1961 JAGUAR E-TYPE SERIES 1 'FLAT FLOOR' 3.8 ROADSTER

KEY FACTS

• A benchmark example of a ‘Flat Floor - Welded Louvre’ E-Type Roadster (OTS) from the first year of production.
• Subject to a ground-up restoration totaling in excess of 2,000 hours by long-standing Jaguar specialist RH Classics of Melton Mowbray.
• Under the voluptuous bonnet is the numbers-matching 265bhp 3.8-litre straight-six, fed by triple SU carburettors, coupled to a matching numbers four-speed manual transmission.
• The car retains a host of important early features that distinguish these highly collectible examples.
• As an effectively brand-new E-Type, it is absolutely ‘on the button’ and ready to be enjoyed by its new owner. 

HISTORY AND FEATURES

• This is an original ‘Flat Floor’ E-Type ‘OTS’ roadster which featured the welded bonnet louvres. Around 1,500 such cars were built up to Christmas 1961, after which bonnet pressing machines were installed during the factory shutdown over the holiday period.
• Confirmed by the accompanying Jaguar Heritage Certificate, this car was built on 10 November 1961 and dispatched to first owner P.F. Spross of New York State on 3 January 1962. It appears to have remained on the East Coast for most of its life and was subsequently acquired by the current owner in 2012 and shipped to the UK to undergo a meticulous ground-up restoration.
• Great care was taken to preserve the originality of the car, with any date-coded parts being carefully restored, rather than replaced. Impossible-to-source items such as switchgear and wiper motors remain absolutely period-correct and in place, as original.
• The car retains its numbers-matching engine, bonnet, and even the original steering wheel and Shelby jack. The original VIN plate, flat-top air intake, and thin dashboard top are also present, and the car was refinished with the correct painted wire wheels.

CONDITION

• During the 2,000-hour fully-photographed restoration, the body was completely stripped, dipped and then rebuilt using only the highest quality repair panels where necessary.
• It was painted to concours standards in the original Opalescent Silver Blue, which remains in unmarked and immaculate condition
• All chrome elements were professionally refurbished and refinished by Derby Plating.
• The cabin trim and the new hood were fabricated and fitted by leading Jaguar interior specialist Suffolk & Turley.
• Mechanically, the car was completely stripped, inspected, and rebuilt to the highest standards and finest tolerances, to ensure this E-Type is an outstanding concours-level example.
• The vendor reports that minor invisible upgrades were added for reliability, but visually it remains completely standard and period-correct.
• Shakedown miles have been completed to ensure that all systems are fully operational and the car drives as well as it looks.

SUMMARY

This Jaguar E-Type Series 1 3.8 ‘Flat Floor’ OTS is a freshly restored example, which is just waiting for another enthusiast to begin the running-in process as it remains unused since completion. Finished to an astonishing standard with impeccable attention to detail, this E-Type boasts the desirable first-year specification, and is presented in a wonderfully elegant colour scheme that accentuates its iconic design. The phrase 'buy the best example you can afford' is common advice in the collector car world, and it simply cannot get much better than this.

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