JAGUAR HERITAGE NEWS - French Jaguar driver club

JAGUAR HERITAGE NEWS – MAY 2014 REPORT
The events season has really got into full swing over the last few weeks with the Jaguar
Heritage team involved in a diverse range of activities at home and abroad. The first turf has
also been cut for the building that will be Jaguar Heritage’s future home. Read on for
more…..
Heritage Motor Centre 21st Anniversary and New Museum Collections Centre update:
The month of May began with a special event to
celebrate the 21st anniversary of the Heritage
Motor Centre museum at Gaydon opening to the
public. A large audience of invited guests were
given a welcome presentation by HMC Managing
Director, Julie Tew, which was followed by a
cake cutting ceremony where she was joined by
Jaguar Heritage Trustee, Peter Mitchell. Peter
was responsible for securing the funding for the
Heritage Motor Centre back in 1991 and is also a
trustee of the British Motor Industry Heritage
Trust which operates the museum and
conference centre.
The guests then had the rare opportunity for a ride & drive activity in an eclectic range of 21
cars from HMC’s extensive collection – ranging from an 1899 Wolseley 3½hp Voiturette
through to the 2004 ‘Lady Penelope’ car from the film Thunderbirds! Guided tours of the
BMIHT archive and the museum were also available – the latter including a new display on
the mezzanine level entitled “21 Years, 21 Icons”. This features 7 motoring icons, 7
motoring inventions and 7 motoring innovators, and the roll-call includes the Jaguar E-type
(inevitably!) and the Dunlop disc brake – jointly developed with Jaguar and first used with
great success on the C-type in 1952.
The 21 ‘ride & drive’ cars from the HMC collection, arranged in appropriate formation outside the museum.
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In the afternoon, the visitors reassembled for a
presentation by Tim Bryan, HMC Head of Collections
and Interpretation, on the new Museum Collections
Centre building project. This was followed by a
ceremony at which Peter Mitchell was invited to cut
the first turf for the new building which is due to open
in early 2015.
As reported in the March newsletter, the Centre will
provide space to store and display more than 200
historic British cars from the reserve collections of
both the Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust and the British
Motor Industry Heritage Trust.
The building will also include a vehicle
restoration and conservation workshop,
space for enhanced education and
lifelong learning programmes and office
accommodation for all Jaguar Heritage
staff – bringing the whole team back
together again on the Gaydon site.
Recent Events:
At the tail end of April, the Jaguar Heritage team were asked to support a couple of
interesting back-to-back film shoots. The first of these was at the famous Goodwood
Circuit on April 29 where part of an exciting new TV commercial for Jaguar China was
being filmed. Given the
importance of the Chinese
market for the Jaguar Land
Rover business, this was a
lavish production involving a
full crew (including extras) of
nearly 300 people! A rare and
very valuable line-up of cars
was assembled, comprising no
less than 7 original C-types
and 7 original D-types,
amongst which was Jaguar
Heritage’s 1954 short nose Dtype prototype.
The shoot was meticulously orchestrated
and began with the filming of a Le Mans
style start sequence.
This involved
carefully lining up the 14 precious cars
along the Goodwood pit wall creating an
impressive and very unique spectacle. To
add to the atmosphere, the pit lane had
been dressed in period (with the Jaguar
‘lozenge’ logo very prominent) and a crowd
of extras clad in period costume waved
Union Jack flags and cheered the drivers
as they ran across the track.
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After several takes, the filming sequence then moved on to some action shots of the cars in
various race formations – for which the stand cameras were supplemented by a helicopter
and something called a ‘Russian Arm’! This was a special gyro stabilised camera mounted
on the end of a long arm attached to a powerful matt black SUV – to enable high speed
tracking of the cars going round the circuit. The filming at Goodwood was the final piece of
the jigsaw, with other shoots having already taken place in Majorca and London. Of course
the advert will feature a star driver but the identity is currently a closely guarded secret! No
doubt the final version will go viral when released, so watch out over the coming months…
The D-types form up behind the ‘Russian Arm’
tracking vehicle – this time going the right way!
