Jaguar’s seminal post-war XK model launched with a batch of lightweight alloy-bodied roadsters, which were often used by privateers to great effect at local racing events. Just 184 examples of the XK 120 Alloy were configured in left-hand-drive before construction switched to steel bodies. Claiming rarity and lightweight construction, these earliest of the XKs are more highly valued than their steel-bodied brethren, as they offer the purest expression of the original design.

By virtue of its chassis sequence, this charming Roadster is numerically just the 53rd XK 120 example configured in left-hand-drive. Chassis number 670053 completed assembly in December 1949, finished in Suede Green paint over a matching Suede Green interior. Dispatched two days after New Years Day, 1950, the Jaguar was shipped to Max Hoffman’s famed New York-based distributorship of European cars.

Although the XK 120’s early history currently remains unknown, by the late 1970s the car is understood to have been owned by Michael Jelvik of Redmond, Washington. In 1981 he sold the Alloy to a fellow enthusiast living in Sidney, British Columbia, a small town on Vancouver Island. The new owner soon parked the car with a long-term goal of restoration, and it remained in a state of barn storage for an amazing 39 years.

The Jaguar at long last reemerged in 2020. As a fair portion of the Roadster had been disassembled and boxed, the local British sports car specialists at Owen Automotive were retained to reassemble the car with what was available. Upon its offering at RM Sotheby’s flagship Monterey sale in August 2020, the Alloy was acquired by The Boeckmann Collection, which astutely recognized the potential of the long-domiciled car.

Over the last six years the XK has made a fascinating complement to the Galpin showroom floor, representing an essential foundational chapter of Jaguar’s benchmark post-war sports car. Documented with a JDHT certificate and notes from a prior owner, this rare early Alloy would make a fantastic candidate for a full restoration, or it may be presented as is. Bidders should note that a full recommissioning for driving use will be necessary before the car may be considered roadworthy. From the casual Coventry enthusiast to the diehard XK completist searching for an early alloy-bodied car, this Roadster would surely make a splendid acquisition.