1956 JAGUAR XK140 OTS 'ROADSTER' Registration Number: UK ta...

Hammer

£27,000

1956 JAGUAR XK140 OTS 'ROADSTER'

Registration Number: UK taxes paid
Chassis Number: S812776
Recorded Mileage: n/a

- Desirable SE specification with C-Type cylinder head
- For full restoration

Building on the success of Jaguar’s groundbreaking XK120 of 1948, the XK140 took the concept further. The new XK boasted a redesigned box-section frame with more supple suspension, that included larger torsion bars and anti-roll bars, improved brakes, and rack-and-pinion steering to replace the earlier recirculating-ball system. Importantly the cockpit area was larger and more comfortable, a criticism of the earlier model which Jaguar were keen to address. The engine now delivered a healthy 190bhp with the assistance of higher-lift camshafts and an improved ignition system, driven through a four-speed manual transmission with optional electric overdrive. Although the XK140 was slightly heavier than the XK120, it was also faster, with a top speed of about 130 mph. A very desirable option was the C-type's higher-performance, larger-valved cylinder head, which gave an additional 20 horsepower, pushing output to about 210bhp. These Special Equipment models boosted boasted quicker acceleration and a greater maximum speed. Almost 8900 units were shipped from the Coventry-based Jaguar works between 1954 and 1957, when the XK140 was superseded by the XK150. The XK140 was among the fastest cars of its generation, focusing public consciousness on Jaguar's continued success at Le Mans through the early 1950s. In production for less than three years, just 3,354 XK140 Roadsters are thought to have left the Browns Lane factory.

Chassis S812776, an XK140 Roadster to SE specification, was exported new to the United States in 1956, by the 1960s residing in Louisiana. By then painted in "Candy Apple Red", we understand that the car was owned by a Mr. Bruce Applegarth. Mr. Applegarth was the boyfriend and later husband of Carol Applegarth (nee Fagot), one of four daughters of notorious New Orleans lawyer Leonard Fagot. Fagot, an obsessive and domineering father, was later accused of murdering two of his son-in-laws, documented in the 1993 American television film Deadly Relations.

The Jaguar stayed in the Louisiana area, at some point gaining a distinctive psychedelic metal flake lilac-coloured paint job, presumably applied by the then owner, a student at Louisiana State University in New Orleans. The car appears to have been last on the road in 1973, later to be laid up for many years before being acquired by our vendor in 2014, and imported into the UK.

A candidate for comprehensive restoration, the XK is now clearly in need of major work. However the car does appear to be complete, and is offered with its original C-Type and later replacement cylinder heads. The Jaguar will be supplied with a U.S. title document, previous bill of sale and UK customs clearance papers.