1958 Jensen 541

This Jensen 541 was built in 1958 and first registered in November of that year. Being built after the 541R had been introduced, this car benefitted from many of the later variant’s improvements, including disc brakes and a better heater.

Its early ownership from the late fifties through to the sixties isn’t known as the original buff log book has long since gone, but a continuation book shows a number of owners from the seventies in the East London and Essex area, including a Mr Rodney Stewart Tuck. We understand that he was an engineer who went on to establish RST Land Rovers a few years later in West Mersea near Colchester. A later custodian was Mr Roger K Tolfree, an avionics engineer who worked for GEC Marconi and who owned the Jensen well into the eighties.

As far as we know, the UEA registration - from the borough of Sandwell, West Bromwich - is original to the car and could, therefore, be a factory plate as given to press cars and demonstrators, although this is not confirmed.

The 541 was subject to a full restoration by the current owner - our vendor - which lasted several years up to around 2016 and cost in the region of £30k. He is a serial restorer of classics and usually has a couple of projects on the go - just as a hobby, but one he clearly has developed some good skills doing.

The accompanying gallery has a number of photographs of the restoration showing a strip down to the chassis and a repair and respray to the bodywork. There are also countless invoices from that period for parts and work done.

Our vendor has enjoyed restoring and owning the Jensen, taking it to a few local shows in recent years, but the sale will free up workshop space and cash for his next project.

Although when new the 541 was available in several colours, including a green, this shade wasn’t one of them. This particular car was originally Moonbeam Grey but was repainted in Aston Martin Racing Green during the restoration around 8 years ago. Generally the paint is still very strong, with only a very few marks and blemishes.

The fibreglass bodywork looks undamaged and in good condition and generally the panel alignment and gaps are even and straight. The driver’s door doesn’t seem to shut properly and would benefit from a bit of fettling but otherwise all appears to be in order.

The manually operated swivelling shutter in the front grille is shown open in the photographs but this can of course be closed, using the chrome handle in the footwell.

Although the 541 is by no means a bejewelled car, there is a fair bit of chrome and brightwork, if you include the badging and window trims. All of it is shiny and free of any significant patina or damage. There is a little patch of rust around the offside headlamp unit itself rather than the surrounding chrome trim.

The car sits on 15-inch steel wheels, painted grey and fitted with chrome Jensen hubcaps. All were shod with matching Vredestein Sprint Classic tyres in June 2016 towards the end of the restoration, and they still show a good amount of tread.

During the restoration, the interior was retrimmed in a combination of leather on surfaces that matter like the seat facings and armrest, and vinyl on others. The padded dash is upholstered in black to reduce glare but elsewhere the coverings are in a Porcelain Green. Although that is the official colour name for the green, it isn’t particularly evocative of the exact shade so you might call it a light sage or mint green. As far as we can see, there is no undue wear or damage across the upholstery in the front or back.

The instrument panel is also in black and is set with Jaeger dials and gauges and all manner of analogue switchgear and organ-stop knobs. The steering wheel is a stainless steel reproduction by Myrtle and is a large diameter, three-spoked affair with a moulded plasticised rubber rim.

The tachometer doesn’t currently function - although the gauge has been rebuilt and is in top condition, its cable is driven from a small gearbox on the back of the dynamo. These gearboxes are hard to find and the only one the owner could source sadly had the wrong ratio of gears inside. The next owner may fancy getting some new cogs made up but meanwhile the Mk1 human ear serves well enough as a rev counter.

There is a full set of carpets and mats in a dark grey or black with vinyl edging, all of which are clean and undamaged and have insulative underlay. Overhead, the light coloured headlining is also unmarked and taut.

Under the front clamshell, the engine bay is incredibly clean and tidy, with the engine block, rocker cover and ancillaries dirt-free and well painted. There are extensive photos of the engine bay in the gallery showing the amazing attention to detail paid during the car’s restoration.

Underneath the car is still in reasonably good order, given that the restoration was now several years ago and the car has been used since. The paint is starting to peel from the chassis and drivetrain structures but otherwise looks straight and undamaged, including the lower hanging items like the exhaust system. The spare wheel is slung in a cradle under the rear of the car and is fitted with an unused Vredestein tyre the same as the road wheels.

The rear boot has a lined and insulated drop-down lid and houses the new stainless fuel tank. It also accommodates the plumbed-in fire extinguisher canister that can be discharged into the engine bay either by pulling a toggle under the dash or behind the passenger seat. An additional hand-held extinguisher is mounted over the offside wheel arch.

Being an Historic Vehicle class, the Jensen no longer needs an annual MOT and there is no record of one since 2005 when the details went online. Regular readers will know that we would always recommend an MOT for a classic car to provide an independent assessment of its roadworthiness, should you ever need it.

There is a thick file of invoices, mostly from the restoration between 2009 and 2016, but also a few earlier ones from the 1980s.

There is also a collection of photographs documenting the extent and attention to detail of the restoration.

Also in the pack is a continuation vehicle log book, listing changes of ownership from 1971 to the late seventies.

The Jensen 541 was designed and built as a fast grand tourer, just as the later Interceptors were, and it accomplishes this brief very well whilst looking every inch the sporting gentleman’s express.

As with any British classic of the late fifties, it is important to go in to some extent with your eyes open - or seek out an example that has been properly sorted by someone who knows the marque and model well… like this one for instance.

There were only 226 examples of this model built, and far fewer survive today. So we think this outstanding late production 541, still looking good from its restoration less than 10 years ago, will sell for between £25,000 and £35,000.

There’s an active and well supported owner’s club for the marque and plenty of Jensen specialists to make ownership of a 541 that much easier, despite its relative rarity. Our vendor also sells spare parts for the 541, so he’d be a good person to stay in touch with.

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; 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’.