1976 Daimler Double Six Avon-Stevens Convertible

As soon as people clapped eyes on Jaguar’s glorious pillarless coupé they began to imagine what a convertible version might look like.

Jaguar, no doubt put off by the difficulty of making such a vehicle conform to US legislation, never got a roofless design off the drawing board. 

Esteemed coachbuilders Ladbroke Avon of Warwick, on the other hand, saw no impediment to developing a convertible version.

They chose to convert just 5 of the even more luxurious (and rarer) Daimler Double-Six coupés.

We understand that of the five in existence, three are in France, Germany and Japan respectively, and the other two (including this one, obviously) are in the UK.

We’ve never seen one in the flesh before, and we don’t expect to see another one any time soon.

This car was delivered new to a company director in 1976 and was promptly sent off to Ladbroke Avon for conversion to what became known as the Avon-Stevens model. 

Originally ‘Green Sand’ in colour, the car was sold in 1982 and apparently saw little use until the mid-1990s, when it was reported to be in a fairly poor state.

It was bought by a Daimler specialist who had the car resprayed in the shade of red you see today and fitted a new black fabric hood.

In 2007 it came to the attention of a buyer who had long wanted an Avon-Stevens to take pride of place in his garage. 

He bought it and then spent a considerable amount of time and money thoroughly recommissioning, overhauling and refurbishing the car.

While in his curation the car had the engine, gearbox, brakes, exhaust, suspension and electrics properly fettled and optimised and there are comprehensive notes attesting to the work done and the costs incurred.

The interior has been cleaned up and refurbished where appropriate.

The car starts, drives, handles and stops with confidence-inducing competence and capability.

The bodywork needs some cosmetic attention in a few areas where bubbling and blistering has started to make itself known.

You can instantly see why people would have been clamouring for Jaguar to make a drop-top version.

It’s a stunning-looking car and the Avon-Stevens does a good job of retaining the pure, elegant lines of the XJ-C despite the absence of a hard-top. 

The car presents very well from every angle and is free of any dinks, dents or creases of consequence.

The panel gaps and shut-lines are reassuringly consistent and the car’s black fabric hood is in good order, save for a short rip near the top of the nearside ‘C pillar’ section.

The tonneau cover for the hood mechanism is in good condition.

Being either new or refurbished, the car’s chrome-work is shiny and bright, including on the wire wheels, and there’s no foxing, pitting or tarnishing in evidence that we can see.

The wheels are shod in Bridgestone Dueler rubber at the front and Dunlop SP at the rear.

The red paint looks OK from a few feet away. Move a little closer and you’ll begin to notice a few issues.

There’s some significant bubbling at the base of the driver’s door and at the base of the o/s/f wheel-arch where it meets the front valance. There’s also a lesser outbreak of minor bubbling and some blistering along the top of the driver’s door, plus some scuffs and cracked paint on the wing ahead of it.

We saw a little bubbling around the base of the o/s/r wheel arch, on the n/s/r wing where it meets the passenger door, and around the outer nearside headlamp.

There’s a large area of micro-blistering atop the n/s/r wing, and the n/s/f fog lamp lens is cracked.

Aside from that, the lights, lenses, badging and other exterior fixtures and fittings appear to be in reasonable condition.

The black leather upholstery has been cleaned and fed at some point and, for the most part, it has just a gentle patina and a few creases here and there.

The exception to this rule is the rear bench seat, where there’s a split to the leather on the seat squab.

The vinyl on the door cards is a little baggy in places and there’s a patch of vinyl missing from the armrest on the driver’s door.

The carpets and mats, being new-ish, are in fine fettle.

While the dials, instruments and gauges on the dashboard look decent (and work, as far as we’re aware), the wood veneers on the glove compartment and dashboard fascia have fared rather less well and there are numerous cracks and patches of faded veneer in evidence.

The steering wheel, gear sector and other controls all look decent, but the roof lining is starting to show its age and is a bit baggy and stained here and there. 

The boot is good and contains what appears to be the original Daimler toolkit.

The engine bay is very full of engine and, as ever with Jaguar’s mighty 5.3-litre V12, it is an intimidatingly complex and busy thing to behold.

There’s more piping in here than you’d find at the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. 

The engine bay is clean, dry and orderly, and the car’s undersides look to be reassuringly possessed of plenty of structural integrity, although there are a few spots of what appears to be surface rust in evidence in a few places. 

The history of the car prior to 1995 has been lost in the mists of time. Its history since then is meticulously documented and recorded.

We know from the documentation that all manner of work has been undertaken, most of it by classic car specialist Dave Baskerville of Barnstaple, Devon, who has also serviced the car regularly for many years.

He fettled it into a mechanical state where it was fit to go on tours of Spain, Croatia, Austria, and Mallorca. 

Highlights of the work carried out include, but are by no means limited to, the following.

• Fuel system renewed with new tanks and sender units
• Stainless-steel exhaust system fitted
• Transmission fully serviced including a new cooler 
• Suspension and braking systems extensively overhauled
• Body treated with rust protection
• Chrome-work replaced where needed
• New stereo
• Fresh carpets
• Cleaned and fed upholstery

It comes with a V5C and a recent HPI report. 

If your idea of hell is people endlessly approaching you with a list of questions, don’t buy this car.

Virtually no-one will have seen an Avon-Stevens before, and most people won’t even know what it is.

This car is vanishingly rare and has the very real benefit of a thorough and detailed history of all the work carried out from the mid-1990s until the present day.

It is just a few cosmetic jobs away from regaining most, all or some of its considerable former glory, and you’ll get to decide how much.

You’ll then be the proud owner of a car that will turns heads and get people talking wherever you go.

It’s really very special indeed.

We’re confident to offer this fine car for auction with an estimate of £20,000 - £25,000. 

Viewing is strongly encouraged, and this lot is located at Bonhams|Cars Online HQ. Viewings are STRICTLY BY APPOINTMENT and we are open weekdays between 10am - 12pm or 2pm - 4pm. To make a booking, please use the ‘Enquire About This Vehicle’ button on the listing. Feel free to ask any questions, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.