Jensen-Ford Tourer 1936 - World Of Classic Cars -

Jensen-Ford Tourer 1936

The Jensen Company is best remembered as one of the most successful British builders of what were, in the 1960s, known as “hybrids,” combining reliable American powertrains with European craftsmanship and sensual styling. Jensen is unique among manufacturers of “hybrids” in that their first American-powered sports models were produced not in the 1960s but 30 years earlier, in 1934, when brothers Richard and Alan Jensen built racing bodies for Fords running in the Tourist Trophy in Northern Ireland. This led to a small run of four-seater V-8 tourers, reportedly inspired by a special built for Edsel Ford that was produced at Edsel’s suggestion and with his support.

Jensen-Ford Tourer 1936

Perhaps 30 Jensen-Fords, as they were known, were produced between 1934 and 1936. Three of the cars were built with left-hand drive and exported to the United States through Percy Morgan, a California industrialist who had been impressed by a road report on the cars in The Autocar. Morgan first ordered two cars, one for himself and one for his friend, legendary actor and sports car enthusiast Clark Gable. Two 1936 Ford chassis were ordered through the Hollywood Ford dealer and shipped from the Ford branch in New Jersey to England for bodies.

Jensen-Ford Tourer 1936

A third car, the one shown here, was ordered for Theodore B. Wilcox Jr., the heir to an Oregon flour fortune. Wilcox was upset when production problems in the U.K. continually delayed delivery of the car. Fortunately, Gable declined to take delivery of his Jensen-Ford, and so Wilcox received that car. Meanwhile, this car eventually did arrive from England in California and was sold by Morgan to a Mr. Burlingham of Cincinnati, Ohio, a member of the prominent Burlingham Coal Company family.
According to a history of the car from former owner Art Knapp, Mr. Burlingham kept the Jensen-Ford on the West Coast and later sold it to Hollywood comedian Mischa Auer. It resurfaced in Sylmar, California, in the mid-1960s and was sold to a local businessman, Bill Owens. The car remained with Mr. Owens until 2000, at which point it was sold to Greg Schneider and then passed to Mr. Knapp.

Jensen-Ford Tourer 1936

Mr. Knapp spent six years gathering and remanufacturing correct parts for the restoration of the car, which began in earnest in 2007 and was completed in 2013, with thousands of man-hours invested in the project. The top irons, much of the shock absorbers, the dashboard, and the emergency brake system, all of which are unique to this model, were produced from scratch. In rebuilding the inner woodwork of the body, it was discovered that the two sides of the car were not mirror images of one another—typical of 1930s coachbuilding. The drivetrain, fortunately, remained intact and original and was restored to its 1936 condition.

Jensen Interceptor Series III 1976 - World Of Classic Cars -

Jensen Interceptor Series III 1976

Shown at the October 1966 Earls Court Motor Show alongside the technically advanced four wheel drive FF, the Touring of Milan designed Interceptor was quite a sensation and received much praise. The fact Jensen had in the space of a year produced two completely new models was also outstanding, particularly as the two companies involved in the project were 680 miles apart. The original design penned by Touring of Milan was taken to Vignale of Turin who had the capability to produce the car in much higher numbers than Touring. Fully trimmed and painted bodyshells were delivered from Italy for assembly at West Bromwich by October 1966.

Jensen Interceptor Series III 1976

Both new cars had the 330bhp Chrysler 383ci (6276cc) V8 engine and Torqueflite 3 speed automatic gearbox as fitted to the previous C-V8 and shared body panels from the front A-pillars back, the chassis of each car were however quite different.
The original cars built by Vignale in Italy required much work inside and out to meet the quality standard required by Jensen, eventually the contract was terminated and Jensen started producing the cars themselves at West Bromwich. For the October 1969 Motor Show a Mk.II version of the Interceptor and FF were displayed. Changes to the rear lights having a larger flatter area and no chrome trim, new slimmer bumpers and flatter overriders were amongst the many improvements that were introduced, the largest being a completely new interior. With the introduction of the SP, the Interceptor gained the same interior and exterior treatment becoming the Interceptor Mk. III. The GKN alloys and brakes were also added and the culmination of so many small details gave the whole car a fresher, more modern look compared with the previous models. This Mk.III model was the most successful achieving the highest production figures of any Jensen at 3432.

Jensen Interceptor Series III 1976

Good design is timeless and it is to Jensens great credit that the brand new Jensen's are being produced again with the drop-dead gorgeous Interceptor R. It is no surprise that Jeremy Clarkson referred to it as one of the most beautiful cars ever made.

