UPDATE 2/7/12 – It appears to have sold offline. Bidding was up to $4,850.
Jensen had built some interesting cars before it, but none had ever sold as well as the Interceptor did. They seemed to have found the magic combination when they combined their CV8 chassis with a body designed by Italian coach builder, Touring. The result was a powerful GT ready to eat up the miles in style. Sadly these cars are now too expensive for most of us to experience. We did run across a project 1973 Jensen Interceptor that may offer a lower entry price though. It is located in Lakewood California and is listed for sale here on eBay where bidding is currently at $1,700 with no reserve.
The seller of this Jensen claims that they purchased it from an older man for $3,000. He had started a restoration, but never completed it. Perhaps they decided to just sell it after getting frustrated while attempting to find a gremlin in the wiring. This could be the biggest problem here. We just hope that he didn’t wire too many things together wrong throwing in the towel.
Cruising power is provided by a big Chrysler 440 V8 connected to an automatic transmission. We dream of driving one of these with the optional manual, but we may never get to because very few were ever produced. This engine looks clean enough and the seller claims that is turns over by hand, but they are not sure what it will need to run again.
Outside things looked great in the photos until we saw the front lip of the hood. There are some nasty surprises hiding under that shiny layer of red paint so you will want to proceed with caution. Have the car professionally inspected so you know what sort of bodywork is going to be needed. Then assume it is going to be even more extensive because these cars are known for their rusting capabilities.
American muscle, Italian styling, and British wiring. What’s not to love! We said that this car may offer affordable entry to Interceptor ownership, but we never claimed it will be cheap in the long run. You would probably be better off paying more for a car without rust or wiring problems, but then again, this could the perfect candidate for that manual transmission conversion we have been dreaming about…
Handsome cars for sure. Hope someone returns it to it’s former glory.
I love this car.. I would hate to have to replace that rear window. That must be worth the current bid by itself.
Wheeler Dealers did a resto on a Jensen Interceptor Mk3 this season, all of the original tooling and dies were purchased by an engineering company in England, and they are still producing all the spares for body panels and the like, and they also have all of the original build packets for every car Jensen produced, which is invaluable when restoring one of these cars.
I remember when these cars came out back in ’73. They were gorgeous! I almost traded my XKE for one. The leather was top-notch! I remember one that was a burgundy with light tan leather (coventry hides) upholstery. I think the drool marks went all the way from the show room floor to the Jag parts counter…
rust and wiring nightmares, here….when these cars are right…so sweet with the mopar engine and great drivers, but?
Better have another properly wired Interceptor next to this one as you work.
That hood is really terrifying. I own an Interceptor, and I’d been looking for one for many years before I finally bought it. The amount of rust these cars can hide is massive, and despite the seller’s reassurances I’m not optimistic about the condition under the surface.There are no close-ups of the rear hatch. Even otherwise excellent cars will often have significant rust around the rear window, and I understand it’s not an easy thing to put right.I think the $3000 the seller paid for the car was probably about all the money.
First ” supercar ” I ever drove , in Hamilton New Zealand back in 1978 , I was going very fast up Chinamans Hill and thought I was going to take off at the top ! too much for an eighteen year old who had only ever driven small cars
I think this car made its way to Daniel Schmitt were it sold for $20,000 not a bad profit. There add said cosmetic improvement so who knows what lurked beneath . i actually tried to buy it untill i found all the bad feedback about Schmitt’s
After sorting out the dash and a lot of wiring, I’m now getting on with the bigger picture! Very much enjoying restoring this car.
If you are restoring this car I am sure everyone would agree that more pics would be great.
Yes I will be glad to post more pictures. Had to step away from it for a while but I’ll be getting back to the job at hand soon!
I have an intercepter and consider it a Brit Baracuda, It weighs about the same but has the benefit of being “EXOTIC” with mechanicals you can buy at Pep Boys. It is a very decent car but needs the 727 with the OD and a lower diff ratio like 3:50 so it can get under way like it should. The wireing looks like it was designed by a high school kid that had finished basic electrics class, use the wires and simplify it with MOPAR electrics. It is a great Gran Turisimo if you can find somewhere you can drive it as such.