How does something like this even happen?
People love to snipe down current generations for being accomplices to a disposable society, but at least we're not the ones leaving beautiful supercars like this Series 1 1962 Jaguar E-Type — a 3.8-litre manual — to rot and die.
This outright is one of the most dreadfully sorry looking Jaguars I've ever seen, and that list includes the X Type too.
To answer the initial question, laziness is what does this to an E-Type. It swapped hands in 1997 with the new owner intending to restore it from its former state. However, the car was instead left nearly abandoned for the next 20 years; allowing it to deteriorate to this current and very saddening extreme.
The basketcase of a vehicle is up for auction at Classic Car Auctions in the UK, who expect it to sell for between $65,000–$75,000NZD. For the same price you could buy a pretty much new Jaguar XF, which actually starts and moves while also not acting as a receptacle for rats to live in.
Classic Car Auctions' appraisal of the Jag only further emphasizes just how sausaged it is, with them giving it a glowing condition score of two out of 135. But hey, at least it's got a Jaguar Heritage Certificate.
To look at this poor car and think of it as anything other than a tetanus infection on wheels, you would need to be a mixture of crazy and brave.
Good night and good luck to whoever buys it.
