The ex-Ray Archibald, 1954 New Zealand International Grand Prix
1951 Jaguar XK120 3.8-Litre Competition Roadster
Registration no. to be advised
Chassis no. 660864
Engine no. W2768-7

This historic Jaguar XK120 enjoyed a distinguished competition career in New Zealand while in the ownership of the late Ray Archibald, and was driven by him in the 1954 New Zealand International Grand Prix at Ardmore. Ray's father owned a garage business and motor dealership in Christchurch, to which Ray returned after serving as a fighter pilot with the New Zealand Air Force in WW2. He had flown Kittyhawks and Corsairs escorting American bombers, battling with Japanese Mitsubishi Zero fighters on a daily basis. In peacetime, motor racing would provide Ray with some of the thrills of aerial combat. Archibald's Garage held Citroën and Jowett agencies and so he raced those at first before buying a two-year-old Jaguar XK120 – chassis number '660864', the car offered here. By this time Archibald's had been appointed Jaguar agents, so the move made good commercial sense, and even more so because at that time the XK120 was the world's fastest production sports car. Chassis number '660864' had been completed in July 1951 and shipped to International Motor Sales in Wellington, NZ in September '51, though it was not first registered until February 1953. Its first owner, Miss Georgia Buchanan of Masterton, kept the car for only a few months and in May 1953 it was sold to Ray Archibald. On 9th January 1954 Ray and the by-now modified XK120 lined up on the fourth row of the grid at the Ardmore airfield circuit, coincidentally where Ray had undergone flight training in WW2, for the first ever New Zealand International Grand Prix. Genuine Grand Prix monopostos being in short supply in the Southern Hemisphere at that time, the race was also open to sports cars. Not that there were no entries of quality, for heading the time sheets in qualifying was Ken Wharton's supercharged BRM V16 Formula 1 car, which by lap five of the race had lapped all but eight runners. A shower of rain saw the ultra-powerful BRM briefly off the track, the win eventually going to Stan Jones' Maybach Special with Wharton finishing second. Ray was running midfield when a stone punctured the Jaguar's radiator after 91 laps, and he was classified 15th after a pit stop. Archibald's Jaguar, which earlier that day had finished second in the sports car race, is the only XK120 known to have taken part in an international Grand Prix race. Ray raced the XK120 extensively, qualifying on the second row for the Lady Wigram Trophy at the eponymous airfield track a few weeks later. In the race the XK collected a puncture and after a visit to the pits finished sixth. The race was won by Peter Whitehead's Ferrari. Ray also raced the car at Dunedin and Mairehau, winning the 30-lap, 75-mile Hamilton Trophy handicap race at the latter circuit in 1955. A few weeks later at Dunedin, he qualified fastest and won the handicap race having started from 'scratch'. Other highlights included a second place in the sports car race and 11th in the main event at Wigram in 1956. Years later Ray recalled the '56 Wigram race as his finest achievement with XK, which had finished ahead of the Aston Martin DB3Ss of David McKay and Tom Sulman. His last competitive outing with the XK120 came at the Southbridge country roads course in 1956 when he set fastest lap and finished third on handicap. A detailed list of all races entered and results achieved is available. Ray Archibald's performances had got him noticed by the factory back at Coventry, which supplied him with a C-Type cylinder head for the XK120. He went on to race a factory prepared Jaguar Mk2 3.8-litre saloon and C-Type sports racer in New Zealand with considerable success, having turned down the offer of a works drive in Europe. In July 1957, '660864' was sold to W D Read Motors and raced subsequently by Alf D Bell of Palmerston. The Jaguar would go on to have numerous owners in New Zealand, all of whom are listed under its entry in 'The Jaguar XK120 in the Southern Hemisphere' by John Elmgreen and Terry McGrath (page 244) together with details of various modifications made over the years. This exhaustively researched work states that in March 1998 the car was sold to Brian Wyness of Pukekohe and registered in his wife's name. Mr Wyness undertook extensive refurbishment including a bare metal re-spray and rebuilding the engine to 3.8 litres capacity complete with a Jaguar MkX straight-port cylinder head and 2" SU carburettors. By 2004 the car also had a Jaguar all-synchromesh gearbox, aero screens, and a smaller steering wheel. At time of cataloguing, '660864' was at Don Law Racing for pre-sale tidying and preparation. Back in 1982 the ex-Archibald Jaguar had been driven by Tony Gaze (one of the competitors in the 1954 Grand Prix) at the Ardmore Reunion Celebration. Following Ray Archibald's death in August 2010, Eoin Young writing in the New Zealand magazine Classic Driver published a full history of both the XK120 and its driver under the title 'Gentleman Jaguar Racer' (October/November 2010 edition, copy article available). Unique by virtue of its international Grand Prix history, this historic Jaguar XK120 would be an ideal car for Goodwood, the Mille Miglia and many other prestigious motoring events and venues.