Some of you will look at this 1959 Jaguar XK150 as an opportunity — some will just see a money pit (or maybe you see both?) It’s located in Montreal, Canada and is listed for sale here on eBay with an opening price of C$25,000 (just under US$19,000) but the seller is willing to consider lower offers. After looking over the many pictures carefully, I’m left with more questions than answers.
When the Jaguar XK150 was introduced in 1957, the improvements over its predecessors the XK120 and 140 were evident. More occupant room and a more modern shape headed the list of changes, while there were many more under the swoopy skin. A devastating plant fire shortly after launch delayed the roadster model shown here, one of three versions of the XK150 (Coupe, Drop Head Coupe, and Roadster). All featured a 3.4-liter version of the famous XK DOHC inline 6-cylinder engine — and even the lowest-spec model made 190 horsepower. There were only 2,265 roadsters completed when production ended in October 1960 to make room for the E-Type.
Unfortunately, this is the very best angle to show this particular car from. The rear is much more of a horror story. At least the fragile front grille appears intact. Ouch!
When the rear of a car is best stored by piling it on top of the chassis, it’s pretty obvious that there’s a lot to deal with here, and even patina lovers will agree this is a car to be restored as a labor of love, not just reassembled. At this point looking through the pictures I was ready to trigger the famous Jaguar four-wheel disc brakes and stop!
However, just as I was about to dismiss this auction as a hopeless case, I saw some pictures of what’s in the crates that go with the car. That looks like a stellar trunk lid, and many of the other parts look to be in much better shape than the main vehicle. This encouraged me to look further in the copious pictures that the seller has included in the listing.
It appears that the upholstery and interior panels have been carefully and completely restored and wrapped for protection. And if you are wondering what that funky little item is to the left, I believe that’s the factory grease gun included with the car.
Based on the twin SU carburetors visible in this picture, this car was the regular XK150 roadster as opposed to the “S” version which has three carburetors. But I do see at least two cylinder heads, so who knows what’s actually included. There’s also what appears to be a second overdrive unit in this shot in addition to the one pictured here still attached to a transmission. Ultimately this leaves me wanted to know more about the history of the car; who tore it apart and why didn’t they finish the restoration? How did the rear get so damaged? What extra parts are there? If any of you Barn Finds readers decide to check this find out, please report back to us anything you can — inquiring minds want to know!
All cooked aka Well Done. Baked
Wonder what the story of the back half is?? A lot of valuable parts are included.If you can do most of the work not real bad but to pay a restorer big dollars.Hopefully someone will save this poor cat.
Thia car was on here at the end of November, https://barnfinds.com/matching-numbers-basketcase-1959-jaguar-xk150/
It looks like it’s been moved to Montreal now.
In 1965 I missed out on a nice XK-150 that sold for $150. If only the guy had told me he was selling it….
Looks like this cat was stripped of its useable parts years ago when it was just another old used car and left to rot
In the late ’80s I knew a guy who sent his truck from Charlottesville, Virginia to pick up an XK120(IIRC, may have been 140 or 150) from a junkyard or field in Massachusetts. They loaded it up and drove back to Virginia. Along the way the rusty Jaguar had disintegrated; leaving an engine, a battery and the rear axle. That was over thirty years ago. I saw an episode of Barn Find Hunter where he came across a couple of XK roadsters. It was nice seeing him enthusiastic about something other than a Ford, but it was funny seeing how jaded actually owning XKs had left the people who were storing them.
If this were a 150S there might be hope. But to restore a plain jane 150 from this condition? Yeesh.
My that looks toasty! Time to turn it over, it’s done!
Bottom of the barrel, folks,,
Just give the poor thing a decent burial.
Scrap metal
Man oh man, that thing is in bad shape. The part will be a help, but I’m not sure it’s enough. Next owner’s gonna have their hand full
To say it needs work is an understatement, what is more important is not what is there but what does not seem to be there like the windshield, and most important the rear aluminum shroud between the steel fenders. I can not see that in any of the photos. One of the critical places these cars rust and is an excellent indication of the condition is the flasher lamps over the front lights. They generally rust out before anything else does. This is because from the factory they were leaded in and seldom got full paint coverage. These look better than normal so the rust might be far more cosmetic than structural.
These are simple by today electronic standards but are not simple cars. The engines can be a major pain in the ass to get the valves properly set and the bodies were far more fiddle and fit than almost anything else being produced at the time. The XKE was far better except for that massive engine hood which always takes far longer than you expect to get to fit right even if it is the original.
These are great cars for country drives and can handle modern traffic speeds with ease. The narrow tires means less cornering power and longer stopping distances but you will get used to that very quickly. I have known more than a few owners of the XK -120/140/150 line that have loved them and had very little problem with them. All those had the original wiring loom replaced with teflon coated wires however. These are elegant cars, beautiful from any angle and if it can be restored and all the chrome and body parts are there it should be restored.
I have a 120SE roadster that’s probably a little rougher than this. My uncle bought it in the early 70’s and then left it in a shed when it quit running. Over time the roof fell in and it suffered badly. The rear body and frame are prone to rust to begin with, so they go a lot faster than the front half when left out in the weather.
Whenever I see an XK in this shape I’m glad to have found someone that’s as big of a daydreamer as I am LOL
I love to restore classic cars like this, its my business. If a fellow brought this in I would advise him to sell it for parts, start price for auction should be 500.00 and let it go. Anything over 2000 is absurd.