Photo: Gooding & Co.
Anything between $10,000,000 to $12,000,000, that’s how much XKD 518 is worth according to Gooding & Co. The red-painted D-Type presents itself in short-nose flavor, and in comparison to the race cars, this is a road-going example.
One of an estimated 24 production XKDs delivered in the United Kingdom, #518 is one of as few as two D-Type models delivered in red according to the auction house. And boy, does this blast from the past have the history to match its fine physique and whopping performance!
Finished in December 1955 and dispatched to Jaguar-Rover dealership Henlys of Manchester, XKD 518 was sold to Bernie Ecclestone. Indeed, that Bernie who got a taster for motorsports in the late 1940s, and who became the top dog in F1 as the years passed, only to be let off from his position as chief exec of the Formula 1 Group by Liberty Media.
A year later, British racing driver Peter Blond saw the car, fell in love with it, and convinced Ecclestone to sell it to him. Blond remembers that Bernie had a small office on Warren Street, “a sort of box with a secretary in it. It was already registered KDB 100 when I bought it. It was brand new and was offered to me for £3,500, which was not a bad price as Brian Naylor in Stockport was offering one for £3,750 at about the same time.”
The current owner bought the car in 2008, and as you can tell from the photo gallery, it’s a time capsule. Equipped with the original 3.4-liter inline-6 engine and four-speed manual transmission, the short-nose 1955 D-Type develops 250 brake horsepower and 242 pound-feet of torque on full song, enabling a top speed of more than 260 km/h (162 miles per hour).
The distinctive livery, owner and racing history, as well as the A+ condition distinguish XKD 518 from its peers, which are good enough reasons to spend that much money on an old heap of aluminum. As a brief refresher, the most expensive D-Type to change hands is the Ecurie Ecosse-raced XKD 501, which sold for $21.78 million. The record for the most expensive British car ever auctioned, however, is $22.6 million and goes to the Aston Martin DBR1.
Finished in December 1955 and dispatched to Jaguar-Rover dealership Henlys of Manchester, XKD 518 was sold to Bernie Ecclestone. Indeed, that Bernie who got a taster for motorsports in the late 1940s, and who became the top dog in F1 as the years passed, only to be let off from his position as chief exec of the Formula 1 Group by Liberty Media.
A year later, British racing driver Peter Blond saw the car, fell in love with it, and convinced Ecclestone to sell it to him. Blond remembers that Bernie had a small office on Warren Street, “a sort of box with a secretary in it. It was already registered KDB 100 when I bought it. It was brand new and was offered to me for £3,500, which was not a bad price as Brian Naylor in Stockport was offering one for £3,750 at about the same time.”
The current owner bought the car in 2008, and as you can tell from the photo gallery, it’s a time capsule. Equipped with the original 3.4-liter inline-6 engine and four-speed manual transmission, the short-nose 1955 D-Type develops 250 brake horsepower and 242 pound-feet of torque on full song, enabling a top speed of more than 260 km/h (162 miles per hour).
The distinctive livery, owner and racing history, as well as the A+ condition distinguish XKD 518 from its peers, which are good enough reasons to spend that much money on an old heap of aluminum. As a brief refresher, the most expensive D-Type to change hands is the Ecurie Ecosse-raced XKD 501, which sold for $21.78 million. The record for the most expensive British car ever auctioned, however, is $22.6 million and goes to the Aston Martin DBR1.
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