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Ian Callum’s superb Mark 2 gets limited production run

13 February, 2015

Late last year, Jaguar’s Design Director, Ian Callum, unveiled his own, completed, project car — a stunning resto-modded Mark 2 Jag. Callum designed the car, which was built by Classic Motor Cars (CMC) in Shropshire, England, over an 18-month time period.

The Mark 2 is powered by Jaguar XK’s modified and uprated 4.3-litre engine mated to a five-speed manual gearbox. The car sits on unique, independent rear-suspension, modernized front suspension, power-assisted rack and pinion steering, and uprated front brakes — the whole design was for a practical, reliable, and extremely exciting daily driver.

Functional louvres adorn the Mark 2’s front guards, the bumpers have been redesigned, and the car sits 30mm lower than factory upon beautiful 17-inch split-rim multi-spoke wheels. Inside, the car boasts a modern entertainment system and red-leather interior resembling the very British smoking jacket.

Mere hours after the car’s unveiling, CMC were already fielding enquiries from people across the globe, asking if they too could buy one. Well, the build of the second of these special Mark 2s is underway as part of a limited run of 12 cars.

Nick Goldthorp, managing director of CMC, said, “It is going to be a left-hand-drive car, and the body is nearing completion. We should finish the vehicle by the end of this year.”

Each car will be specifically tailored to the individual buyer, who will finalize the specification with Ian Callum.

“No two cars will be the same, which makes them more unique. It’s all in the small details that can be tailored, including the gearbox, exterior and interior colours,” said Goldthorp.

With the car currently under construction expected to visit the USA next year, we’ll be keeping a close eye out on its progress and bring you more as it happens.

 

Chrysler’s classy cruiser

22 May, 2026

I first saw our feature car, a 1970 V8-powered Regal 770 hardtop, towing a trailer carrying the tidy Ford Anglia classic racing saloon in Broadspeed racing colours that has featured in these pages. The coupe is comparatively rare here, which means anyone contemplating purchasing one of these big two-doors is sure to see prices continue to climb. The latter Charger has claimed much of the Aussie Chrysler limelight, but the simpler and classier lines of this car, which appeared dated soon after its introduction, now have a more timeless appeal.
Former owner, Balclutha motor engineer, Mike Verdoner, remembers the car well. He believes it came from Dunedin originally.
“I’m not sure about the car’s history, but I bought it off its owner at Kaitangata. Unusually, it was advertised in the local newspaper, the Clutha Leader, which was a surprise as these usually go for a lot more money on the internet. I had it for quite a few years. It needed a little bit of work to tidy it up, so I had to decide whether to spend the money on it to do it up, which could have been twenty grand. Its value at the time was not like it is now, so I sold it to Ewan. It’s probably now worth three or four times what I sold it for.”

The Pininfarina 230 SL

14 May, 2026

It’s October 1964, and imagine you’re an automotive journalist covering that year’s Paris Auto Show (Mondial de l’Automobile). As you approach the Pininfarina booth, you come across a car that looks a bit like the Mercedes-Benz 230 SL introduced the previous year at the Geneva Auto Show, a car then arriving at Mercedes-Benz dealerships around the world.
But looking closely, its styling and proportions seem to be a bit different. And it has a fixed roof, unlike the Pagoda-style greenhouse of the removable hardtop seen on the production 230 SL. While today, the styling of the W113, under the supervision of Head of Styling Friedrich Geiger, with lead designers Paul Bracq and Bela Barenyi, is considered a mid-century modern masterpiece, acceptance in-period was not universal. Some critics called out the concave design of its removable roof, which ultimately gave the car its “Pagoda” nickname.