There are E Types and Our Types

Lot 183 A 1972 Jaguar E-Type Series III V12 coupé, £32,000 - 35,000

























Lot 186 A 1933 Lagonda 16/80 four door pillar-less saloon, £28,000 - 32,000, also in the sale

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One of the motor industries icon, a Jaguar E Type coupe, is included in the Charterhouse auction of classic cars on Sunday 13th February held at The Royal Bath & West Showground, Shepton Mallet.


Please click on the logo to go to the Bristol Classic Car Show Events Web Site, where you will be able to buy tickets to the show and catalogues to gain entry to the auction



“We have sold many E Types over the years, but this one is a little more special than most, having covered just over 4,000 miles since new. It is a Somerset registered car, having been bought by a Commander at Yeovilton in 1972. I can only assume that the Commander served abroad for some time which could explain the lack of use of such an iconic motor car. “Commented Matthew Whitney”. When the Commander sold the car, it remained locally and the purchaser then passed the car onto his son. At this point, the car had about 3,000 miles put on it and was then laid up in a barn until the Charterhouse vendor went to buy a tractor but spotted the car and bought it instead!”

The car has subsequently undergone a total nut and bolt restoration, and a change in colour from maroon to metallic ice blue which is still a Jaguar colour. As the car has been dry stored for most of its life, it was very straight forward to dismantle the car, with only two bolts shearing in the process. The car was then rebuilt rather than restored even having a complete new cream leather interior. This E Type is now presented in a better than new condition and is so clean you could eat your dinner off it! Not unsurprisingly, the cost of parts alone came to over £27,000 and combined with 6 months of labour to be added on top, it is estimated at £32,000-35,000. This “new” E Type is ready to celebrate 50th anniversary of the E Type and will no doubt give the new owner miles of smiles.

Charterhouse is now accepting entries for their busy programme of auctions including classic cars and automobilia on Sunday 13th February followed by silver, jewellery and watches with a special section of wine port and spirits on Friday 25th February.

For advice or to arrange a free home visit, please contact Matthew Whitney, Head of the Charterhouse Classic Car Department or Sarah Parsons at Charterhouse, The Long Street Salerooms, Sherborne, Dorset DT9 3BS, 01935 812277 or via email
mw@charterhouse-auctions.co.uk

Forthcoming Sale Previous Sale Sale Preview

Tel: (01935) 812277

For further information regarding this article, please contact Richard Bromell, Partner

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More Progress

I am still cranking away at the '62 Oldsmobile. It feels like grunt work when I think of the entire process; never ending with no finish in site. When I recount details of what I've accomplished, though, it becomes a satisfying progress sheet. (That is the main reason for writing a boring blog about fiddling with old cars!)

The other benefit of these labors is I am learning. Learning real-time, even at the risk of doing it "wrong." I like to call tearing into a car the "school of hard knocks"...literal hard knocks! I am learning, tuning, even kind of perfecting, if I dare say, this craft. It actually does improve with time, too.

Next chance I get, I'll brush some toxic slime on an area not yet stripped and start massaging sheet metal as I wait for the slime to do its job. And I will do so with patience, knowing I am making progress on the car and my skills at the same time.



Speaking of toxic slime, I've managed to remove the paint and filler from almost all of the driver side. I use Aircraft Stripper, and it works good.


I am beginning to bump metal here on a spot at the edge of the hood. It is harder than I thought, yet already very rewarding. I'm finally learning to do it correctly. I also am learning to stop when I've reached a good point, instead of bumping too much and making things worse.


This above picture is a happy one. I have just finished stripping all paint and primer from this lower portion of the passenger fender and it is smooth! Clean! No dents or rust! This is what we hope to find everywhere, but never do.


Here I have just masked the trim holes and door edges to protect from stripper seeping into places I don't want it. It is VERY powerful stuff (and dangerous, too) so I keep it from getting anywhere other than the major outside areas. At the rear 1/3 of the door's center is a spot I've bumped back into place. This area was bent inward right along the trim line, and required careful hammer-off-dolly to bring the steel back to proper contour. It is not perfect, but an exciting improvement!


Just a full shot of the hood, stripping and light bumping of small, shallow dents being completed. Now I have small surface rust spots to remove and final sanding. Then it will be ready for spot filler (if it actually needs any) and primer.


This above shot is a close up of the passenger door area that was banged inward. It came out better than I expected.


This last picture shows an area that began as a frustrating find. I was simply removing what appeared to be light filler when resorted to using my propane torch to soften and remove a deep chunk of Bondo in both areas. The car had been banged here, and the previous bodyman had used a slide hammer to attempt to pull it out. The screw holes where the slide hammer attaches were still there, only filled with the Bondo. And the dents hadn't been pulled much at all. There was still a depth of about 3/8" at the deepest point of these dents that the plastic filler had been used to cover. (Why even use the slide hammer if one isn't going to pull the dent out much at all?)

Anyway, I ended up pulling the panel out farther with my slide hammer and welding up the holes. The bottom area I bumped extensively with the hammer and dolly, but was still too warped and stretched for me to leave. So I cut the spot out, remade an inside wheel well lip (patch) and welded in a new piece. Whew!

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Star Car Vanden Plas

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A 1959 Austin A105 Vanden Plas is one of the star cars at the Charterhouse auction of classic cars on Sunday 13th February held at The Royal Bath & West Showground, Shepton Mallet.

“The name Vanden Plas has always been synonymous with great motor cars, having coach built cars for Rolls Royce, Bentley and other leading manufacturers.” Commented Matthew Whitney. “However, the involvement of Vanden Plas in the A105 is historically important as it was the first time a mass produced Austin was upgraded by Vanden Plas. The car would leave the Austin factory and be delivered to the Vanden Plas coachworks at Kingsbury, London, where the cars would receive leather upholstery, cloth headlining and walnut trim.”

This rare classic car, just one of only 500 made, with only 5 believed remaining running on the road, has been owned by the Somerset vendor since 1968. Fitted with a 3 litre straight six engine coupled to a floor change four speed gearbox with overdrive, it would be propelled from 0-60 mph a fraction over 15 seconds when new!

Charterhouse is now accepting entries for their busy programme of auctions in Sherborne including classic cars and automobilia in February followed by silver, jewellery and watches with a special section of wine port and spirits a couple of weeks later.

To arrange a free home visit, please contact Matthew Whitney or Sarah Parsons at Charterhouse, The Long Street Salerooms, Sherborne, Dorset DT9 3BS, 01935 812277 or via email sp@charterhouse-auctions.co.uk

A rare sight on the roads, an Austin A105 Vanden Plas £8,000-12,000
3000cc engine
Luxury Vanden Plas interior
Quick Links

Forthcoming Sale Previous Sale Sale Preview

Tel: (01935) 812277

For further information regarding this article, please contact Richard Bromell, Partner

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