XK120 Roadster

1953 Jaguar XK120 Roadster

Offered by Bring a Trailer | Online | December 2024

Photo – Bring a Trailer Auctions

When Jaguar decided to re-enter the sports car market after WWII, they did so with this, the XK120. Which was quite a departure from its predecessor, the pre-war SS100. The XK120 debuted at the 1948 London Motor Show in Roadster form. Later, there would be fixed-head and drophead coupe variants (the DHC had roll-up windows, while the Roadster did not).

Between 1948 and 1954, there were 12,055 XK120s built across all styles. This one is powered by the stock 3.4-liter inline-six, though it has been fitted with an SE cylinder head. The base car was rated at 160 horsepower, while full SE cars made 180. SE cars also had other performance add-ons.

This U.S.-spec car has had two owners since new and was originally finished in gray. Its auction ends tomorrow, and you can find out more about it here.

XK120 by Pinin Farina

1955 Jaguar XK120 SE Coupe by Pinin Farina

Offered by Bonhams | Amelia Island, Florida | March 3, 2022

Photo – Bonhams

This is the third Jaguar XK120 we’ve featured, and all three have been coachbuilt cars with bodies that would not have come from the Jaguar factory. The XK120 launched in 1948 at the London Motor Show. Roadsters came first, and coupes and drophead coupes followed thereafter.

This coupe is the only XK120 bodied by Pinin Farina. It was at shows in 1955, which would’ve been after the XK140 entered production. It is an SE, or Special Equipment, model, meaning that the 3.4-liter inline-six was modified with higher-lift camshafts and a dual-exit exhaust for a horsepower bump to 180.

This car came to the U.S. via Max Hoffman, and a restoration was carried out in 2015. The result was a second-in-class at Pebble Beach in 2017. This one-off Jag has an estimate of $900,000-$1,300,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $940,000.

Wide-Body XK120

1951 Jaguar XK120 Cabriolet by Autenrieth

Offered by Oldtimer Galerie | Gstaad, Switzerand | December 29, 2017

Photo – Oldtimer Galerie

British sports cars are known for being small and having cramped quarters for driver and passenger. The Jaguar XK120 was no exception. Introduced in 1948, it was Jaguar’s first post-war sports car and it was unlike anything else on the road at the time.

It was powered by a 160 horsepower, 3.4-liter straight-six. The “120” in the car’s name referred to it’s top speed in mph. It was lauded as “the world’s fastest production car,” which was largely marketing B.S. as a pre-war Model J Duesenberg could supposedly do 130+ (but I guess that wasn’t classified as a “production” car?).

Anyway, about those cramped quarters. This car was ordered new by a man in Frankfurt, Germany. He didn’t like the way he fit inside of it, so he shipped it to Autenrieth in Darmstadt and they built a wider body for the car, enlarging the passenger compartment to make it roomier. Strangely, the body was built in two halves by two different teams and then joined when placed on the car. If there was a reality competition show about coachbuilding, this is how it would be done. You can apparently still see the seam under the hood.

Autenrieth planned to build eight of these, but this was the only one completed as it brought with it an immense cost. It may still look like a stock XK120, but it is indeed different. Discovered in 1990 after 25 years of disuse, it was restored between 1991 and 1994 and again between 2010 and 2012, when the original engine was re-installed. This one-off Jag will be one of the last cars sold at auction in 2017. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

XK120 Supersonic

1952 Jaguar XK120 Supersonic by Ghia

Offered by RM Sotheby’s | Monterey, California | August 13-15, 2015

Photo - RM Sotheby's

Photo – RM Sotheby’s

When the Jaguar XK120 was introduced in 1948, it was the fastest production car in the world with a top speed of over 120 mph. It had classic Jaguar styling that would stay with Jaguar cars for decades. But what happens when you take a classic British sports car and send it to Italy? This. This happens.

This awesome, futuristic sports car is unrecognizable as a Jaguar, certainly as an XK120. It looks strikingly similar to an Aston Martin Supersonic of similar vintage. First of all, this car is powered by a 220 horsepower 3.4-liter straight-six – making it one of the most-powerful XK120s in the world. It was originally an XK120 Fixed-Head Coupe sent to a dealer in Paris, who then sent it (and another car) to Ghia for a Jet Age makeover.

This car remained in France most of its life and has been repainted in the last 10 years – but everything else is original, including the 22,000 kilometers on the odometer. Only three XK120s were blessed with the Supersonic treatment. Only two are still around, as the body from the third is now on a Shelby Cobra. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $2,062,500.