The 14 C & D-types head round the Goodwood
circuit tracked by the helicopter
The team then moved on, complete with the short nose D-type, for another film shoot for
XCAR at Castle Combe on April 30. XCAR is part of the CNET web service run by CBS
Interactive and is fronted by up and coming automotive journalist Alex Goy. XCAR
specialises in producing feature length online videos on a wide range of automotive subjects
and the focus for the shoot at Castle Combe was the new Jaguar F-TYPE Coupé and its
bloodline of classic Jaguar sports cars.
To this end, the D-type was joined by the well-known 1961 Series 1 E-type OTS, registration
77RW, that is looked after by Jaguar Heritage as well as by the famous C-type chassis XKC005 which is owned by Richard Frankel – which also made the journey up from Goodwood
where it had featured in the line-up on the previous day. This C-type is the car that scored
the first race win for a car fitted with disc brakes when Stirling Moss drove it to victory in the
Reims grand prix in 1952.
The Jaguar alphabet – C, D, E, F!
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The three classics were lined up alongside one of the latest F-TYPE coupé models and were
photographed and filmed by the XCAR team in various configurations on and around the
Castle Combe circuit. A remote control gyrocopter was also used with a small GoPro
camera to record some overhead footage! Look out for the final edit on the XCAR website in
the coming weeks – click here for the link.
Alex Goy, XCAR editor, sampling the 1961 E-type and 1954 D-type prototype at Castle Combe
2014 Mille Miglia, May 15-18:
The biggest event this month was the legendary Mille Miglia classic car endurance rally
which took place from May 15-18. Jaguar Heritage Racing had assembled a line-up of topname drivers, who traversed the 1,000 gruelling miles from Brescia to Rome and back in ten
of the most revered and sought-after historic Jaguar cars ever produced.
The Jaguar Heritage Racing entry – 10 iconic cars together with sixteen of the lucky drivers
Household names from stage and screen, plus fashion, motor sport and music celebrities
campaigned their assigned historic Jaguars through Northern and Central Italy for four tough
but memorable days of hard driving. Spectators enthusiastically lining the Mille Miglia route
got the chance to see examples of historically-significant Jaguar XKs, C-types and D-types
shooting past them with famous faces in the cockpits.
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The line-up included four Jaguar Heritage
cars. Heading the bill was the famous 1956
long nose D-type 393RW, the penultimate
example built, which was driven by two
motor racing greats – ex-Jaguar Le Mans
and World Sports Prototype Championship
winner, Formula 1 driver and SKY F1 TV
pundit Martin Brundle, plus ex-Formula 1
racer Bruno Senna.
The 1953 Jaguar Heritage C-type, NDU 289,
was shared by legendary AC/DC lead singer
and car afficionado Brian Johnson together
with Octane Magazine Deputy Editor, Mark
Dixon.
Jaguar Vehicle Integrity Chief Engineer Mike
Cross drove the well-known ex-Stirling Moss
Monthlery record-breaking XK120 Coupé
LWK 707 from 1952 with
journalist Mikey Harvey alongside
him while author David Blakeley
and model-turned-TV presenter
Jodie Kidd shared the beautiful
black 1953 XK120, OOF 748,
which was driven by Oscarwinning actor Daniel-Day Lewis
in the 2013 event. David and
Jodie achieved the accolade of
being the top placed Jaguar entry
at the end of the event, with the
fewest penalty points!
Leading American TV chat show
host, Jaguar collector and classic
car enthusiast Jay Leno drove the famous ex-Sir James Scott-Douglas 1951 Jaguar XK120
roadster, raced as part of the Ecurie Ecosse team in period. His co-driver was Jaguar
Design Director, Ian Callum and to complete the Ecurie Ecosse theme, the famous car
transporter that was auctioned for a record £1.8m last year had been transported out to
Brescia to line up alongside the cars.
Another well-known 1951 XK120 roadster – the ex-Duncan Hamilton racer registered LXF
731 – was shared by husband and wife team, Elliot and Erin Gleave. Elliot is better known
as successful British musician Example, with his wife Erin being the Australian TV presenter
that he first met when she interviewed him for MTV.
