1961 Jaguar E-Type Fixed Head Coupe (early outside bonnet latch)

885010roadUnited Kingdom

Engine: Twin-cam inline six-cylinder, with four-wheel independent suspension and disc brakes
Colour: Cream

Chassis 885010 is among only 11 surviving examples of the earliest Jaguar E-Type fixed-head coupes built in 1961, one of just 18 that left the factory from a production run of 20 left-hand-drive units. Delivered new to Ottawa, Canada, it spent over five decades with a single owner before passing to a Jaguar specialist and subsequently undergoing a meticulous, documented restoration by David Ferguson of Images Auto Body. Retaining its original body, doors, bonnet, engine block, gearbox, and factory radiator, it is regarded by leading E-Type authority Dr. Michael Mueller as one of the most component-authentic early coupes in existence.

Ownership

—Auction sale
Sold US$720,000
RM Sotheby's catalogue lot →
1961 →Factory delivery
Terra Construction Company
full documentation
Initial registered owner per Jaguar Heritage Trust Certificate; based in Ottawa, Canada, with delivery to Montreal.
1961 →Acquisition unknown
Vernon Corbet
partial documentation
Listed as first individual owner; reportedly tall and found the car unsuitable, parting with it after only a few years.
2014 →Private sale
Terry Larson
partial documentation
Jaguar specialist who sourced the coupe around 2014; subsequently sold it on behalf of the current owner.
Date unknownPrivate sale
Rob Hopper
partial documentation
Retained the car for approximately 51 years, using it only for leisure drives to a nearby rural property and avoiding wet-weather or urban use.
Date unknownPrivate sale
Current owner
partial documentation
Had been actively seeking an early E-Type of this type; commissioned a full restoration completed shortly before the auction.

Competition

No competition history extracted from the catalogue.

Maintenance & restoration

—Restoration
Images Auto Body
Comprehensive, research-intensive restoration to the highest originality standard, beginning with the largely intact original body, doors, bonnet, engine block, and gearbox. Numerous new-old-stock period-correct parts were sourced. A replacement cylinder head with an appropriate date code was located and fitted in place of a non-original unit.
Work carried out by David Ferguson of Campbell, California. Dr. Michael Mueller served as a consultant on authenticity. A seven-page account of the research and restoration by journalist Paul McNabb was produced.

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