Jensen Interceptor MkIII

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Dubbed ‘the Birmingham Ferrari’, the handbuilt Interceptor is one of the most charismatic cars to emerge from Britain in the post-war era. Vastly expensive when new, it is still an occasion to see one of the 800 that survive on the UK’s roads from the 6,408 made in total.

Small wonder that the Interceptor attracted the glitterati of '60s society – Frank Sinatra, Clark Gable, Tony Curtis, Keith Richards, Dusty Springfield, Lord Carrington – the list of famous owners goes on and on, making it all the more surprising that these superb machines are so under-valued today. As rare as any DB Aston, better made and far more potent to boot, they are perhaps the classic car bargain of the modern age.

The last model of the line was the MkIII which ran from October 1971 to May 1976 with an even plusher interior, central locking, improved dual-circuit brakes, new GKN alloy wheels and a bigger 7.2-litre engine which produced a mighty 330bhp and 410lb/ft of torque. “The results of pressing the accelerator are pretty electrifying to say the least," wrote Autocar, recording a 0-60 time of 6.4 secs on the way to a top speed of 137mph. "With all that torque on tap and such excellent brakes willing to take any punishment, there are no problems getting along very fast indeed."

This 1974 Interceptor III has been part of a private collection for the last 29 years and has been very little used during that time. At the time of cataloguing the history file could not readily be located but we are told that it had an engine rebuild about five years ago and has been in storage since. We are also told that it was treated to a high quality repaint in the original white at around the same time. The navy hide interior is said to be in excellent condition, as is the headlining. It is showing some 78,100 miles on the clock which is believed to be correct.

Recently taken out of storage to prepare it for sale, it has been fully recommissioned at a cost of around £6,000 which has included four new Michelin XWX tyres from Longstone Tyres (£1,600), all wheels refurbished, a new stainless steel exhaust system, electric windows overhauled, new belts and hoses, new battery and a full service. We are told that it now drives exactly as a good Interceptor should with bags of grunt, smooth gear changes from the auto box and an MOT to April 2020 with no advisories recorded.