Other significant Jaguar XK models on the Mille Miglia included the ex-Jim Swift racing
XK120 roadster, which was driven by multiple award-winning British actor Jeremy
Irons. The three car C-type line-up also included the ex Fangio car 70 XVK which had won
the Series C race at Monaco the previous weekend! This was shared by Belgian singersongwriter Milow (Jonathan Vandenbroeck) and Jaguar Land Rover Regional Director for
Europe Bernard Kuhnt.
For further information, more pictures and video highlights from this amazing event, visit the
Jaguar Media Centre or the Broadcast Newsroom.
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More recent events include the XKEC Growler Xl event which took place in glorious sunshine at
Coughton Court on May 17. Jaguar Heritage turned out with two examples of the XK range the last of the line X100 version which is a 2005 XKR coupé and the first production X150
version, an XK coupé from 2006. These were added to an impressive line-up of more than
180 XKs that assembled in the park in front of the main house. The merchandise trailer was
also taken along to offer the latest range of Jaguar accessories and memorabilia to the
visiting enthusiasts.
Hot on the heels of this was the annual SMMT Test Day which took place once again at the
Millbrook Proving Ground on May 22. Although the main purpose of the day is for the
various car makers to give the visiting media the chance to try out their latest products, there
is a tradition that the Newspress stand also features a selection of classic cars that can be
driven. Jaguar Heritage was asked to provide a car and this year the model selected was
the 1971 Series 3 E-type V12 2+2 which
began its life as a Jaguar press car. This
was lined up alongside two other fine
classic sports cars – a rare 1969
Maserati Ghibli coupé and a 1980
Chevrolet Corvette C3. Sadly the fine
weather didn’t hold out for this event, but
the precious E-type survived its runs
round Millbrook’s Alpine route without
incident!
After a quick clean and polish, the E-type was back in service over the bank holiday
weekend at a more local event. This was the Wings & Wheels gathering at the Bidford
Gliding and Flying Club held on May 26 at the airfield near Bidford-on-Avon. This is the
second year for this fundraiser event in aid of the Acorns charity, and it brought together a
fine display of classic cars and aircraft. The 1971 V12 E-type was chosen for this event
because of its association with the Jaguar fighter aircraft built by Sepecat (a joint venture
between BAC and Breguet) in the 1960s and 70s. As a press car, WHP 205J was
immortalised by a number of memorable publicity photos taken of it being chased down a
runway by one of the Jaguar prototype fighter aircraft!
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One of the organisers of the event is well known commentator Chris Drewett who is also on
the organising committee for the Coventry Festival of Motoring. As well as being a fount of
knowledge on classic cars and motorsport, Chris is also an aircraft enthusiast and tries to fly
once a week – a recreation he only took up
on his 60th birthday! Chris has a share in a
couple of aircraft one of which is a Jodel
DR221 built in 1967 in France. It is
constructed entirely in wood with a Dacron
covering and powered by a Lycoming O-235
flat four engine producing 118hp at 2700 rpm
enabling it to cruise at about 110knots
(128mph). By comparison, the E-type built in
the UK four years later is constructed entirely
in steel and is powered by an all alloy 5.3 litre
V12 engine producing 267hp, giving a top
speed of 150mph. However, the Jodel has a
Chris Drewett (in the white T shirt) next to his
range of 500 miles, probably more than
1967 Jodel 221 aircraft
double the E-type!
Cars in the Media:
Jaguar Heritage cars have also been in
some demand for media articles and
activities over the last couple of months.
Back in April, the 1975 XJ-S V12 from the
collection joined a number of other classic
models from the Coventry based
manufacturers of the time, to be
photographed for a future article in
Practical Classics magazine. This has
now appeared in the June issue and the
article by Neil Campbell, entitled “Sent to
Coventry”, provides a fascinating history lesson
on the thriving industry that has existed in and
around the city over the last 100 years - a must
read for anyone with an interest in the heyday of
Midlands car manufacturing.
The very same XJS, which was one of the original
launch cars shown at the Earls Court Motor
The XJS back at its original Browns Lane
Show, also provided the backdrop for a future
home – outside the Education building
article that will appear in Jaguar World
Photo © Matt Howell, Practical Classics
Magazine.
