I recently turned 60 and have a tradition of treating myself to a classic car at a decade milestone. For my 40th, I bought ‘Bertie’, a Dubonnet red Aston Martin DB6. Then, they were the price of a second hand 3 series BMW. Latterly, they became seriously valuable, and I took the tough decision to part with him and put the money to other uses. Next came ‘Jezebel’; a 1977 Ferrari Dino 308GT4 for my 50th. Fast, fun, red and cliched, we’ve had many an adventure over the past ten years. By Ferrari standards, very easy to work on and to drive. It’s only recently that the Bertone-styled wedge shape has been appreciated again.
Joining her is now ‘Jeremy’. ‘Time for wafting’ was my brief. Having missed the boat on Shadow 1 Rolls Royce’s, I turned my attention to Daimler’s overlooked fast saloon of the 1960s, the V8 250. More than just a re-badged Jaguar Mk 2, the Daimler has the glorious V8 2.5 litre engine. I love the leisurely burble and the super smooth delivery of power. I opted for the automatic, and with the power steering and vast wheel, it’s truly an ‘elbow out the window and sit back’ style of driving. It’s all leather and walnut so the smells are as lovely as the sounds. This particular example is very original, having covered only 50,000 miles in 60 years. Once you’re inside, on the that enormous bench seat, you feel that the world is a better place. Perfectly happy all day at 70 mph on the motorway or pottering around the West End.
Just don’t ask about the fuel consumption.
Hello Simon. I had dropped my lady round the corner from your shop, for a meeting of her countries people. Walked round Connaught village, and admired your lovely shirts!
Bit beyond this active 80 year old guy now! But still love driving. Not sure about 3 hours in London traffic on our way up from the coast!
But just to say I, in the 70s and 80s owned many 2.4 , 3.4, Xks, and a Daimler like yours, when my lovely wife of 53 years was with me. She loved “the Jags” as well!
So very envious of yours.
An interesting article you wrote. Best wishes. James.