Jaguar Land Rover seems to be on a spending spree as the British luxury car maker has announced that it has purchased the largest privately owned collection of British cars. The collection assembled by British enthusiast James Hull, includes 543 cars, most of which are British classics and features many significant Jaguar models including XK SS, C, D and E-types. The cars in the collection will be actively used to support brand and experiential marketing to develop the brands and business in existing and emerging markets.
So what exactly is there in the collection?
The collection has over 130 Jaguars. These include:
- Early Swallow Sidecars and Swallow coachbuilt Austin Sevens
- A full and diverse range of pre-war SS models
- 7 XK 120s – including a rare alloy-bodied example
- C- and D-types
- An XKSS, 8 E-types
- 30 classic Jaguar ‘Mark’ model saloons
- 19 XJS models
- Over 20 XJ saloons with interesting and famous previous owners
The majority of these cars are in truly outstanding condition, with many having fascinating histories behind them. The collection also features many other iconic and famous British cars and models.
This acquisition is part of an increased commitment by Jaguar Land Rover to protect and nurture the rich heritage possessed by both brands. It follows the recent creation of Special Operations, which has been established to develop and oversee heritage and the creation of special vehicles, such as the recently announced Jaguar Project 7.
The Jaguar Heritage business, part of Special Operations, recently announced that it will build six perfect recreations of the original, race-bred Lightweight E-type that was created in 1963. The new Lightweights will hand-built by highly skilled Jaguar craftsmen in a new Jaguar heritage facility at Browns Lane, less than a hundred yards from where the original cars were assembled in 1963.
Expressing his views on the acquisition, John Edwards, Managing Director of Special Vehicle Operations said, “We are delighted that Jaguar Land Rover has come to an agreement with James Hull to secure the future of this very significant collection of Jaguar and British cars. We share the same objective as James to keep this unique collection in British hands and we are delighted this agreement secures their custody for the future. We look forward to continuing to work with James going forward as we develop our heritage activities.”
Owner of the classic collection, James Hull added, “Travelling all over the world to build the collection over the years has been a labour of love and a life’s work, so my primary motivation was not to get the maximum price but rather to secure the future of the collection in this country with the right custodian. I have got to know Jaguar Land Rover well in recent years and they have borrowed cars from the collection for events such as the Mille Miglia and supporting Jaguar in China. They are the perfect custodians to take the collection forward and I know it is in safe hands.”
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