1947 Jaguar Mk IV 1.5 SE

This is where the Jaguar saloon car story really begins. In the pre-war Swallow Sidecar and SS era, the company had cut its teeth building increasingly desirable sports cars and saloons, but with the 1.5 Litre and its larger brothers, the newly renamed Jaguar Car Company really started to fly. In the aftermath of World War II, company founder William Lyons revived Jaguar production in late 1945 with cars that carried forward the make's 1937-39 styling. That renowned Jaguar design featured swoopy, close-coupled bodywork, with flowing wings and a traditional upright radiator grille flanked by large, freestanding, headlamps. Wire wheels were standard. Known to collectors (retrospectively) as 'Mark IV' models, these original post-World War II Jaguars were produced until 1948, at which point a new design officially designated the 'Mark V' series succeeded them.

Mechanically the 1.5-litre initially utilized a 1,608cc OHV four-cylinder Standard engine, but from 1938 this was bored out to 1775cc and was equipped with a 4-speed manual transmission. The cars were built on a separate chassis frame with suspension by semi-elliptic leaf springs on rigid axles front and rear with mechanically operated brakes using a Girling system.

Despite its lack of out-and-out performance, a report at the time, compared the 4-cylinder 1.5-litre with its 6-cylinder siblings, and opined that the smallest-engined version of the car was "as is often the case ... the sweetest running car" with a "big car cruising gait in the sixties and seventies (mph)".

This delightful Jaguar 1.5 is an SE (Special Equipment) that has just celebrated its 70th birthday having been built on 8th August 1947 and dispatched through P J Evans, Birmingham on 13th August 1947. Finished in the rather fetching colour combination it still wears to this day of Suede Green with Suede Green interior, the SE was equipped as standard with Lucas P80 headlamps, FT58 Fog Lamps, bumpers with curved ends and a heater!!

The car has recently been repatriated back to the UK having spent 30 years in a Dutch collection. Upon its return, it has been subject to a comprehensive restoration to original specification and, as such, is arguably the finest currently available and certainly the finest example this consignor has seen.

This restoration included a full careful dismantle of the car and a bare metal repaint in the period correct shade of Suede Green. It transpires that the Jaguar was in remarkably good condition and required minimal bodywork. Once the body was painted, the car was carefully reassembled using a combination of new parts and refurbished original parts where possible.

Similarly, the interior is in superb condition and retains its delightfully patinated seat leather, which complements the car perfectly and gives it lots of character.

Recently completed, the car is currently undergoing UK registration ready for the next owner to enjoy as intended. This fabulous, post-war, Jaguar saloon ticks all the boxes, a lovely example with a wonderful charm, and a rare opportunity to own a car from the formative years of Jaguar Cars.