16. James Bott – 1952 Jaguar XK120

The stylish Jaguar was the star of the 1948 London Motor Show and it remained in

production until 1954. This lovely example was imported from America and was in very poor condition, but it’s since been transformed by its dedicated owner.

“I was going to use it as a parts car for other restorations, but after some research I discovered it had been used for races and rallies in the US. So despite its bad state – plenty of parts were missing and it was delivered on a pallet - I knew it had to be saved.”

The Jaguar lay in storage for a few years but in 2015 James and his father embarked on a restoration that took four years and he says that one of the biggest challenges was not turning it into a concours example that would never get used. “It’s not perfect but I can just enjoy it, and as well as road rallies it even gets used for shopping.”

Despite the car having suffered previous accident damage the chassis didn’t require any major work, and close examination revealed some interesting features where it had been lightened for racing.

It had started life as a left-hand drive car with a 3.4-litre engine and automatic transmission but the specification is rather different now. As well as being converted to right-hand drive there’s now a 4.2 engine with a big-valve cylinder head and six-branch exhaust manifold, and a five-speed manual gearbox.

Disc brakes and polyurethane suspension bushes completed the mechanical updates and the result is a Jaguar that not only looks the part but performs superbly. It’s already been to France for the ‘Caux Retro’ rally and this year will see it enter the Mille Miglia, so it’s safe to say this desirable sports car is being used just as intended.