Photo: DM Historics
Jaguar’s 2.4 / 3.4 Liter – better known throughout history as the Mark 1 – was adamant to the company’s success during the time. Especially the higher-powered 3.4-liter version had an impact on the American market and it quickly outsold the larger and much more expensive sedans in the range. More so, the Mk1 3.4-liter also became successful in motorsport, being entered in many different categories.
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Thus, it shouldn’t come out as a surprise that surviving examples have managed to acquire a racing pedigree – either during their heydays or in modern times, via dedicated competitions for classic cars.
This 1959 Jaguar Mark 1, currently on sale for £85,000 (almost $110k at the current exchange rates) from DM Historics, a British specialist in classic racers, is fitting the exact bill of the latter category. It’s a fully FIA-qualified example and has already qualified in pole-position during pristine events, such as the Goodwood Revival or St Mary's Trophy.
Originally, the Cornish Grey unit with a Red leather interior left the Browns Lane factory in spring 1959 aiming for a quiet and comfortable country life somewhere in Devon, acting as companion to an exhibition horse breeder. Little else is known about the car before the 1990s when it transitioned to a more tumultuous racing career.
Back then it was reconverted to full racing specifications, quickly entering the historic racing scene. Jump forward some other years and the Mk1 ended up in the possession of Leo Voyazides, a good friend of Win Percy – crowned British Saloon Car champion for three years in a row starting in 1980.
The renowned driver was the one who took the pole at the Goodwood Revival in 2002 and after a terrible medical error left Percy crippled in 2003 it was converted to full hand controls for a return at the 2004 Revival edition.
Its current form came to be in 2014 under new ownership, when it was again recommissioned to racing standards (FIA papers valid until 2026), and also got treated to a new shade of British Racing Green, a Green over Red interior with period-correct wood veneers, as well as a full racing engine rebuild.
The 3.4-liter mill, which in its glory days could deliver 210 hp, has gone through a Rob Beere rebuild that lifted the total output to around 300 hp – and it also got hooked to a close-ratio transmission box, a race clutch, and a beefed-up braking system.
å
Thus, it shouldn’t come out as a surprise that surviving examples have managed to acquire a racing pedigree – either during their heydays or in modern times, via dedicated competitions for classic cars.
This 1959 Jaguar Mark 1, currently on sale for £85,000 (almost $110k at the current exchange rates) from DM Historics, a British specialist in classic racers, is fitting the exact bill of the latter category. It’s a fully FIA-qualified example and has already qualified in pole-position during pristine events, such as the Goodwood Revival or St Mary's Trophy.
Originally, the Cornish Grey unit with a Red leather interior left the Browns Lane factory in spring 1959 aiming for a quiet and comfortable country life somewhere in Devon, acting as companion to an exhibition horse breeder. Little else is known about the car before the 1990s when it transitioned to a more tumultuous racing career.
Back then it was reconverted to full racing specifications, quickly entering the historic racing scene. Jump forward some other years and the Mk1 ended up in the possession of Leo Voyazides, a good friend of Win Percy – crowned British Saloon Car champion for three years in a row starting in 1980.
The renowned driver was the one who took the pole at the Goodwood Revival in 2002 and after a terrible medical error left Percy crippled in 2003 it was converted to full hand controls for a return at the 2004 Revival edition.
Its current form came to be in 2014 under new ownership, when it was again recommissioned to racing standards (FIA papers valid until 2026), and also got treated to a new shade of British Racing Green, a Green over Red interior with period-correct wood veneers, as well as a full racing engine rebuild.
The 3.4-liter mill, which in its glory days could deliver 210 hp, has gone through a Rob Beere rebuild that lifted the total output to around 300 hp – and it also got hooked to a close-ratio transmission box, a race clutch, and a beefed-up braking system.
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