1959 Jaguar Aston-Martin Roadster

Britain is known for consuming copious amounts of different tea blends. This year's RM Auction offered a very special British blend of its own. The parts not readily seen come from an impressive sports car in its own right. This largely is overshadowed by what is readily seen.

Offered this year was an especially rare Aston Martin C-Type body. Only about five Aston Martin C-Types are known to still exist. All indications seem to point to the fact that the body for this unique car is an actual C-Type Roadster body produced by Aston Martin. In and of itself this is a special find. Were it to be fully original, the car would be incredibly special. What this body rests on, however, is no slouch when it comes to classic cars.

Underneath the C-Type body rests the heart and muscles of a 1959 Jaguar XK150. Original C-Type Aston Martins were known to be rather good performers. The cars were able to reach 100 mph. At Brooklands, in 1938, a specially tuned C-Type reached 112 mph. However, when combined with a Jaguar XK150's 210 bhp, 3.4-liter six-cylinder engine, the Aston Martin body is capable of achieving performance designers had in made by its obvious streamlining, but hadn't been able to practically achieve.

The car's original owners were members of Aston Martin and Jaguar clubs and obviously provided the impetus for the undertaking. Though both the car and the body were available, mating the two appeared to prove to be a bit of a test. Finally, in 1964, the C-Type body was mounted onto the chassis. A truly unique and remarkable blend resulted.

Restored in 1981, the car features a beautiful dark blue finish. The car sports a tan-colored interior with matching color leather seats. The interior is further finished with a three-spoke, wood-trimmed steering wheel, complete with Jaguar emblem.

The car uses a four-speed manual gearbox. It rides on an independent front suspension with coil springs and anti-roll bar and a rigid rear axle utilizing semi-elliptic leaf springs. To complete the C-Type's performance upgrade, stopping power for this special blend comes from four-wheel hydraulic disc brakes. Headed to auction the car was predicted to garner a price between $250,000-$300,000 and was offered without reserve.

At the RM Auction in Arizona, the car received several bids, with the highest bid settling at $135,000 (not including buyer's premium).

Source:
'Buy: View Lots (Lot 111: 1959 Aston Martin/Jaguar C-Type Roadster)', (http://www.rmauctions.com/FeatureCars.cfm?SaleCode=AZ11&CarID=r372&fc=0). RM Auctions Arizona. http://www.rmauctions.com/FeatureCars.cfm?SaleCode=AZ11&CarID=r372&fc=0. Retrieved 11 January 2011.

'Aston Martin Type C Speed Model (1938 - 1939)', (http://www.astonmartins.com/prewar/2litre_speed_type_c.htm). Aston Martins.com. http://www.astonmartins.com/prewar/2litre_speed_type_c.htm. Retrieved 11 January 2011.

By Jeremy McMullen