The theme of the article being
prepared by automotive writer Mike Taylor is
‘XJS Reunited’ and it brought together three old
hands who had been closely involved with the
original development of the XJ-S. Best known
of the trio was Norman Dewis, former Jaguar
Senior Test Engineer and now, in his 94th year,
something of a Jaguar legend. Norman was
joined by Richard Cresswell, former Manager of
Vehicle Proving (succeeding Norman) and also
Ed Abbott who was a Principal Engineer in
Vehicle Proving. Following a photo session
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with the car at the storage warehouse, Mike interviewed Norman, Richard and Ed to tease
out their respective and joint memories of how the XJ-S programme took shape in the early
years. Look out for this article over the coming months.
While on the subject of Jaguar World
Magazine, the sharp-eyed may have
spotted a picture of a gold coloured
Daimler in an article in the June edition
about the annual London to Brighton
Run that took place on April 27. This
car was loaned by Jaguar Heritage to
Paul Walton, JWM editor, to take part in
this year’s run and it has an interesting
history. Built in 1973 as a company car,
it is a top specification Daimler Double
Six Vanden Plas and went on to be the
personal transport of both Lord Stokes,
Chairman of the ill-fated British Leyland, and also of Sir William Lyons. It was also used as a
test bed on several occasions, including the fitment of a two-stage differential and a different
engine.
The car was acquired by the Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust from the British Motor Industry
Heritage Trust in 1991. As its condition had deteriorated over time, in 2003 the Jaguar
Enthusiasts’ Club was asked to undertake a project to refurbish the car. It has not had many
outings since then, but it will be making further appearances this year at both the Daimler
and Lanchester Owners Club International Rally on June 1 at Gaydon and also at the JEC
National Day at Thoresby Hall on June 22.
Museum Displays:
As part of the celebrations for the 60th anniversary of the Jaguar D-type, a special
commemorative display has recently been installed in the Jaguar Heritage gallery at the
Heritage Motor Centre museum at Gaydon.
Centrepiece of the display is, of course, a Jaguar D-type! The car on show is a very unique
example being the first prototype that was built in early 1954. This prototype, with chassis
number XKC 401 (as it was a development from the C-type model), was taken straight to Le
Mans for testing in May 1954, where Jaguar's principal test engineer, Norman Dewis,
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immediately broke the previous lap record by a clear 5 seconds! This was the start of the Dtype's illustrious race history which saw many victories over the following six years in UK,
Europe and USA, including three in the Le Mans 24 hour race itself.
The D-type is flanked by two other very famous cars from the Jaguar Heritage collection:
The 1950 XK120, registration NUB 120, that was driven by Ian Appleyard with his wife
Patricia (daughter of Jaguar founder William Lyons) acting as navigator in several races and
rallies. Ian won the Alpine Rally twice, the RAC Rally and the Tulip rally as well as being the
first winner of the Alpine Gold Cup - for three consecutive runs without incurring a penalty
point!
The one and only XJ13 from 1966. Designed to be a Le Mans competitor to succeed the Dtype, the XJ13 was fitted with a quad cam 5.0 litre V12 engine to give it a top speed
approaching 200mph. Sadly the rules were changed before it was completed, limiting Le
Mans cars to engine capacities not exceeding 3.0 litres. This left the XJ13 sidelined and this
is the only complete surviving example.
Behind these cars are a number of display panels which provide a brief history of the D-type
and also list 60 interesting facts about the car - some well-known and some more obscure!
To complement the vehicles, the Jaguar Heritage
Archive team has also assembled a fascinating
collection of D-type related artefacts which have
been put on display in two cabinets. These include a
number of items kindly loaned by the family of
Malcolm Sayer, who is credited with the design of
some of the most iconic Jaguars from the 1950s and
60s including the D-type, E-type and the
XJ13. Amongst these artefacts are several scale
models of potential designs, one of Malcolm's
original note books and an example of his painting
skills!
Also on display are a
number
of
original
archive
documents,
some further artefacts
kindly loaned by Nigel
Webb (including a rare
set of playing cards
issued
to
celebrate
Jaguar's
Le
Mans
victories) and a fine
selection of scale model
D-types.
Finally, to round out the display, two original artworks
by the famous automotive artist Roy Nockolds have
been put on display. These depict the D-type in the
Reims 12 hour race in 1954 (which it won) and also a
dawn scene from the 1957 Le Mans 24 hour race
which saw the D-type's most impressive result with
1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 6th places!
