2013-10-10 08:34:40 | pauls writes:

Ebay item 10/10/13
www.ebay.com/itm/Jaguar-E-Type-Jaguar-XKE-1969-jaguar-e-type-roadster-/261303907 ...
Current bid $10,000, no reserve, 1 bid 6 days left in auction. 61k miles.

Sellers description:
If you're looking for a driver, there are some out there for $30,000- $35,000 that ride and drive nicely. Some even have a decent appearance when viewed without close scrutiny.That's exactly what this car was when I purchased it years ago for $23,000. On the negative, the engine and transmission were out of it, on the positive, the engine had just been rebuilt at Paul's Jaguar of Dallas. A new clutch had been added as well. I brought the trailered car, engine and transmission to Austin. I knew the body had minor rust holes in the rockers and thought I would get to it at some future date.

But, since the drivetrain was out, I decided to pull up the carpets and closely inspect all the normal places: sills, floor pans,, etc. , etc. There were small rust holes in the various panels. After much thought, I decided to redo the body prior to inserting the drivetrain. I've done mechanical work as well as light body and paint work, but an E-Type has a monocoque body, and panel replacement is much more difficult than on chassis or unibody cars. As such it required a lot more metal working expertise and E-type experience than I had.

Fortunately, Lawrence Toneto, a fantastic metal worker, owner of LT Classics in Austin, was available. He specializes in E-Types and has built show winners for Jeff's Resurrections, Classic Jaguar and many Jaguar club members locally and from all over the U.S.
If I had realized the enormity of work and expense I was about to undertake, I would have dropped the drivetrain in and driven a less than pristine car. Again, if you want a plain driver, don't buy this, buy a $25,000-$35,000 driver without thoughts of a restoration.

To continue, we dismantled the car and soft media blasted all the sheet metal, removing all the paint and exposing any and all rust. There were no large gaping rust holes but minor, small Swiss cheese holes in certain areas. Lawrence methodically removed all body panels that had any rust, then attached new body panels. The sills, floor pans, etc. were all spot welded together, built the same way as done at the Jaguar factory. The bonnet and main body were excellent other than the rockers, which were replaced. I also replaced the nose with the proper one. A previous owner had put on a series III nose.
Lawrence then leaded, yes leaded, all joints and seams to factory specs. Then polyurethane primer was applied all over. The car was then blocked, sanded and reprimed. This car has had show quality work done to it and could be a show car if the next buyer decided to finish it in the same vein. Or it could be an exquisite driver. I spent about $10,000 on sheet metal body parts from Welch Enterprises and $18,000 on labor getting the car to this point. Probably another $2,000 was spent on media blasting, paint supplies, lead, and various sundries. I have all the receipts. Also, the previous owner spent $7,000 on the engine.
I have all the parts to the car, it is complete. The numbers match, it has the correct engine and transmission, and it has an old Penn. title. The chrome, seats, and door panels look good but are original. The owners manuals are a bit shabby but complete. The previous owners were driving the car until they had the engine redone. I have never had the car running.

I've recently seen some really rough ones that sold for $20,000 - $23,000 prior to any work. Mine was nicer than those yet I spent an additional $30,000 on it. For anybody wanting to restore one, do the math., this is a bargain.
If you're wanting a pristine E-Type at a major price discount and are willing to work on it, then this may be the car for you. The specialized, precision work has been done at major expense, now, just a lot of tedious work that most mechanically minded people can do is left.

Yes, I could do it also, but I lack the time, energy and most of all, the desire to finish it.

2013-10-15 21:20:43 | pauls writes:

Car returns to ebay 10/15/13
www.ebay.com/itm/Jaguar-E-Type-Jaguar-XKE-1969-jaguar-e-type-roadster-/261306090 ...
Current bid $23,100.00
Reserve price not met, 10 bids 4 days left in auction.

Previous auction ended early.