1975 Jensen INTERCEPTOR S3

Welcome to our latest auction, an iconic Jensen Interceptor MKIII fitted with the 7.2-litre ‘TNT’ engine. Finished in white and fitted with a tan vinyl roof and matching leather interior, it’s been the recipient of a six-figure sum at marque experts Cropredy Bridge, with major overhauls in 2010 and 2017.

First registered on the 1st of January 1975 and showing six previous owners, it has been in the vendor’s hands since August 2017 - and is currently his daily driver. He’s spent almost £50,000 with Cropredy Bridge in total to get it to the condition you see today, work that has included a full respray in its original colour.

Driving perfectly, this is your chance to get your hands on a fully fettled Jensen Interceptor that is reliable enough to be used every day and yet still gorgeous enough to win you some silverware at your local car show at the weekend; ‘show on Sunday, drive on Monday’…

The off-white coachwork is, as you’d expect of a car that’s still fresh from a full respray at Cropredy Bridge, vibrant and shiny. Boasting perfect shutlines and panel gaps, the car’s condition is nothing short of stunning. There are no dents, dings or other damage, and only the lightest smattering of stonechips.

Still almost completely standard – the owner resisted the urge to fit larger wheels and tyres, fearful of creating problems in the long-term – the only modification to the exterior is the vented bonnet.

The new tan vinyl roof is taut and well-fitting, and shows off the Interceptor’s purposeful lines to perfection. The chromework is excellent too, as are the badges, light lenses and glass. The whole thing looks utterly perfect and, unlike so many being offered for sale, there’s no need to squint… 

The original equipment alloy wheels are in a great condition, being free of scuffs, dings and scrapes. They’re shod with matching Pirelli P4000 tyres too, and as we will never tire of explaining, our experience shows that matching high-quality tyres are an infallible sign of a caring and mechanically sympathetic owner who is prepared to spend the appropriate amount in maintaining their car properly. Their presence does not, of course, preclude the need for a thorough inspection - something the vendor would welcome, by the way – but do give you a shortcut into their attitude towards maintenance.  

Gloriously, the rear window still wears its original ‘Built and Serviced by Jensen Cars Ltd’ sticker.

The tan leather interior is original bar the new Wilton carpets, yet shows only gentle patination, a condition that serves to make it all the more glorious.

The stitched leather headlining, centre console and door cards take decadence to a whole new level, and the matching tan leather seats are beautifully patinated and wonderfully cossetting. Take a long look at the craftsmanship and then close your eyes; you know exactly how it’s going to smell, don’t you?

Of course, the angled dials and air vents are another Jensen staple and a visual treat, and the huge centre console is home to some carefully scattered knobs and switches that provide tactile joy.

Speaking of which, the tiny leather-rimmed Mota-Lita steering wheel is gorgeous, as is the wonderfully understated gearknob, with its ‘press-to-eject’ thumb button.

Work to do? Well, there’s a small patch of wear to the driver’s seat bolster, and while we’d leave it alone and chalk it up to originality, we couldn’t argue if you decided to make some localised repairs.

Aside from that, we can’t help but think that a more sympathetic, retro-modern headunit might look rather nice in the dashboard.

An immobiliser is fitted.

The car has enjoyed a genuine ‘no expense spared’ life, and the owner has a comprehensive history file with receipts for well over £100,000; this is a car for whom the expression ‘maintained regardless of cost’ could have been invented…

The car has been serviced, maintained, repaired and restored for the majority of its life by Cropredy Bridge save for a period between 1987 and 1991 when it was looked after by JCC of West Bromwich. It had its first ground-up rebuild in 1983/84 by Cropredy, which set the owner back £8,000, or a thousand pounds more than the car had cost new less than a decade previously.

The second owner kept the car for 22 years (initially with the registration number ‘20 COX’ and later ‘2PP’) until it was sold in 1999. This period saw it receive a new boot, bonnet, work to the electrics, fresh dampers and a rear axle. An unleaded head was fitted in 1998, and new sills and were fitted by Cropredy Bridge in 1999, shortly before being sold.

