1967 Jaguar 340

This is a really interesting car. First registered on the last day of 1967, the car now shows a mileage of under 22,000 miles. Obviously wrong, you would think. Mike, the man who has owned it for the last three years or so, doesn't know for sure and would certainly not claim it to be genuine.

But there's been a lot of virtual beard-stroking here at The Market. We can't be sure either, the state of the underside today suggests that it spent little if any time on salty public roads. Mike tells us he has recently met someone who was involved in its early life and remembers it as 'a good un'.

Mike is the type of driver/owner who has to have the working guts of any car 'just so'. Mechanically, he describes the Jag as excellent and a beautiful drive. Over time, the 340 has had many sensible modifications to make it a practical everyday driver. We'll get into that in more detail a little later.

A previous owner removed the choke mechanism for some reason but Mike reports that this does not impinge on the car's driveability. 'Give the fuel pump time to prime the system, then two pumps of the throttle and she starts up as smooth as you like every time.' If he was keeping the car long-term he would probably track down and fit a new choke mechanism but it's fine as it is - something we'd agree with having sampled this car over the last week.

His plan for the car was to enter it in the next Peking-Paris Rally, but the organisers turned him down on the grounds that they already had a Mk 2 booked in and didn't want any duplications in the entry list. That's saved Mike the £40k entrance fee at least, and more importantly allowed him to use the car for his own wedding, but he's still slightly regretful about the P-P knockback as he felt that the 340 would have been ideal for the marathon trip. 'I'd jump in it today and drive it down to Spain without a moment's hesitation,' he says. In fact he had no hesitation in driving the 20 miles or so to us on two occasions - firstly for an initial appraisal and then for the auction. 

Although Mike is the first to admit that this 340 is by no means perfect, the general metallurgical health of the car appears to be very much better than average, backed up by its fresh MOT, with no advisories.

We are also pleased to report that on our brief test drives, car has started well and drives very exceedingly well with the gearbox, steering and brakes all working as we had hoped.

Pleasingly the Jag displays none of the tired sagging that often afflicts cars of this age. It stands up really well thanks to the Harvey Bailey handling kit that Mike's fitted along with more very worthwhile chassis work (more on that later), and today it looks eager for use.

The white paintwork does present itself very well, but any 340 that hasn't been put into a controlled environment after a full restoration is almost bound to have had some corrosion in its life, and this 52-year-old 340 is no exception. The front wings do have some filler, there's some rust coming through on the traditionally vulnerable bonnet slam panel, some of the door bottoms and the rear wheel arch trims, along with some brown 'blebs' breaking through the boot paint and on the panels behind the rear quarterlights - but other than that it really is in super shape. The floors and boot are all described as solid. 

Quite a lot of the chrome and brightwork is new to the car and is in great nick. The design of the vent flap below the windscreen was not Jaguar's finest hour as it is practically impossible to lubricate. Despite his best efforts the one on Mike's car is slightly ajar, allowing in a small draught in winter but also a lovely cooling breeze in summer! The windscreen has had a new rubber fitted.

The silvered wire wheels that Mike put on appear to be super condition and the tyres have plenty of tread. Putting those wires back onto the car came with the bonus benefit of new hubs and bearings.

Part of the 340 proposition was a slight dilution in luxury to keep it competitive in the increasingly cut-throat UK car market of the mid 1960s. From a casual glance you'd never know that there'd been any cost-cutting as it appears that all the usual Jaguar accoutrements – leather upholstery, wood trim and a fighter jet's worth of instrumentation – are present and correct.

In fact that 'leather' isn't leather at all, it's Ambla, the faux-leather material that Jaguar used in the 240/340 and that other premium British marques also used to keep production costs manageable. Even quite close up it's highly convincing. The distinctive Ambla patina that has been created over the last half century gives it a very authentic look. Seat belts are inertia reels all round.

Wood is cool stuff. For years it sits around in trees, creating wonderful grain patterns behind the bark. Then we chop the trees down, saw it all up and put it into cars. Well, not so much now maybe, but we certainly used to, and Jaguar were acknowledged experts in the fine art of automotive wood. The polished, figured walnut that survived the accountant's chop in 1967 will still turn any onlooker's head. It could be re-lacquered if you were that way inclined and Wood-rimmed Moto-Lita steering wheels never look better in any car than they do in a Jag.

The headlining and doorcards are in fine fettle, the sunvisors only slightly ragged. A complete new set of carpets and underlay was fitted in 2015. Two years before that, the car received new underdash and A-pillar trims. A smashing retro-look head unit provides DAB digital radio and hands-free Bluetooth for your phone. Mike hates random keys opening random doors, so has invested in a set of locks so that one-key-fits-all. All the clocks work bar the actual clock, ie the electrically-powered analogue one set into the tachometer that tells the time. You could source a replacement for £300 or so, or you could do what Mike does and wear a watch. 

