This 1969 Jaguar E-Type roadster is described as being the barn find we all hope to find: bondo-free, low mileage, and tucked away in a warehouse for eons. The original color scheme is the cherry on top, with the red leather interior being pared with a navy blue exterior color scheme and black top. With a manual gearbox and matching numbers drivetrain that shows good compression, this warehouse-find E-Type appears to be an excellent candidate for a proper restoration. The Jaguar is listed here on eBay with a Buy-It-Now of $55,000.
Thanks to Barn Finds reader T.J. for the find. The Jaguar doesn’t appear to still be draped in navy blue paint, but it could just be hidden beneath a layer of dust. Hard to tell for sure, but it does seem like it is now closer to battleship gray than dark blue. Still, the overall condition of the car reinforces what the seller is claiming in the listing, and that is the high state of preservation on display. The chrome bumpers, wire wheels, tail and headlight lenses, and various trim all appears to be accounted for. Unlike so many other projects that go into long-term storage, this one hasn’t been halfway disassembled.
The high state of originality carries over to the interior, where we see a tired interior but one that will likely come back to life without a ton of heavy lifting. While I don’t know that the leather can be saved, it at least seems like it’s within the realm of possibility, especially if you’re OK with a little bit of patina inside the cabin. The dashboard is obviously less ornate given this isn’t a Series 1 car, but what we can see here looks to be in good shape with only a missing gauge standing out as an obvious flaw. The classic wood-rimmed steering wheel is an E-Type staple, along with the shifter mounted high on the console. Obviously, having three pedals will make this roadster project even more appealing.
The engine bay is cosmetically tired but appears complete. The seller has done some basic preparatory work to confirm this is a healthy drivetrain, such as performing a compression test with positive results. The seller has also cleaned out the gas tank and installed a new fuel pump, which will make it easier for the next caretaker to immediately dig in. The listing is fairly confident this is an E-Type you prepare for Concours restoration owing to the fact that it has no accidents in its history file and a matching numbers drivetrain. Based on those facts and the condition on display here, we’re inclined to agree.
Even in the current market, 55 K for this is optimistic.
The “one that got away” was a 1967 model in 1981 for $2,450 and my credit union considered it an over-priced used car then.
I wish I had been born 10 years earlier. I’ve lusted after a series I XKE for almost half my life, but as much as I’ve saved up for it, it seems the goalpost keeps getting moved farther and father away. When I first saw it, a series I in good condition was around the 30-40k ballpark. Series II and III could be found for 20k or less. I saved up for almost 10 years but prices have more than doubled since then.
The seller knows the market and is trying to squeeze the last nickel out of this. If he thought the restoration would be fairly straight forward, as a professional restoration shop he’d be doing it himself. I think he’s about 10-15K off on the price for a series 2 project car even with the low miles.
In some pictures, the paint looks bad, in others, shiny (eBay); are the pictures all of the same car? 55K seems a bit aggressive for this, given the apparent condition.
Top level restorations can be 50K, so unless one can do a lot of work themselves, this is a tough slog.
Suspect it’s been awhile since you priced complete restorations. $100K is more the average these days unless it’s a popular american car (mustang, camaro) Paint can easily run $30K alone.
To restore properly it’s a tough call. To buy as a driver (if the motor/trans are good) the price isn’t bad at all. All depends on what you’re after. Rust free jags are not easy to find.
I’ll correct myself.. Just looked at what series II’s are selling for and despite the lack of rust this would appear to be as mentioned a good $15-20K high.
I find it remarkable that many sellers hope to find that lone ,uninformed buyer to purchase at an insane asking price. The old adage” there is an ass for every seat” still applies. This E-Type will take much time and money to re-do. A person in the trade realizes that and purposefully does not do a partial/full redo but chooses to sell it to the “uniformed”. The way of the car world.
Jaguar ruined the appearance with the “federal-ized” uncovered headlights and ugly taillights, so most enthusiasts prefer the earlier style. Make a cash offer, clean it up, drive as-is.
I like Jags, but this particular style was a turn-off for me… it appeared too bulbous. Also the price seems about $20K more than “smart”.
Is there any resto project out there for sale that is not priced 10 – 20k over what it should be?
I know there are a lot of cars like this out there, I expect in the next ten years or so we will see a lot of these for sale. A somewhat similar Series II was for sale locally at a dealer (not a classic car dealer) for about ten grand less. It was running, but higher miles and less original, cleaner but rougher. Anyway, the price doesn’t seem too far out of the ballpark though a little optimistic. I would clean up and fix up and enjoy as is.
Any XKE , even 2+2 coupe’s, are a worthwhile investment, if planned carefully. This convertible might be a bit high, but needs professional inspection before commenting any further , price wise. Could very well end up back in Britain, the seller is wise to consider this option, he may not be interested in going down the “Jag” road, having done Jaguar work for 40 years, it’s a time consuming occupation. More power to him.
As for alot more of Jags in this shape coming from out of nowhere in the future, unlikely, except for increasingly harder to stumble on occasions, these cars have been hunted down for years. Restored ones, for a price, slightly different story, as more collection’s come up for auction.
The earlier ones are clearly preferable, in appearance & with more bhp before smog control regs. The hottest bang for the buck I’ve seen lately are 2010-2015 XKR’s, supercharged with at least 510bhp in the $25-40K range, if in decent shape. This one MIGHT be worth half that, before another $60K, or so to restore…
I have to admit about 1969 I saw my first Jag convertible. Never quite the same feeling to me as a Corvette but a very close second. IIRC it was Yellow and I think a black interior. I saw it first at a dealership service bay then later on the street. The car had a beautiful sound to it, then again the lady driving it the one time was gorgeous too.
If I had the space, I would enjoy having it but not at that price.
Auction ended with no takers.
Time to lower the price.
Auction ended with no takers.
Time to lower the price.