1967 Jaguar E-Type Racing Series 1

The E-Type’s Getting In Gear

The very special 1967 Jaguar E-Type Series 1 race car has had Kath’s magic touch today receiving a bespoke leather gear shift gaiter.

“There was no original gaiter there for me to go by” explained Kath “I had to design a completely new pattern”.

A bold orange leather has been used to compliment the cars exterior paint work, while grey cotton stitching has been used in contrast but also to be in keeping with the newly painted centre piece also in grey.

Looking superb so far!

1967 Jaguar E Type Racecar Update

Tom has been making superb progress on our Jaguar E-Type Race car. The ethos of this build has always been to keep weight to a minimum, delivering the rawest possible E-Type racing experience whilst highlighting the incredible skill of our engineers. This car will meet all road legal requirements whilst being hugely competitive on the racetrack.

Tom has installed the custom rear quarter lights.

We created a template to shape the rear window perspex perfectly to the window frame before cutting to size.

The wiper motor is now installed.

Front headlights have been test fitted with custom moulded lightweight perspex. These still need to be trimmed to shape and fitted with sealing rubbers.

Tom has custom made a fuel pipe breather that is fitted within the fuel pipe line. This allows air to escape as the vehicle is being refuelled.

The E-Type handbrake has been sandblasted and powder coated by Darren and Chris in the paint shop. It’s now ready to be fitted into the car.

Tom has fabricated a custom seat frame from steel tubes. The seat runners have been installed onto the steel frame.

We have now fitted the rear window and rubbers. Picture left is the window being test-fitted, picture right is the completed job.

Last but by no means least for today’s E-Type update. The old wheel spinners have now been replaced with new, chrome spinners.

Great work, Tom. We’re inching ever closer to completion now. The next major task is to complete the wiring.

E-Type Racecar Carburettors

Ady, Bridge Classic Cars’ engine specialist has got our E-Type fired into life. Ady has noticed an occasional misfire.

He has stripped the 45 Weber carb as there was a misfire on cylinder 6. Upon closer inspection, the tiny mixture screw had broken off. Ady’s now ordered up a new screw and will be reassembling the carburettors.

1967 Jaguar E-Type Racecar – Engine Running

Ady has got our Jaguar E-Type Racecar engine up and running. She’s currently running a bit rich but Ady will have her running at her best in no time at all.

The workshop ground to a halt for a few minutes to hear this beast bark into life. Now this car really does feel like it’s nearing completion.

Race E-Type Transmission tunnel

Dave has created this masterpiece for our Race -inspired Jaguar E-Type project.

Sticking with the lightweight ethos of the build, the transmission tunnel will be fully on view. And what a view it is. Dave is a master welder and has created this beautiful transmission tunnel from sheet metal. Superb work, Dave.

Racing Jaguar E-Type: Custom Door Inlays

Kath has been hard at work on our unique Jaguar E-Type Racecar. The interior is going to be very different to any other E-Type. The stripped out, lightweight interior will be functional, sleek and stylish.

Kath has made door panel inlays in orange leather. She’s marked out the leather before backing onto board, trimming off any excess.

Kath has then sewn around the edges in a slightly lighter contrasting shade of orange. She has then glued them into position within the metal doorframe with contact adhesive. There will be some additional components to come on our door panels but they are already looking great.

Jaguar E-Type Series One Racecar – Interior

Our jaguar E-Type Racecar has been in the Trim shop visiting Kath and Brian last week.

They have been fitting the bold orange carpets into the veheicle.

They firstly started making paper floor mats in the floor pan as a template when cutting the carpet. The carpet then gets test-fitted and adjusted to fit perfectly if needed. This process was used for the front carpet mats, rear underseat, rear ramp area and the boot…

When all the carpet pieces are cut to size, they are ready to bind. Binding is the process of wrapping leather around the carpets, creating a piped edge. Kath has sewn the leather onto the front of the carpet, before folding the edge over to sew down the inner edge. This helps the carpets to sit perfectly in place and stops the fabric from fraying.

The cross-members were then also trimmed with carpet, following the exact same process before being glued down to the vehicles tub.

Next up, sound deadening is installed and stuck into place before being bonded to the carpet. We’ve now trimmed most of our E-Type’s interior. The next major phase will be to begin re-installing seats and switchgear.

Great work, Brian and Kath!

Sourcing missing parts for our race car

Having carried out a number of Jaguar E-Type restorations we have been very fortunate to have met some fantastic contacts and friends all with shared interests. This has come in extremely useful as a call to one of our good friends has meant we have managed to source two very rare parts that were missing from our Jaguar E-Type race car project, the gearbox column cover and hand brake.

