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Further to your article in the current issue of MOTOR SPORT, you might be interested in two vehicles that my wife and I consider to be our “Ideal Pair”. We have arrived at the two-car status almost by accident and certainly on a limited budget.
In November 1971, I bought a tired 3.8 Mk. II Jaguar and in the 13 months that followed I restored to as near original condition as possible. It was returned to traffic on Jan. 1st, 1973, and to date has covered some 700 miles. It was originally registered on Nov. 9th, 1960 and I have no doubt that the purist would quibble about some departure—the flat fronted headlamps have been replaced with a pair of Careko T.I. units, some welding work on the front end has necessitated omission of the overriders and the colour Sapphire metallic is not a Jaguar colour. The rebuild was carried out on the premises of a close friend, who operates a “do-it-yourself” scheme, at weekends—without these facilities the restoration would have been impossible. The total cost of the operation was £450 including initial purchase.
The Jaguar’s garage mate is a 1964 Austin Mini Countryman bought last year for £200. It is very much the family hack—a task that it performs with the minimum of fuss and without complaint—what more can one say?
Our ideal pair is not perhaps as esoteric as some owned by your readers, but so far as we are concerned, we have reached a situation with which we are very happy and at a cost of under £700.
Sally and Peter Graftar.
Paignton.