"E types are still my passion and I get to work with them everyday.”
I've been around classic cars and, in particular, Jaguar E types (or XKEs, if you prefer) all my life!
My father was Treasurer and Registrar of the E Type Register, back in the early days. I remember travelling from Yorkshire to Kent in the back of a Commemorative E type with no rear seat! The whole family also went on the first Geneva E Type Celebration Tour in 1981 which marked the E type’s 20th anniversary; sadly, we had to take the XJ-C as we could not all fit in the Roadster!
From the moment I started to earn a living, my goal was to buy an E type of my own. Over the past 20 years, I've owned many classic cars from TR5s to Pagoda SLs. Now I have finally achieved my dream: I own a 1974 manual V12 Roadster in Signal Red. The car has covered 43,000 miles and still has a completely original interior, and even the key attached to the bulkhead.
Fortunately, I had enough practical knowledge to avoid being caught out by the many mis-described cars on offer - both privately and sometimes by dealers - which could see someone buying a dream only for it to end in tears and a lot of wasted cash.
My experience of buying and maintaining my own E type led me to start my own business restoring and selling E types. My aims were to help guide my customers through the process of buying or restoring an E type, to give clear and honest advice, and to provide expertly restored, mechanically-sound cars.
I am lucky; what started as a hobby has blossomed into a thriving business. E types are still my passion and I get to work with them everyday.
