2021-08-30 15:28:38 | pauls writes:

Car offered at:
www.carandclassic.co.uk/auctions/1968-daimler-v8-250-ZgORB8_campaign=Targeted%20%7C%20Monday%20Auctions%20Starting%20%7C%2030%2F0 ...

Auction description:
Year 1968
Make Daimler
Model V8-250
Colour Red
Odometer 22,115 Miles
Engine size 2548
Location NOT STATED
Country United Kingdom

Manufactured in 1968, this car is believed to have been sold new to Jersey before being returned to the UK in 1971. This would explain why the V5 states the date of first registration as October 1971.

It was acquired by the current owner in 2005 and then subject to a lengthy and comprehensive bare-metal restoration at Classic Restorations in Alyth, Scotland. The car comes with a history folder full of receipts for this, from 2005 to 2012, totalling around £100,000.

The engine was subsequently rebuilt by Russ Carpenter in Guildford and the gearbox has also been refurbished.

The owner has taken particular care to refurbish original components wherever possible, rather than replacing them with more modern equivalents. Hence BPP 399 K is a remarkably original-looking car despite the major restoration.

A change in the owner’s personal circumstances has led to the decision to sell the car.

The Paperwork
The car comes with a thick folder full of receipts for the restoration at Classic Restorations, which documents every stage of the work that was carried out from 2005 to 2012, and shows amounts spent close to £100,000. There are also numerous other receipts, including those for the engine rebuild.

There is also an original Daimler V8 service manual, plus a reproduction service manual and parts catalogue.

The car has an MoT certificate valid until May 2022.

The Exterior
The bodywork and paint of the car are in outstanding condition, a reflection of the costs of restoration and the care with which the car has been subsequently looked after. There are no visible blemishes or marks and no evidence of the rust which can occur in Daimlers/Jaguars of this era.

The brightwork is in similarly excellent condition, with only one tiny crack visible in the chrome of the rear numberplate surround.

The wheels are largely unmarked, the tyres have plenty of life left in them, and in the boot is a spare wheel and tyre in similar condition.

Underneath, the car appears to be in similarly first-class condition.

The Interior
The red leather seats are largely original and the front seats in particular, while in extremely good condition, have a ‘patina’ that reflects the age of the car. When the car was restored only the base of the rear seat and the passenger side armrest were significantly refurbished, which accounts for the interior’s original looks.

The dashboard and instruments are all in outstanding condition and the owner assures us that all the switches and instruments all work as they should.

The carpets are all immaculate, as are the interior panels on all four doors.

When the current owner purchased the car in 2005 it had no radio, but he has taken the trouble to source and fit a suitable period radio, which works as it should.

The boot lining has some marks, but underneath it the floor and spare-wheel cover are in very good condition. Unusually, in the spare wheel compartment is the original toolbox, complete with Daimler-branded tools – a real rarity in cars of this age. There is also an original jack mounted in the boot.

The Mechanicals
The engine springs to life at first turn of the key, and idles with a healthy V8 ‘burble’. The owner assures us that the automatic transmission works smoothly and that BPP 399 K drives and handles as well as one would expect of a car that has been subject to such a high-end restoration – as well as the engine rebuild, the gearbox has been refurbished and an oil cooler fitted.

In the engine bay, everything is clean and well-ordered if not quite pristine, reflecting the fact that the vendor has driven the car.

When purchased in 2005, the car’s odometer showed 17,000 miles, which the owner believes may have been genuine but he is not able to verify this. The current odometer reading is 22,115.

The car has an MoT certificate valid until May 2022.