If you thought that the Lamborghini Countach replica that was built in a basement was cool wait until you hear the story of Ray Parrott who succeeded in building a classic 1960’s Jaguar V12 E-Type in his garage using 100 percent genuine factory parts. According to Octane magazine that published this fascinating story, Ray Parrott is a self-taught engineer and as you may have already guessed, a Jaguar fanatic. His involvement with the E-Type project began about two years ago when he was approached by Mike Wilkinson of M&C Wilkinson Jaguar Spares, a Yorkshire-based Jaguar parts business of which Ray was a regular customer.
Wilkinson had managed to secure a truckload of original and unused E-Type parts from an unnamed gentleman who had acquired them from Jaguar in 1974 when the final E-type left the Browns Lane assembly line. Amazingly, about 95% of the necessary parts to build the last E-Type were all there in their original packaging including items such as a Roadster bodyshell, an unused V12 engine, a gearbox and a full interior.
As for the rest of the parts needed for the build like the missing windscreen, they could and eventually were easily found in original form.
It didn’t take long for the two men to start thinking about building a Series 3 E-Type from the ground up. Parrot made a deal with Wilkinson to take the parts at his home garage in Essex. Aside from the minor repairs that the bodyshell needed and which were done by an outside professional, Parrott undertook all the other jobs himself. He also made a visit to the UK Driver and Vehicle Licensing agency (DLVA) where he was assured that he could obtain a period registration number and chassis number.
After working day and night for eight months, Parrot completed the vehicle and is now the proud owner of what is, the last original Jaguar V12 E-Type Series 3 Roadster.
Via: Octane (Photos: John Colley)