If for whatever perverse reason you decided that you would like your Mk 2/340 to reach a premature end, there's one great way to achieve that: don't drive it. Leave it dormant for weeks or months on end, and preferably out in the elements just to make absolutely sure.

Mike has the opposite philosophy. He is a great believer in the notion of keeping the lifeblood flowing, not just in motoring but in life generally. For him that means driving whatever cars he owns on a regular basis. When they're not out on the road, they're in his dry garage. This regimen has the double benefit of staving off the mouldering effects of inactivity and delivering lots of pleasure at the same time.

The double overhead cam straight six engine looks clean and dry and sports ITG Racing air filters, electronic ignition, a replacement set of HT leads, amd a recent alternator and Bosch battery. A Facet high-pressure fuel pump has been fitted, as has an additional Kenlowe fan. For shows, you might want to take some wire wool and Hammerite to the valve covers, but as it stands the underbonnet look is purposeful and workmanlike.

Any suspension areas that might have caused MOT testers to use the words 'perished' or 'perishing' in the past have been put right by Mike. The car has been polybushed and fitted with new springs and Spax adjustable shocks. Crossmembers and suspension attachment points all look strong and clean with some minimal flaking of the protective paints. The exhaust is stainless steel.

It comes compete with an MOT until September 2020, which was passed with no advisories whatsoever! Pretty impressive eh..............?

A few 340s were available with power steering. Mike's car doesn't have it, but other than waking up your tricep muscles in parking manoeuvres he hasn't found this to be a problem.

To repeat a comment made earlier, our test-drives wholeheartedly confirm the vendor's comment that this car feels capable of driving to that cliched South of France tomorrow. 

A fat sheaf of documentation shows that a plethora of new parts have been fitted in the last decade, including many suspension, braking and steering components. The last big bill for just under £1500 was for a good going over in March 2018, covering underside corrosion repair, new coolant hoses and brake pipes, exhaust blow rectification, carb rebalancing, along with the fitment of a new brake servo, bigger vented discs, S2 E-Type calipers, a new radiator, earth cabling and battery cutoff.

A Heritage certificate shows that the car was built in August 1967 and came off the line in British Racing Green.

Mike also has some nice sales literature from the period, which of course will accompany the car to its new home, as will the collection of MOT certificates dating back to 2006 and culminating in the most recent of 25 September. 

Current owner Mike is not selling this 340 because he has fallen out of love with it, but because he has finally collared the E-Type of his dreams, and space restrictions mean he can only keep one of his two Jags. 'The 340 makes me smile, but the E-Type makes me smile a bit more.'

The overdrive function was always very much worth having on these Jags and it works perfectly here, relaxing the engine and lowering fuel consumption on longer journeys. This is a classic Jag you could – and, Mike would argue – should – use as often as possible

His pal is desperate to buy this 340 for £10,000, but Mike wants to save him from himself (and from the wrath of his other half) by giving it a shot on The Market first, where the estimate is £11,000-£15,000. Considering there is no reserve on this car, it will be on sale from the very first bid, so you could manage to pick up a great value and highly driveable slice of motoring history for the cost of a secondhand Focus.

We always encourage viewings. This Jaguar is located here at The Market HQ in Abingdon. Just click the ‘Contact Seller’ button at the top of the listing to arrange an appointment. Ahead of that, or at any time during the process, you’re more than welcome to ask any questions or jot down observations in the comments section below. You won’t be shocked to hear that our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’ section will answer general questions that are frequently asked about how The Market works.

Also please note that we have a network of trusted suppliers with whom we work regularly and successfully: Classic & Sportscar Finance for purchase-financing, Thames Valley Car Storage for storing your car, AnyVan for transporting it, and Footman James for classic car insurance.

BORING, but IMPORTANT: Please note that whilst we at The Market always aim to offer the most descriptive and transparent auction listings available, we cannot claim they are perfect analyses of any of the vehicles for sale. We offer far greater opportunity for bidders to view, or arrange inspections for each vehicle thoroughly prior to bidding than traditional auctions, and we never stop encouraging bidders to take advantage of this. We do take a good look at the vehicles delivered to our premises for sale, but this only results in our unbiased personal observations, not those of a qualified inspector or other professional, or the result of a long test drive.

Additionally, please note that most of the videos on our site have been recorded using simple cameras which often result in 'average' sound quality; in particular, engines and exhausts notes can sound a little different to how they are in reality.