Stunning Jaguar coupe is historic rally star

The Jaguar is proudly on display in the main hall

Every now and then a car will just grab you with the power of its looks.

The Jaguar XK140 sports car at the Lakeland Motor Museum is one of those special vehicles.

The Fixed Head Coupe is a masterpiece of curved panels and chrome.

An older photo of when the car first arrived at the museum

But it’s not just pretty. It had an illustrious racing career having been driven in 25 British and 4 international rally events including the world-famous Monte Carlo Rally back in 1958.

A clse-up of the front grillle and lights

It was owned and driven by a North West rally legend – Bobby (George Herbert Farrer) Parkes. Bobby Parkes was born in Cheshire and joined Morecambe Car Club in 1953 where he developed his already impressive driving skills.

He notably raced this vehicle in the RAC Rally and the Scottish Rally in 1956, the 1957 Circuit of Ireland and at Monte Carlo. It also took part in an event closer to home – the Morecambe Illumination Rally.

A selection of the awards that the Jaguar has won over its long rallying career

It became nicknamed the Battlewagon due to its rallying success (It was originally dark blue – not the bright white you can see now on display inside the museum.)

It’s one of only 194 right hand drive SE models that Jaguar produced. The Jaguar XK140 series was produced from 1954 to 1957 and came in three body styles: an open-seater roadster, a drophead coupe and this fixed head coupe. It’s classic wire-spoke wheels were an optional extra.

The beautuful front grille

A standard model, with a twin-cam straight six engine, had a top speed of 125mph and went from 0-60 in a little over 8 seconds. But the Jaguar is not all about speed. Enthusiasts describe this particular model as a thing of beauty. And when you walk through the doors of the Lakeland Motor Museum its lines certainly catch the eye.

A close-up of the maginficent spoked wheels

It’s a classic model from our motoring past that will continue to attract admiring glances well into the future.

The car is in our main display ground hall

👁️ Where to find this car in the museum

The Jaguar Xk140 is situated in the middle of our second main hall exhibition room of the ground floor

Further Reading

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