1955 Jaguar

Competition XK140 raced in period by David Hobbs.

Chassis S807297 was manufactured on 5th October 1955, registered TAC743, and delivered via S H Newsome of Coventry to its first owner Howard Hobbs of Leamington Spa on 17th October. Howard Hobbs, originally a native of Adelaide in Australia, was the inventor of the Mechamatic gearbox, an early variant of the automatic transmission. This gearbox was used in a number of the Hobbs family cars and tested on the race track by Howard’s son David, who started his long and illustrious racing career in the late 1950s while working as an apprentice for Daimler cars.

David’s first serious forays into competition were races at Snetterton and Goodwood with the family Morris Oxford, suitably modified with his father’s gearbox and a BMC MGB engine, but before long he had convinced his father to lend him the 140 and he duly entered the spring trophy meeting at Oulton Park on 2nd April 1960. At this stage the car was in very standard form and the race did not go well. On the last lap he hit the bank and rolled the car, crushing the windscreen and severely denting the bonnet and front wings. Fortunately the damage was largely confined to the bodywork and not so serious as to prevent Hobbs driving home. Over the following weeks the car was repaired and progressively uprated with a cylinder head, carburetors and disc brakes from an XK150S in an effort to increase power and braking performance. These modifications clearly paid off and Hobbs achieved a number of notable successes over the rest of the season with high-placed finishes at Snetterton, Silverstone and Goodwood.

By the end of 1960 the car was starting to look rather tired with the dents and knocks to be expected after a hard season’s racing and it was subsequently sold on to Jack Tindell who had a new aluminium streamlined body fitted in 1961. In this form TAC 743 continued its competition career at the hands of Tindell, which included various club circuit races and the Brighton Speed Trials. By 1970 Rodney Bolwell had assumed ownership and continued to race the car with some success before it ultimately passed to Trevor Groom, who re-fitted the original engine and undertook various other repairs. Over a number of years Groom successfully raced TAC743 at a number of international and UK venues including Spa, Zandvoort, Monthlery, and the 2006 Goodwood Revival where he finished third in the Fordwater Trophy. With a desire to return TAC743 to its original condition, Groom had the car professionally restored, fitting a correct Drop Head Body and repainting it in its original Pastel Blue. Subsequently TAC743 has raced again at the Goodwood Revival and completed the Mille Miglia in 2015.

Offered in immaculate condition and with matching numbers this unique competition XK140 offers its new owner the chance to own a fascinating part of Jaguar’s history and compete in the world’s most prestigious events. Please contact us for further details, price on application.