Lot details
Registration No: KPH 4C
Chassis No: 1E21041
Mot Expiry: March 2010

Better known as an entrant than a driver John Coombs nevertheless put up some spirited performances behind the wheel of various single-seater Coopers and Connaughts before settling down to make Coombs of Guildford one of Britain's most successful Jaguar dealerships. A frequent visitor to Browns Lane who had the ear of Sir William Lyons and Lofty England among others, he was instrumental in both fine-tuning the MK2 as a saloon racer and developing the Lightweight E-type. Capitalising on the success his cars had achieved in the British Saloon Car Championship, Coombs offered a wide range of tuning options for road going MK2s. However, the cosmetic alternations which typically characterised a Coombs Jaguar such as a louvered bonnet and cutaway rear wheelarches were all too easily copied by a host of period imitators (not to mention numerous modern restorers).

Perhaps recalling the unique bodied XK150 that he had commissioned Bertone to create for Tony Hubbard during the late 1950s, Coombs approached another Italian carrozzeria, Frua, with a brief to create a fresh stylistic spin on the E-type; one that would defy the counterfeiters. Very much en vogue Pietro Frua was already working on projects for Maserati, BMW, Glas and AC by the time Coombs approached him in 1965. Unable or unwilling to give the project his full attention, the designer's initial attempts fell short of his client's expectations (though, some would argue that Frua's task was akin to 'improving upon' Boticelli's The Birth of Venus). While, the new one-piece rear bumper he devised was both visually striking and easy to fit, his reworking of the front end was highly labour intensive. Frua proposed cutting twenty centimetres from the bonnet's nose and ten centimetres off its rear (thirty centimetres in total) as well as turning the power bulge into an air scoop flanked by two decorative faux-grilles and scalloping the wheelarches (better cooling being a welcome side effect). A new, more aggressive radiator aperture and Italianate covered headlamps (with echoes of the Ferrari 275 GTB) completed the makeover.

Coombs was not best pleased with Frua's design (Commission Number 343) as he explained in a 1989 interview with author Philip Porter "The idea was to have a new front which would have come to us as a complete nose and a new tail which was going to virtually slide onto the back of the old one. There was to be no major surgery involved. The idea was to do it in a couple of days of modifications and you were back on the road again". Nonetheless work on the project continued with the prototype, chassis number 1E21041, being dispatched to the Swiss based coachbuilder Italsuisse for final preparations / alterations ahead of its debut at the 1966 Geneva Salon. Frua and Italsuisse had longstanding links but with just two days to go 'The Coombs Special' was still sat at the latter's Geneva premises awaiting paint. Speaking to freelance journalist Paul Walton from his Monaco home, Coombs recalled that work on the bespoke Jaguar "was left until the last minute and so, in typical Italian fashion, it was a disaster. I had dinner with Bob Berry (Jaguar's head of Public Relations) the night before and he asked about the car, but I replied it wasn't going to be ready in time. However, at 7.30 am the next morning Berry called me and said 'Get downstairs - it's arrived'".

In an attempt to disguise the E-type's now obvious Italian sports car look 1E21041 had been repainted from red to metallic silver grey. Displayed on the Italsuisse stand 'The Coombs Special' also known as the 'Frua E-type' or 'Italsuisse E-type Coupe' proved somewhat controversial and received mixed reviews. Despite getting a couple of orders Coombs decided to cancel the project due to the high cost of conversion. The unique coupe was put on show again later that same year at Earls Court where it was sold to Roy MacCulloch of MacCulloch & Wallis, a London W1 haberdashery firm. No further examples were built. Roy MacCulloch kept the car until 1984 when it was transferred to Ruth MacCulloch (presumably as a result of bereavement). Bought by the Weybridge Performance Centre soon after, it was then retailed to Barrie Dempsey of Totnes, Devon. Acquired by professional car restorer, Terry Rudd, in December 1996 plans for its extensive refurbishment had to be shelved because of other work commitments. Passing to Peter Sweggers of Belgium the following year, 1E21041 is believed to have formed part of a private Dutch collection from 2000 onwards (albeit that it appeared for sale with various dealers from time to time). Repatriated to England during early 2007, the Jaguar looked to be in a sorry state with huge cracks all over the paint work. However, the vendor was pleased to discover any neglect was seemingly 'skin deep' and that the coupe drove as well as its genuine recorded mileage of 65,000 suggested. Surprised by the "free revving engine (thanks to a lightweight balanced flywheel), light gearchange, superb acceleration and taut handling", he determined to give 'The Coombs Special' a "nut and bolt restoration" placing particular emphasis on its cosmetics.

Fortunately, once the body had been blasted and its heavily distressed paintwork removed the underlying metal was found to be remarkably sound. Indeed apart from some minor bonnet and rear valance repairs, 1E21041 is understood to retain a full complement of original body panels. Continuing the conservation theme, the original brightwork was repaired and rechromed, while the factory fitted interior was sympathetically refurbished. All in all the work took over a year to complete, the result being a unique car that looks, feels and drives much as it must have done back in 1966. The Geneva Salon has a very special place in the E-type legend and as such it seems highly appropriate that 'The Coombs Special' debuted on the same hallowed ground. A fascinating 'what if' not to mention a unique piece of automotive history, this striking Jaguar has the potential to elicit invitations to some very prestigious motoring events whether rallies or Concours d'Elegance. Riding on period correct silver painted wire wheels, it is offered for sale with two binders of documented history which include a FIVA Passport, restoration photographs, ownership history details and sundry invoices.

All current photographs copyright Michael Bailee