Jaguar E-Type Racecar Trottle Linkage

Paul has been working on our unique race inspired E-Type. He’s had to modify the throttle linkage to fit our carburettors which are upgraded from standard. The linkage has now been fitted into the engine bay which is now tantalisingly close to completion.

Lovely work, Paul!

Jaguar E-Type Racecar Restoration Update

Mauro, one of Bridge Classic Cars’ vehicle technicians has been hard at work fitting more components onto our Jaguar E-Type. He’s recently fitted the fuel filter, fuel pump and exhaust heat shield.

Mauro has also tidied up the radiator hoses and completed that job.

Jaguar E-Type Racecar Restoration Update Part 1

Mauro has been working on our stunning Jaguar E-type racecar. We’re now at the final stages of re-fitting all the vehicles refurbished or new parts. He’s fitted the below components recently.

  • Steering column
  • Wipers
  • Brake fluid reservoir
  • Alternator and alternator heat shield
  • Water pump and new gasket
  • Radiator and water hoses
  • Horns
  • Ignition coil
  • Fuel tank and fuel lines

Choosing our E-Type Racecar Specification

We’ve chosen the interior leather colour and carpet colour for our Racing E-Type.

The leather will be finished in tropic orange to compliment our exterior colour. We’ve selected a matching, darker hue for the carpeted areas. We have access to an almost limitless array of colour options for our bespoke interiors. This means we can stay as true to the original or go as wild as you can imagine with our custom made interior trimming.

1967 Jaguar E-Type Race Car

Our 1967 Jaguar E-Type Race Recreation is nearing completion with around two weeks until testing can commence.

Mauro has been working through the big list of to do’s…whilst adding a few more along the way.

We have successfully completed; the brake lines, fitting up of the doors and windows, fitting the prop shaft, fitting the pedal box, brake master cylinder, clutch master cylinder, the alternator, wiper mechanism, brake fluid reservoir, front hub dust shields, anti roll bar, gear lever, brake servo, washer reservoir and jets.

Jaguar E Type Racecar Interior Specification

We’re currently deciding on which material to use for our E type interior. we initially looked at a colour matched orange leather, however the first samples we received back clashed against the exterior. Were now looking at alternative samples to find the perfect colour for our interior.

Within our trim shop we can build completely bespoke custom interiors, keeping them as original or as unique as our clients request.

Jaguar E-type Racecar: Dash Wiring

Bob, Bridge Classic Cars’ Electrical Technician has been working on our own E-Type racecar project. He’s currently wiring in all the gauges and instrumentation associated with the dash.

Does your classic car have electrical issues? Our experienced team can diagnose and repair electrical faults on classic vehicles. Get in touch with our office team today to see how we can be of service.

Jaguar E-Type Racecar: Restoration Update

Our Jaguar E-Type Series 1 Racecar has been over to Demand Engineering for a full stainless steel exhaust. We elected to go for a side exit exhaust to suit the ethos behind this lightweight race-car build.

Tom has also fitted lightweight perspex glass to the rear windscreen, whilst strengthened glass is fitted to the windscreen.

E-Type Racecar: Engine and Gearbox

Andrew and Ady have been hard at work this morning fitting the engine and gearbox into our E Type Racecar. Having reached another one of this build’s big milestones, we’re all the more excited to see this lovely machine back. E-Type’s have a wide variety of prop shaft lengths. We’re now looking to source the correct one for our engine and gearbox.

1967 Jaguar E-Type Racecar: Now with wheels!

She’s really starting to look the part now! Our stunning E-type racecar is now sitting proudly on wheels. Painted in our in-house paint shop by Darren to match the metalic grey and with tyres fitted by Graeme from We Fit Any Tyres Anywhere.

Paul has also sourced new period correct gauges for our E-type to sit within our new look dashboard.

1967 Jaguar E-Type Racecar details

A few more additions have been made to our Racecar in the last few days. The chrome fuel filler cap and steel pressed number plates are now fitted. Here at Bridge Classic Cars we love authentic steel pressed plates.

Jaguar E-Type race car seats arrive

Having acquired our race car seats recently they have now arrived with us and are in the trim shop ready for Donna to get her hands on them. They originally came out of a Jaguar E-Type race car during an upgrade and we will look to strip them and re-cover in our colours ready to be fitted in our car.

Templating the Race Car windows

Tamas is busy templating the side windows of our 1967 Jaguar E_Type race car. Being a race car recreation the windows will be manufactured in perspex rather than the traditional glass to give the look and feel of a race car. The front side windows will also have a large slide opening for ventilation with the rest of the screens being fixed into position with no opening mechanism. The template will be slightly larger that the original glass windows as it is our intention not to fit the bright-work trims that you would ordinarily find around the edge.