Jensen Interceptor Series I 1968 - World Of Classic Cars -

Jensen Interceptor Series I 1968

The Jensen Interceptor is a sporting GT-class car. Interceptors were hand-built at the Kelvin Way Factory, West Bromwich between 1966 and 1976. The Interceptor name had been used previously by Jensen for the Interceptor made between 1950 and 1957 at the Carters Green factory. Jensen had extensively used glass-reinforced plastic for the fabrication of body panels in the preceding two decades, but the new Interceptor saw a return to a steel body-shell. The body was designed by an outside firm, Carrozzeria Touring of Italy, rather than the in-house staff. The early bodies were built in Italy by Vignale, before Jensen took production in house; this stunning new car was built from steel but retained a similar chassis to the CV8. It also shared the same Chrysler 383 cubic inch (6,276cc) V8 engine and Torqueflite automatic transmission. The '67 Interceptor rocketed Jensen into international recognition with stars of stage and screen.

Jensen FF 1969 - World Of Classic Cars -

Jensen FF 1969

Produced between 1966 and 1971, the Jensen FF  was the first non all-terrain production car equipped with four-wheel drive and an anti-lock braking system, the Dunlop Maxaret mechanical system, used hitherto only on aircraft, trucks, and racing cars.
The use of four-wheel drive in a passenger car preceded the successful Audi Quattro & Subaru by many years. The letters FF stand for Ferguson Formula after Ferguson Research Limited who invented the car's system. The FF is related to the similar-looking, rear-wheel drive Jensen Interceptor but is five inches longer and mechanically very different. The FF can be distinguished from the Interceptor by a few styling cues; the most obvious being the twin (rather than single) diagonal air vents on the front wing just rear of the wheel-arches.

Jensen Interceptor - World Of Classic Cars - Rank 31

Shown at the October 1966 Earls Court Motor Show alongside the technically advanced 4 wheel drive FF, the Touring of Milan designed Interceptor was quite a sensation and received much praise. The fact Jensen had in the space of a year produced two completely new models was also outstanding, particularly as the two companies involved in the project were 680 miles apart. The original design penned by Touring of Milan was taken to Vignale of Turin who had the capability to produce the car in much higher numbers than Touring. Fully trimmed and painted bodyshells were delivered from Italy for assembly at West Bromwich by October 1966.

Both new cars had the 330 bhp Chrysler 383ci (6276cc) V8 engine and Torqueflite 3 speed automatic gearbox as fitted to the previous C-V8 and shared body panels from the front A-pillars back, the chassis of each car were however quite different. The Interceptor was originally a modification of the successful C-V8 chassis, the FF model was heavily modified with a different main tube arrangement to accept the 4 wheel drive system also being 4” longer. Whereas the body on the CV8 had been glass fibre, both the Interceptor and FF were of all steel construction. A new type of wheel was used, fully chrome plated 5J x 15” Rostyle wheels were fitted to both models.

Vignale and MkI Interceptor

The original cars built by Vignale in Italy required much work inside and out to meet the quality standard required by Jensen, eventually the contract was terminated and Jensen started producing the cars themselves at West Bromwich. There are many subtle differences on the early cars due to constant updating for production purposes and detailed records of changes were not kept up to date.

Mid 1969 the front suspension was redesigned replacing the king-pin type carried over from the C-V8 with independent, coil sprung, ball jointed wishbones, the lever arm dampers also being replaced with telescopic type. The twin piston Dunlop callipers front and rear were replaced with Girling triple piston types improving braking, radial tyres were fitted making the Interceptor even more sure footed than before and power steering was standard fitment.

For the October 1969 Motor Show a MkII version of the Interceptor and FF were displayed signalling the end of Vignale and MkI  production with a total of 1033 produced.

The interior was stylish and obviously Italian - nothing had been seen like this before in the traditionally Britsh Jensen. On the left a very early Vignale-bodied car with many detail differences to the later West Bromwich-built cars. On the right the detail differences are plain to see, but additionally, this is a very rare manual-gearbox model.

Interceptor Mk II

Changes to the rear lights having a larger flatter area and no chrome trim although some early cars had the MkI lamps, new slimmer bumpers and flatter overriders, the front bumper being 2” higher with new indicators mounted beneath. Black trim around the headlamps as opposed to body colour with the chrome headlamp bezels removed and a remote opener for the rear hatch operated from within the driver’s door shut replacing the push button on the rear panel.

