1973 Daimler Sovereign 4.2 Series One

Description

Super-looking SWB Sovereign; lovely paint and chrome; retrimmed interior; driven 50 miles to the sale; a gleaming example of what was once the world's finest sporting saloon

“From our company chauffeur to our most blasé tester, everyone was impressed immediately with the completely out-of-its-class ride and silence. It is the smoothest and quietest car we have ever driven or been driven in… The handling is better than that of the E-Type… Dynamically it has no equal regardless of price… If Jaguar were to double the price of the XJ6 and bill it as the best car in the world, we would be right there behind them” – Autocar, June 1969.

The Jaguar XJ6 was a revelation when it was launched in 1968 and the upmarket Daimler version was equally good, the only real difference being the larger chrome radiator grille, the chrome strip that ran up the centre of the bonnet and the Daimler-badged steering wheel.

Retrospectively known as the Series One, it was replaced by the Series Two in late 1973 but this was not quite the same. Build quality went down, the front bumper went up, the radiator grille shrank and the bank of lovely Bakelite rocker switches on the dash were replaced by cheap plastic buttons.

First registered in London in May 1973, this Daimler Sovereign Series One is the desirable SWB version (the LWB only had an extra 4” of cabin length but it just didn’t look as good). Sadly there is no real history with the car but it has clearly been restored at some point in the not-too-distant past with gleaming dark blue paintwork, excellent chrome and a retrimmed beige leather interior.

An invoice from June 2010 shows that it got a reconditioned steering rack, new track rod ends, new rear wheel bearings and some localised repairs to the front and rear n/s inner wings, the mileage at this point being 71,040. Another invoice shows that it was serviced in June this year at 75,500 miles (oil and filter; air filter; spark plugs etc) and it has only covered 250 miles since.

Driven some 50 miles to the sale, it has been starting promptly and running well as we have moved it around on site, with good 40psi oil pressure and all the electric windows working as they should.

As you can see in the photos, this super Sovereign S1 looks very smart indeed and will turn heads wherever it goes.

Consigned by James Dennison – 07970 309907 – james.dennison@brightwells.com