Jaguar XKSS ‘D-Type for the road’ is valued at £11 million
A Jaguar XKSS will cross the blocks at RM Sotheby’s 2nd November London sale, carrying an estimate of between £9,000,000 and £11,000,000. Just 18 XKSSs were built, based on D-Type underpinnings.
The car you see here, XKD 540, was built at Jaguar’s Brown’s Lane factory on 1st November 1955 finished in British Racing Green with Suede Green Leather. It sounds about as delicious as cold water after a marathon, but remarkably, the Jaguar lay for a year unsold with records listing it as “redundant after experiment”, with no further details.
By 1957, this XKSS had been shipped to Coombs of Guildford and purchased by Phil Scrag. A wealthy textile machinery maker, Scragg raced an SS100 and HWM-Jaguar, and his collection included two Lister-Jaguars and the final Lightweight E-type produced.
The same passion would drive Scragg to have XKD 540 treated to a full conversion to XKSS specification in 1958 (the car comes with the relevant correspondence between him and the factory). The work included fitting a full-height windscreen, passenger door, luggage rack, weather equipment, bumpers and a higher 3.92:1 axle ratio to improve acceleration.
Somewhat surprisingly, Scragg sold the car just a year later, and its engine was then upgraded from 3.4 to 3.8 litres, going on to have a storied career in motorsport through the 1960s, which included moving to Australia in 1962. A picture of Jim Clark at the wheel accompanied by Jackie Stewart documents the car competing in the 1967 Tasman Series.
The car returned to the UK in 1972 and went straight into Bryan Corser’s Jaguar collection, which included the final production C-Type, the ex-Jim Clark D-Type and the ex-Peter Sutcliffe Lightweight E-type. Graf von Hatzfeld brought the car into German hands in 1985 and raced it at the Mille Miglia Storica and the Nürburgring Oldtimer Grand Prix.
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Ownership changed again in 2008, and by 2011 the car benefitted from a hydraulic service, cylinder head inspection and a carburettor and distributor overhaul for nearly £10,000. More work followed six years later covering the car’s engine, gearbox, rear axle, suspension, steering and brakes. Cosmetic work was also carried out on the monocoque chassis and subframes, while the exterior was treated to a sympathetic restoration, overall costing more than £44,000. A further £17,000 has been spent by the current owner, who’s had the car since 2017.
As a car that’s comfortable sharing the stage with machines like the McLaren F1 and Ferrari 250 GT, XKD 540 offers a rare opportunity to get your hands on a stunning XKSS, which comes with a comprehensive package of spares.