QUIETLY FAMOUS

The first XK120 despatched by Jaguar Cars spent its first decades around Sydney.

- LES. HUGHES

THE FIRST PRECIOUS XK120 TO ever leave Jaguar Cars for sale came to Sydney, specifically Brylaw Industries, later Bryson Industries. More than that, it leftJaguar's Coventry factory in the industrial suburb of Foleshill on July 21, 1949, before the famous race at Silverstone. It is incorrectly documented the first three XK120s raced then. It arrived in Australia in October that year on the 1943-built former U.S. aircraft carrier, Premier. She was converted into a freighter renamed the Rhodesia Star.

If the car's arrival seems unremarkable still, consider Richard Hassan said the red XK120 which raced at Silverstone One Hour on August 30, 1949 was completed only days before. It was LHD chassis #02, so the Brylaw XK120 was sailing to Sydney before Jaguar's own third XK120 was built.

The Sydney car was actually the third XK120. LHD #670001 was the first and RHD #660001 the second. According to Jaguar's hand-written build book, the first RHD XK120 had its livery changed from Metallic Bronze, as did Brylaw's chassis #02. It was to be Bronze initially, but that is crossed out and Cream entered.

Consider too, Motor magazine in the UK didn't sample its first XK120 for readers consumption until December 1949.