
 

The reconditioned leather interior is in great shape, with enough of a patina to keep the romantics among us happy while still being easily good enough to draw nothing but positive comments at your local classic car show.

The front seats show creasing and a few cracks, but the leather itself is still supple, and the underlying structure is still nice and firm. They don’t offer much in the way of lateral support (but then this isn’t that sort of car), offering instead massive width, armrests for both occupants, and more comfort than your sitting room.

The rear seats are just as comfortable, and benefit from the addition of a walnut picnic table apiece. Four three-point seatbelts are fitted.

The door cards are in a good condition too, and the headlining is taut and undamaged.

A Lucas rearview mirror joins the rollcall of brand names the lamp lenses we mentioned earlier. Lucas makes an appearance under the bonnet too, alongside Bosch by way of a new battery.

Other named interior appointments include Smiths instruments, an out-of-date Simplex fire extinguisher, and what might be the original Philips radio.

The switches and controls are beautifully labelled, and every inch demonstrates why it’s still revered as one of the automotive world’s true aristocrats.

As you’d expect given the recent investment in a boot liner kit, the luggage space is very well trimmed. Well-appointed too, with accoutrements that include an indoor car cover, a spare wheel with a matching cover, and the tool kit and jack. There’s soundproofing in there too, and what seems to be a solid floor under that.

Some of the lacquer on the walnut veneer looks like it has reacted and has bubbled up in most places. However, the veneer itself is in good order, with only one serious chip in the piece of trim above the radio. Rectifying its cosmetic flaws should, therefore, take more time than money, and would make a lovely winter project.

Even better, the seller has made a start for you by having the top of the dashboard and the door cappings re-veneered.

Other things you might want to look at include giving the trim on the rear pillars a clean as it’s a bit grubby. The front carpets are beyond redemption too, so you’ll need to budget to replace them.  
 

As you can see, the 3.8-litre engine starts well and idles as smoothly and quietly as we’d expect of a recently fettled straight-six. The rev counter might not work, but both the oil pressure gauge and ammeter do, and both read as they should.

It responds to the throttle well, and makes a suitably subdued yet menacing noise from the twin exhaust pipes. The exhaust gases are a touch on the black side though, so perhaps the mixture needs tweaking?

The engine bay is largely original and yet wears its years lightly. There is superficial corrosion on some items, but the underlying structure is good, and we see new fasteners and components dotted liberally around, confirming that it’s had some love in its recent past.

The underside sports a good coating of underseal, but as the majority of this is an older coating there’s no cause for concern. Of course, the flipside of this is that it is starting to flake off in places, but we can’t see anything other than light and superficial surface rust having been exposed.

We also spotted new rear dampers, and a stainless-steel exhaust and new rubber mounts. Nor can we see any oil leaks, something the peerless MoT record supports.
 

Because the Jaguar’s MoT certificate, which is valid until July 2026, was issued with no advisories, just like the one before – and given it’s only had two UK MoTs, that’s a 100% record.

There can’t be many Mark Xs that can say that…

The history file is so comprehensive that it extends to two leverarch files, and includes the original correspondence from the buyer to Jaguar, the original purchase receipt and export documents, and an original buff log book.

We spotted plenty of invoices too, plus the Production Record Trace Certificate, the handbook and lubrication chart, and more. It’s a lovely record and it’s great to see it’s survived intact. 
 

The Mark X was Sir William Lyon’s company car of choice, and that’s quite the recommendation given the cars he would have had access to.

And this one’s a fine example of the breed, benefiting from both a recent recommissioning and a well-documented history in Belgium.

Its left-hand drive layout would make it the ideal candidate to take out to your European holiday home, but if you fancy keeping it on these shores then it’s something you get used to very quickly – and if you intend to use it in a city, then being able to nip out from behind the wheel and straight onto the kerb would be a positive boon.

Either way, we suspect the dust will settle somewhere between £15,000 and £20,000, which would be solid value for a solid example. 

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