1968 Daimler V8 250

This lovely example of a Daimler V8 250 is being sold on behalf of a deceased estate by the family. “Although the last owner’s sons love the car as it brought so much joy to their father, they don’t have the facilities to care for it in the long term,” explains John Hepworth, who consigned the vehicle on their behalf.

The included V5c document indicates that the Daimler has had a total of six owners from new (first registration on 24/01/1968), and that the previous custodian took ownership on 04/04/2017. “He purchased it from a local (Southsea) classic car dealer and had it serviced by a local classic car mechanic. The car regularly attended classic car shows in the area and was used for Sunday drives when the sun was out. However, in more recent years it was seen driving around the lanes of north Somerset where the previous owner retired to.”

It has a famous music business personality in its ownership history… although, in the interests of privacy, we’ll refrain from stating exactly whom.

And that’s that. A very smart and very nice example of the breed that’s been regularly used and maintained and enjoyed. “It’s not concours, but it’s not far off,” says John. “It’s also in the best colour combination, it starts on the button and pulls nicely with no known vices.”

The Daimler’s body is holding up very well. There are very few stonechips to the paint surface. The finish remains generally very smart, although there’s the odd flaw here and there (such as the two small scrapes on the offside C-pillar) that’s to be expected on a regularly enjoyed classic car. Panel fit is good. That said, the rear of the offside sill doesn’t sit quite as flush against the wheel-spat as the nearside.

Bright work is a mixed bag: the fluted radiator grille, front bumper and wheel trims all remain smart, but the rear bumper will need to be re-chromed to do the rest of the car justice as there’s a bit of flaking and rust coming through. Tyres are sound, but date stamps should be checked.

Overall, it remains a handsome and tidy beast.

This car scores highly in the cabin, which has a lovely ambience. It’s a combination of nice original features (wood veneers, Motorola radio) and later additions (pleasant silver and chrome safety belts and tan leather piped blue). The latter is just on the cusp of developing patina and provides an appealing contrast to the dark blue exterior; it’s also fairly free from marks, tares or other imperfections.

The dashboard central instrument and switch housing is free from marking and the fitted blue carpets are still in good condition. That said, the material to the rear of the central radio speaker housing has come a little loose – that should be an easy fix, though.

Some of the door cappings have lost their lacquer at the very extreme edges but the door cards are all excellent. Up top, the fawn headlining remains securely in place, although it is a touched marked here and there. The rear parcel shelf covering is also lifting slightly on the offside rear corner.

These are all notes of a minor nature. It’s a cabin that’ll provide the next owner with plenty of pleasure and one that can certainly continue to be further improved at their leisure. Or left as is, so they can concentrate on the driving.

John loaded the Daimler on to the trailer for its delivery to The Market’s Abingdon headquarters and says, “it felt like it was running a little bit lumpy, but it’s probably a spark plug or something similar as when I drove it a month or two back it drove very nicely.”

That lumpiness seems to have cleared itself, as our video below demonstrates with the V8 revving smoothly again. After a bit of enforced recent inaction, a touch of fettling to fine tune matters should have this old girl spinning its wares majestically once more.

The underside looks to be in nice solid condition. It’s undersealed, although there’s a bit of surface rust here and there so now could be a good time to have it retreated to ensure maximum protection going forward. That said, it should be good as is for a number of years yet. A stainless-steel exhaust system is fitted and remains in good condition.

Up top again, pop the bonnet and you’ll find a presentable engine bay. The engine itself could be sharpened up aesthetically should the next owner wish to show the car – that’d be a nice, slow project for next winter. The radiator too could be given a lick of paint to further enhance the under bonnet appearance.

You’ll find a spare tyre and full tool set, as well as a car cover in the boot. The wheel well had a bit of water (and resultant surface rust) in it, so it’s worth getting those boot lid seals checked and replaced if necessary.

As well as the V5c document, you’ll also find a Daimler 2½ Litre V8 Saloon Service Manual, a Spare Parts Catalogue, a handful of expired MOT test certificates and quite a fair few invoices for works carried out. The ones of most interest are of recent vintage and from Wimbledon Park Garage in Southsea, which looked after the car for the vendors’ father. It’s certainly worth flicking through them (and earlier ones, too) to get an indication of the care and attention that the vehicle has had. There’s no big budget works in there, just a steady outlay on the necessary fettling to keep a classic car in good running order.

You’ll also find a number of Jaguar and Daimler related magazine articles, as well as the (fnnar, fnnar-named) Journal of the Daimler and Lanchaster Owners’ Club, The Driving Member.

To top things off there’s a recent (09/06/2022) RAC Vehicle History Check document, showing no vehicle alerts for the vehicle.

Please visit the documents section of the gallery of this listing where you will find photos of the paperwork to support our claim that this car has been maintained to a very good standard.

We stated it when listing another example recently and it’s certainly worth reiterating here: compared to the Jaguar Mk2 the Daimler V8 250 has provided a bit of a classic car bargain for several decades now and, as this fine example demonstrates, it still does.

The Daimler provides a more refined driving experience than its more rufty-tufty sporting sibling, so if grace, space, and elegant pace is more your thing then it’s certainly the one to go for.

Alas, the previous custodian is no longer with us, but his careful ownership has ensured that this Daimler remains in nice fettle. As such, we think it’ll realise somewhere between £12,000 and £15,000. At the lower end it’d be a cheeky buy, whilst even at the top end it’d be a fair reflection of its condition.

Once purchased it can be immediately driven and enjoyed. Sunday driver, occasional classic car show visitor or participant, and a lovely old girl to fettle. Or all three, the choice will be yours. Either way, they all sound lovely to us.

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; we are open weekdays 9am-5pm, to arrange an appointment please use the Contact Seller button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions.’