Jaguar E-Type – Welcome to the world’s first…

Introducing the world’s first Volcano Orange and Magnetic Grey Jaguar E-Type.

This one-off prototype race car has been built and designed in-house by us here at Bridge Classic Cars.

The colour is based on the McLaren Volcano Orange and is built up of a three-stage finish with a unique Diamondburst Tixo Clearcoat lacquer. The internal area and engine bay is finished in Ford’s Magnetic Grey.

Painting our Jaguar E-Type Race Car

Looking through the oven window as Darren carries out the long awaited but ridiculously exciting race car respray.

Work began on our 1967 Jaguar E-Type race car in January 2017 and now we can finally reveal the first look of our incredible colour combination; Volcano Orange and Magnetic Grey, most likely to be the only Jaguar E-Type in existence using this colour combination. A three colour combination makes up the Volcano Orange, we were first inspired by the colour on a McLaren parked up in a car park at Sandown Racecourse.

See story here…

1967 Jaguar Race Car – Paint Time

This is it, the final time you will see our 1967 Race E-Type free from colour. Tomorrow she’ll be painted in the brand new colour combination of Volcano Orange and Magnetic Grey.

Jaguar E-Type Race Car – Raptor

The Volcano Orange engine frames are now fitted into position, complimenting the Magnetic Grey engine bay perfectly.

The Magnetic Grey underside is also in colour and complete. We have applied a layer of Raptor to the underneath for extra protection. Raptor Tough and Tintable Protective Coating is a durable urethane coating that provides surfaces with a protective barrier that can withstand the toughest situations.

Developed to tolerate most climatic conditions, Raptor is U.V. resistant and won’t fade or “chalk” even after years in the sun. Raptor is also water resistant and helps to protect surfaces from rust, making it perfect for surfaces that are frequently exposed to water, including salt water.

Raptor’s versatility makes it perfect for almost any application. Spray or roll Raptor on high traffic areas; it’s scratch and stain resistant and easy to clean, simply hose it off. Its flexible formulation can handle impacts without cracking, making it perfect for its most popular application as a truck bed liner.

Raptor is unlike other bed liners or protective coatings. It’s less expensive and faster than powder coating. And in case it does scratch (which is tough to do!), Raptor can easily be repaired. You can’t do that with most of the other bed liners and protective coatings!

Raptor protects the roughest industrial surfaces as well as the smaller surfaces we rely on every day. It’s durable, looks great and it lasts a long time.

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Colour process begins on our Jaguar E-Type Race Recreation

Since 2017 we have been revisiting the preparation of our 1967 Jaguar E-Type project car.

It started with an idea between Gordon and Craig, to create a project car that not only highlights what we do here at Bridge Classic Cars but is also a fantastic tool we could use to give back to the community around us. Our intention was and still is to work alongside local charities who do amazing work and help them in whatever way we can.

Many designs have been drawn up, many colours have been tried and tested and last week we were able to take the project a huge step forward by applying our new colour combination.

We are pleased to reveal our one-off design, our 1967 Jaguar E-Type Series 1 Race recreation will be finished in the outrageously beautiful colour combination of Volcano Orange and Magnetic Grey.

The inside of our body shell and the underside of our bonnet and engine area will be finished in Magnetic Grey, similar to what you find on modern Fords. The seamless and chrome-less exterior will proudly show the bespoke three colour Volcano Orange system, similarly found on the McLaren.

The three colour Volcano Orange system consists of a ground coat (almost pink) metallic finish which we then apply a bespoke Volcano Orange dye to over the top. Once applied, we then coat in our very unique Diamondburst Tixo Clearcoat which is essentially a glass lacquer to create even more sparkle in direct sunlight.

Diamondburst Tixo Clearcoat is an acrylic clear coat with diamond effect for multi-coat systems. Diamondburst has been formulated with special transparent pigments producing a highly sparkling effect in direct sunlight or artificial light.

Stripping our E-Type rear cradle

Pete has got to work stripping our Jaguar E-Type rear cradle.

Our previous rebuilt cradle that was due to be fitted to our race car was passed on to a new project so we acquired a replacement and have to work on this one now.

Being fortunate enough to work on many many E-Types means we have a large collection of spares and very good experience on rebuilding these units. Both useful in order to keep the cost down.

Jaguar E-Type Race Car Ready For Paint

The time has come for us to wave goodbye to the white primer finish we have seen for so long on our 1967 Jaguar E-Type Race Car. Next week we will be putting our body shell through the paint shop ready for the new finish that we have been trialling and testing for some time.

We can not wait to see it now and with our Classic & Sports Car & Bike Show just around the corner, we can’t wait to reveal the new colour.