It underwent another major rebuild at Cropredy in 2007/08, which included a bare metal respray, a new vinyl roof, a new set of carpets, the installation of a modern Sony stereo radio/CD player and electronic alarm system with keyless entry and electronic 'kill start' function. This work came to £37,000.

The vendor then spent another £44,000 in 2017, work that included another respray (the bill for the labour to restore the bodywork alone came to £22,000…) and a whole raft of mechanical fettling and refurbishing the trim.

Upgrades have been made to its cooling fans and alternator, and the car’s fuses have been changed to circuit breakers, and the brakes updated to Fosse calipers.

The DVLA documents state six previous owners but the 1st (who is unknown) only had it for two years before selling. The car’s two main owners had it for 22 and 16 years respectively, and in between them was a chap who only had it for two months, so may well have been a dealer. Oh, and the fifth owner registered owner was Cropredy Bridge itself.

The owner tells us that the Interceptor drives perfectly, but then as he’s still using it as his daily driver you’d expect nothing less. He did add that he finds it “very comfortable” and points out that being exempt from paying road tax and costing only £120 a year to insure, it’s actually more reasonable to run than you might imagine…

The engine bay is neatly presented but could do with a quick clean, and the underside looks to be solid, strong and neatly undersealed.

The Interceptor’s MOT certificate expires in September 2020, and was gained with only a few minor advisory points. However, every single previous MOT had been free of advisory points, so we really don’t see anything to worry about there.

The car comes with a number of expired MOT certificates and road tax discs, plus a couple of box files full of invoices and bills to confirm the work that has been done to it over the years. It also comes with two keys, the original owner’s handbook and storage wallet, and a workshop manual.

The owner also has electronic copies of the car’s whole history file, which he is happy to give to the winning bidder.

Please visit the documents section of the gallery of this listing where you will find photos of this and other paperwork to support our claim that this car has been maintained in recent years to the very highest standard.

If you’d like to inspect the car prior to placing a bid – something we would encourage – then please use the Contact Seller button to arrange an appointment.

NB. We know that many of you will be limiting your social exposure over the coming days and weeks, so if you’d rather not come to see the car in person, please contact the vendor and ask him if he can shoot a personal video of the car honing in on any areas you’d like him to concentrate on.

If you’ve got a Tesla in the garage then this probably isn’t the car for you. But, if you’re more interested in enjoying your daily driver than shaving a few pounds off your income tax bill - and prefer watching re-runs of The Sweeney to Strictly Come Dancing - then it definitely is.

Fresh from the sort of expenditure that would still buy you’re a very nice terrace house in most Northern towns, it’s running beautifully and sports the kind of quality finish to its coachwork that would have been impossible to achieve in-period.

Still the staple of many a middle-aged man’s dream, this iconic British muscle car could be yours for somewhere between £40,000 and £50,000, or around a third of the money that’s been spent on it over the years.

And no, of course it doesn’t make any kind of rational sense but then if 2020 has taught us anything, it’s that no-one knows what’s round the corner and life is there to be lived.

Of course, if your other half objects, you could remind them of today’s historically low interest rates, as well as the fact that Interceptor prices have almost doubled in the past four years, even taking into account the global softening in classic car prices we’ve seen recently.

And, if none of that works, can we remind you that it is sometimes easier and simpler to seek forgiveness than it is to ask permission?

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located with the vendor in Tunbridge Wells, Kent; 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’.

If needed, please remember we have a network of trusted suppliers we work with regularly and can recommend: Classic & Sportscar Finance for purchase-financing, Footman James for classic car insurance Thames Valley Car Storage for storing your car and AnyVan for transporting it.

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.

Please note that this is sold as seen and that, as is normal for used goods bought at auction, the Sale of Goods Act 1979 does not apply. See our FAQs for more info, and feel free to inspect any vehicle as much as you wish.