The special display will run throughout the summer
season so make sure you plan a visit sometime
between May and August.
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Other News:
Lightweight E-type reborn:
JLR announced on May 14 that Jaguar is to build six perfect reproductions of the original,
race-bred Lightweight E-type that was created in 1963. The new cars are the 'missing' six
vehicles from Jaguar's Lightweight E-type project, which originally started in February 1963
with the objective of building 18 'Special GT E-type Cars'.
Only 12 of the aluminium bodied Lightweight Etypes were eventually built, the last in 1964, the
remaining six designated chassis numbers
having lain dormant, until now.
The new cars will be hand-built in-house by
Jaguar's finest craftsmen. Each car will be
constructed to the exact specifications of their
original 1960s forebears - including the 3.8-litre
straight-six engine.
The Lightweight carried approximately 114kg
(250lb) less weight than a standard E-type,
thanks to its all-aluminium body and engine
block, a lack of interior trim and exterior chrome
work and a host of further weight-saving features
including lightweight, hand-operated side
windows.
Jaguar expects a high demand for the six
Lightweight
E-types.
Established
Jaguar
collectors, especially those with historic race car
interests, will be prioritised amongst those
potential customers who express interest.
Forthcoming Events:
Just a reminder that the major events over the next couple of months that will see cars from
the collection out and about are:
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The Daimler and Lanchester Owners’ Club 50 Anniversary International Rally at the
Heritage Motor Centre at Gaydon on June 1; Jaguar Heritage will be displaying eight
vehicles spanning 100 years, ranging from Jaguar Heritage’s oldest car, the 1897 Daimler
Grafton Phaeton up to the stunning 1996 Daimler Corsica Convertible concept car. Also on
show will be some cars not often seen including the 1973 Daimler Double Six (mentioned
earlier) and the 1986 Daimler XJ-S.
The Jaguar Enthusiasts’ Club National Day at Thoresby Hall in Notts on June 22. This will
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be celebrating the 30 anniversary of the JEC and Jaguar Heritage will be bringing along five
cars from its collection that the JEC have helped to restore over the years. These will include:
1958 3.4 litre ‘Mark 1’ TOX 1, 1969 S1 XJ6 4.2 PHP 42G and 1973 S2 Daimler Double Six
VDP (both former cars of Sir William Lyons), 1971 S3 E-type V12 2+2 WHP 205J, and the
unique 1996 Daimler Corsica convertible.
The Goodwood Festival of Speed from June 26-29; Jaguar Heritage will once again have a
selection of racing cars from its collection in the Cathedral Paddock making runs up the
famous hill each day. The provisional line-up is: 1954 D-type prototype, 1974 Group 44 Etype V12, 1983 TWR XJS and the 1988 Le Mans winning XJR-9.
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The Silvretta Classic rally in Austria taking place from July 3-6, which will
feature a three car entry from Jaguar Deutschland who will be using Jaguar
Heritage’s 1953 XK120 OTS, 1958 XK150 DHC and the last of the line 1974
S3 E-type V12 OTS.
Classic Le Mans from July 4-6; details are still being finalised, but Jaguar
Heritage is likely to have a strong presence at this year’s Classic Le Mans
with a number of cars from its collection on display or doing parade laps.
More details next month.
Contact Reminder and Update:
A reminder that all enquiries relating to Jaguar Heritage vehicles or event support should
be sent to [email protected] or to our general enquiry number
+44 (0) 24 7656 4420.
For further information on any of the items in this newsletter, please contact:
Jonathan Partridge on +44 (0) 24 7656 4431 or e-mail [email protected]
Copies of images at higher resolution can be obtained by clicking here.
open the folder is jaguarxj13.
The password to
Please attribute any images used to 'Jaguar Heritage' except where indicated otherwise.
© Jaguar Heritage – May 2014
…and finally, this month’s watermark picture in full:
Watermark: Jaguar Heritage’s 1953 C-type being driven through the Italian countryside by
AC/DC lead singer Brian Johnson together with Octane Magazine Deputy Editor, Mark Dixon
on the 2014 Mille Miglia.
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