1964 Jaguar E Type 3.8 Coupe

‘WRU 761B’ is something a bit different.

Very different.

You see, it’s been in the same family for 37 years, and hasn’t turned a wheel since the turn of the century. But since coming off the road it’s been stored in a warm and dry garage waiting for the right time for its restoration to commence.

It never did. Life got in the way – and we all know how that feels.

However, despite a quarter of a century’s rest the 3.8-litre engine turns freely, and the frames it bolts to are in good shape. The factory doors and roof are said to be “excellent, with no rust” and there are many, many parts in boxes including a new Triplex windscreen that’s still in its packaging.

As for its bones, everything on it is open and on view; if there’s a problem, even a novice could spot it, which is not necessarily the case with a finished car: You might fall in love with the shine, but can you ever be certain what’s lurking underneath?

It’s also a Series One, making it a Holy Grail of E Type projects.

And, if all this weren’t enough, it’s being offered with no reserve.

*checks calendar* Nope, it’s not Christmas – but it sure feels like it. 
 

As you can see, the back end of the E Type is finished in primer and looks pretty good. There is some crustiness on the lower rear corners and offside rear wheelarch, but that looks more cosmetic than structural from what we can see.

The factory doors, on the other hand, are excellent with no rust or visible damage. They fit pretty well too, which is encouraging.

The roof is also straight, but the bonnet needs attention and almost certainly a new pair of wings. That said, the centre of the bonnet is solid, so you’re in a good place to start and besides, few cars have the resources behind them of an E Type, and panels, every panel, are readily available.

As for the paintwork, well, there isn’t any. That’s good though because everything is naked and on display. If there’s rust or damage, you’ll spot it, either in person or in the photos.

Nor are you going to feel duty-bound to preserve the factory paint – or honour any hard-won patina.

No, you can go ahead and paint it in any colour you like, although if you are a stickler for originality the Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust production record trace certificate that’s in the history file shows it left the factory painted Opalescent Dark Blue.

The chromed wire wheels look to be in a decent shape but you’re probably going to have them stripped down and refurbished anyway, aren’t you? As for the tyres, they’re a minimum of 25 years old, so they’re going to have to be junked and replaced with new rubber.

Other bits to buy include a nearside headlamp rim and glass. The rear window has also gone astray but there is a new Triplex windscreen and the rest of the glass looks like it’s present and correct.

Please do take some time to browse the photos to understand exactly what it is you’re bidding on – or contact us to make an appointment to view.
 

The interior was grey when it left the factory, so if you want to restore it to full factory specification then you know what you’ve got to do.

Everyone else will rejoice in the promise of many hours of browsing catalogues and websites in the pursuit of a whole new interior.

Yes, there are bits you could save but apart from stuff like the instruments and switch panel, Lucas rearview mirror, and, maybe, the steering wheel, you’re almost certainly not going to, are you?

Again, we see this as liberating rather than frustrating, not least because the finished car will be exactly as you want it. No compromises or shortcuts, it’ll be yours and yours alone. 
 

As you can see from the pictures, the engine doesn’t run because it’s not connected. It is sitting in some very good engine frames though and it turns over freely, so you are ahead of the curve even before you strip it down and check it over.

There are loads of parts for you to sort through and catalogue, which is going to be nothing but a joy. The tech-minded among you will probably use a spreadsheet to sift and sort it all, but the rest of us will opt for nothing more high-tech than a dog-eared notebook and a stolen Ikea pencil.

The underside has some rust on it, but as you’ll be stripping it back to a bare shell and getting it either dipped or sand-blasted, the extent of any issues will become apparent. If it helps, it looks decently solid to us from the bits we’ve seen.
 

Built on the 16th of March 1964 as a right-hand drive fixed-head coupé, it was distributed by Henlys of London to Delong Sales Ltd., who sold to an A.D. Taylor of London in April of that year.

It had one more UK keeper before being bought in 1988 by the chap who’s selling it. He was in the trade and owned his own main dealer-approved bodyshop for decades, so he was ideally placed to restore a good-but-tatty E Type.

He never got around to doing anything more than stripping it down and dusting the rear end with etch primer though and has come to realise that if he hasn’t done it by now, he never will.

The history file includes a clear Vehicle History Check, a Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust production record trace certificate, and a V5 registration document.

Of course, the Jaguar doesn’t have a current MoT certificate, but the paperwork does include its last certificate, which expired in 1999.
 

We’ve all dreamed of restoring a car – and for many of us, a Series One Jaguar E Type would be pretty much top of list.

Yes, it would be cheaper and more sensible to buy a car that has already been restored but that only makes sense if you take an atypically hard-nosed view of the classic car world.

The rest of us, the dreamers and the romantics, want to restore a car because it’ll be fun. Because we can finish it to our exact specification. And because of the satisfaction we’ll get from tooling around in something we made ourselves.

Something that’s been built, not bought.

If that sounds like something you could sign up for then the further good news is that the price of entry is likely to be reasonable. So low, in fact, that it’ll open the doors to a whole bunch of folk who didn’t think they could afford to buy a Series One E Type anymore.

Sure, there’ll be money to spend in the future but if you view it as a deposit of between £25,000 and £35,000 down and flexible monthly payments for the next few years, it doesn’t sound unattainable, does it?

Besides, it’s being sold with no reserve, so it’s going to sell no matter how derisory the bidding.

Which means the only sensible thing to do is to have a cheeky bid and see what happens, right? 

Viewing is strongly encouraged, and this lot is located at Bonhams|Cars Online HQ. Viewings are STRICTLY BY APPOINTMENT and we are open weekdays between 10am - 12pm or 2pm - 4pm. To make a booking, please use the ‘Enquire About This Vehicle’ button on the listing. Feel free to ask any questions, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.