Many more improvements were introduced, the largest being a completely new interior. Totally different in appearance to the Italian styled MkI with new seats, centre console, dashboard incorporating a glovebox and air conditioning is now offered as an optional extra. The wheels changed, keeping with Rostyles now being 6J x 15” with a chrome centre section and a silver grey painted rim.

Interceptor SP

Sales figures coupled to the cost of manufacturing the FF led to a new model being introduced as the company flagship for the October 1971 Motor Show, the Interceptor SP. The 383ci (6276cc) engine was replaced with a 440ci (7212cc) version from Chrysler in a very high state of tune incorporating three dual choke carburettors known in the USA as the “Six Pack”, hence the new model designation of SP. A high compression ratio of 10.3:1 required the use of five star fuel to develop the 385 bhp this engine was rated at, some 55 bhp more than the 330 bhp of the 383ci engine.

New 6.5J x 15” 5 spoke alloy wheels manufactured by GKN were fitted enabling the fitment of wider tyres and larger 10.75” ventilated discs with a dual circuit system. To make the SP stand out compared with lesser models a contrasting vinyl roof was standard plus two sets of louvres were punched in each side of the bonnet for three quarters of the length. The front bumper was altered losing the number plate mounting, the rear now had a single rear number plate lamp as opposed to two and cast aluminium surrounds made for the dual headlamps having tapered light apertures. Every optional extra was standard on the SP including the Lear-Jet Stereo 8 track tape player-radio and electric aerial. The interior was also updated having new seats and door panels, the centre console was restyled and the dashboard received two extra eyeball vents.

Performance figures gave the SP 0-60mph in 6.9 seconds, 0-100mph in 16.8 seconds and a top speed of 145mph.

Interceptor Mk III

With the introduction of the SP, the Interceptor gained the same interior and exterior treatment becoming the Interceptor MkIII. The GKN alloys and brakes were also added and the culmination of so many small details gave the whole car a fresher, more modern look compared with the previous models. The 383ci engine remained but as time went on Chrysler were having difficulty meeting emission regulations and the power output was dropping so 1973 saw the introduction of the 440cid engine with a single four barrel carburettor. This MkIII model was the most successful achieving the highest production figures of any Jensen at 3432.

Interceptor Convertible

When the motoring world were assuming US safety law would see the end of convertible cars, Jensen had in development a convertible with a hydraulically operated hood they released in March 1974. US safety law did not change leaving Jensen as one of the very few manufacturers with a luxury convertible on the market at a time when most others had ceased production and development. The convertible sold well with over 467 being sold during the next two years.

Very little chassis work was required to improve strength and rigidity, a new rear end was designed with a boot lid which lent itself well to the giving a very balanced look. The roof folded hydraulically at the push of a switch, continued pressure lowering the rear quarter windows down into the panels out of sight.

Interceptor Mk III S4

Visually a very similar car to the MkIII Interceptor except for badges, but numerous detail changes under the skin. Note the j-Badge on the rear deck now, on the Oatmeal example. A massive change to the interior came a few months later with the replacement of the moulded plastic dashboard and the introduction of a completely redesigned dash in leather-trimmed walnut. Matching walnut panels (previously an option) on the centre console were now standard.

Interceptor Coupe

Unveiled at the London Motor Show in October 1975, the Coupe used the convertible rear panel work, a Jaguar XJ6 rear screen and a roofline designed by Panther having a unique dark blue tinted panel behind the rear windows continuing across the roof. Only 54 were built as the company was in receivership and at the time there were 3 prototype fixed head cars utilising the standard Interceptor rear quarter windows with the XJ6 rear screen.

Jensen Interceptor

Manufacturer	Jensen
Production	1966–76 6,408 produced
Predecessor	Jensen CV8
Class	Grand Tourer
Body style	2-door 4-seat hatchback 2-door 4-seat convertible 2-door 4-seat coupé
Layout	FR layout
Engine	6276 cc (383 cu. in.) V8 7212 cc (440 cu. in.) V8
Transmission	4 speed manual 3-speed automatic Torqueflite A-727
Wheelbase	105 in (2,667.0 mm)
Length	186 in (4,724.4 mm)
Width	69 in (1,752.6 mm)
Height	53 in (1,346.2 mm)
Curb weight	3,500 lb (1,588 kg)
Related	Jensen FF
Designer(s)	Carrozzeria Touring