Said to be the 58th flat-floor E-Type built with internal bonnet latches, this 1961 Jaguar E-Type Series I 3.8-Litre Roadster still retains a number of features more commonly associated with the earlier outside bonnet-lock cars, including welded louvers. A left-hand-drive example destined for the U.S., it was completed by Jaguar on 31 August 1961 and finished in Opalescent Dark Green over a Biscuit interior, according to the accompanying JDHT Certificate. This was only a few days after the final outside bonnet latch car was produced. After being dispatched to Jaguar Cars of New York on 7 September, the car was delivered to an unknown first owner, believed to be residing on the U.S. West Coast.

The engine was replaced under warranty early in its life (the engine block and head both exhibit matching serial numbers, R-3175-9, as well as “10/61” date stampings), and the gearbox was likely replaced at the same time. This was done prior to the car being purchased by Nick Wilson, a resident of Redondo Beach, California, in 1968 upon his return from military service in Vietnam. Wilson used the car extensively before the water pump failed in 1979 and purchased another 1967 E-Type to enjoy, leaving this car parked for nearly a decade. Moving from Redondo Beach to the town of Solvang, Wilson brought the 1961 E-Type with him, but it remained in storage. In 1995, it was then purchased by a close friend of Wilson, Kevin Deighton, who brought the car to his home in Long Beach to be restored. Being a skilled engineer and metal worker, Mr. Deighton did the work himself, changing its colours from white and black leather to what he believed at the time was its original colour, Maroon with biscuit-coloured interior.

With life intervening along the way, it took Deighton 17 years to restore the E-Type, but he managed to put some 3,000 miles on it after completing the restoration. He finally parted ways with the E-Type in 2015 when it was purchased by the consignor, who had it shipped to the UK, commissioning a meticulous two-year restoration by E-Type specialists Butlin & Sons Classic Cars in Derbyshire, totalling £45,000 in invoices. The E-Type was stripped to bare metal and repainted in its original colour of Opalescent Dark Green, which was confirmed by the Jaguar Heritage Trust.

Accompanied by a DVD containing invoices and photos from the restoration, its original tool kit and invoices from 1975 up to the present day, this is a splendid E-Type in all regards.