2020-02-09 16:06:30 | pauls writes:

Car was at auction 2/20
www.bonhams.com/auctions/26005/lot/219/

Auction description:
Lot 219*
1961 Jaguar Mk2 3.8-Litre
Chassis no. 217687
€ 180,000 - 200,000
US$ 200,000 - 220,000
Les Grandes Marques du Monde au Grand Palais
6 Feb 2020, 14:00 CET
Paris, The Grand Palais

Ex-Bernard Consten; 1961 Tour de France Automobile Class-winning
1961 Jaguar Mk2 3.8-Litre
Chassis no. 217687
•Specially prepared by the Jaguar factory for the 1961 Tour de France Automobile
•Delivered new to France
•Known ownership history
•Present ownership since 1990
•Well maintained
Footnotes

Bernard Consten is a household name when 1950s and 1960s motor sport comes up in conversations both in France and around the world. Motor sport - specifically rallying - played an important role in Bernard's life from an early age when, as a student of the renowned HEC (École des Hautes Études Commerciales) in the early 1950s, he would sneak off in order to listen to the results of the Tour de France Automobile on the radio. Bernard would go on to win that event's Touring Car Class no fewer than five times (1958, 1960, 1961, 1962 and 1963). He was also French national rally champion in 1958, 1961, 1962 and 1967); a six times Le Mans 24 Hours participant; and winner of the Coupe des Alpes and Liège-Rome-Liège, the extraordinary 95 hours non-stop rally of 1958. He has also participated in the Targa Florio, Mille Miglia, Nürburgring and Paris 1,000km races, and the Sebring 12 Hours to mention just a few.

Following a successful professional career, Bernard Consten was president of the FFSA (Fédération Française des Sports Automobiles) from 1968 to 1973 and organised the Tour de France Automobile from 1969 to 1980. He participated in numerous events including acting as route planner and 'opening car' on the Tour Auto Retrospective. A modest and passionate former champion, he died aged 85 in 2017.

Bernard Consten had won the Touring Car Class of the 1960 Tour de France Automobile driving a factory-prepared Jaguar Mk2 saloon registered '5 KG 75'. For the following year's event he asked the Jaguar factory to prepare another 3.8-litre car and asked if he could have a third fuel tank installed in addition to the main tank and the auxiliary tank in the spare wheel emplacement. The factory said it was not possible, so one can imagine how upset Bernard was when he discovered that all the British-entered factory-prepared cars had an additional auxiliary tank in the boot! This resulted in Consten preparing his own Jaguars for future TdF events, of which he won a further two. All of which makes the Mk2 offered here the last car the Jaguar factory prepared for Consten, a letter from Jaguar France confirms. The car was registered just in time for the 1961 TdFA as '777 LL 75' and still carries its 1961 TdFA participant's badge. A letter from Jaguar on file dated October 1969 confirms that '217687' was specially prepared for the Tour de France.

Its next owner, a Mr Dubois from Lille, kept the Jaguar from 1962 until 1968, during which period it was registered '926 DN 59'. He was followed by another Lille resident, a Mr Danjou, who owned the car, still registered '926 DN 59', from 1969 until 1981. The current vendor, enthusiastic historic car collector and owner of the Bridgehampton raceway Long Island, Robert Rubin, acquired the ex-Consten Jaguar from the next owner, a Mr Teboul from Meudon, in 1990. During Mr Teboul's ownership the Jaguar was registered '4158 SB 92', although the numberplates were not changed and the car hardly ever used.

Never involved in any accidents while in the vendor's care, the Jaguar remains highly original and has been maintained with no expense spared by Northumberland Enterprises Corporation, automobile engineers and coachbuilders of Southampton, New York, USA. There are 28 pages of invoices on file covering the period 2006 to 2017 for various works including a complete engine rebuild in 2011/2012 (close inspection recommended). Always a strong performer, albeit used sparingly over the last couple of years, the car was recently back at Northumberland Engineering for servicing and a thorough check over to make sure that everything works prior to shipment.

Please note this motor car is subject to the reduced local import tax should it remains in the EU. Bonhams is the guarantor of the customs duties and taxes clearance: consequently, this motor car cannot be released to the buyer or his transporter immediately after the sale.

2026-04-21 06:48:01 | pauls writes:

Car returns to auction 4/26

www.aguttes.com/en/artisio

Auction description:

Fine Classics & Racing Cars

1961 Jaguar MK2 3.8 Tour de France Factory Edition

Estimate 180 000 € - 240 000 €

Jaguar Mk2 3.8 – Factory-prepared – Tour de France Automobile

French registration document — Sold without MOT

Chassis no. 217687

Winner of the 1961 Tour de France Automobile with Bernard Consten

Impressive track record, notably including two entries in the Tour de France (1961 and 1962), the Tour de Corse, the Cévennes and Mont Ventoux with Annie Soisbault

Factory-prepared, 3.8-litre competition engine producing 240/250 hp, close-ratio gearbox, direct steering, limited-slip differential, etc…

Crystal-clear provenance and traceability, exceptional and well-documented condition

One of only two surviving ex-Consten Mk2s, eligible for the biggest international historic events

Chassis No. 217687 is precisely the one with which ‘Monsieur Tour Auto’, French rally champion in 1958, 1961, 1962 and 1967, secured his third Tour de France Automobile victory in 1961. A key figure in French motorsport, Bernard Consten has to his credit six appearances in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, a victory in the Coupe des Alpes, the Liège-Rome-Liège, and the 1961 Targa Florio – where he certainly showed off all his talent at the wheel of his Alfa Romeo SZ against a host of Italian rivals (8th overall and 1st in his 1300cc class ahead of no fewer than 17 Alfa Romeo SZs and 7 seconds clear of the runner-up… a remarkable feat!), the Mille Miglia, not to mention appearances at the Nürburgring, the 1,000 km of Paris and the 12 Hours of Sebring. After such a brilliant and busy career, he served as president of the FFSA from 1968 to 1973, then organised the Tour de France Automobile from 1969 to 1980. Modest, passionate and admired by all, he passed away in 2017 at the age of 85.

To understand how the factory managed its racing commitments, one had to look to Charles Delecroix, head of the Royal-Elysée dealership in Paris. It was he who, from Paris, represented the British brand on the French market in the 1950s and 1960s, and it was in his workshops that the Jaguar Mk2s entered in competition — including Bernard Consten’s — were prepared. To be even more precise, the cars registered with the number 777 belonged to the importer; the others, including the 1960 5 KG 75 and the 1962 6932 MU 75, were owned by Consten himself. Over the years, his friend Gérard Lanvin, who looked after his cars, became his official and loyal mechanic. Between the two of them, trust was one of the keys to their success. Adjustments and fine-tuning were carried out without delay, and until Gérard Lanvin joined Alfa Romeo from his Lovauto garage in Boulogne, it was he who oversaw the development of Consten’s cars. 

 Following his victory in the 1960 Tour de France Automobile in a Mk2 (registered 5 KG 75), Royal Elysée commissioned a new 3.8-litre model from the factory, prepared for competition. Entrusted to Consten, it was registered 777 LL 75, just in time for the 1961 Tour de France. The car sported an Old English White livery with a grille edged in red, flanked by its long headlamps. The engine tuning boosted power to 240/250 hp according to the press of the time, nearly 30 hp more than the previous year. But that’s not all: the air intake system without air filters for the carburettors, the direct steering, the limited-slip differential and the ‘close-ratio’ gearbox transformed the car and its performance. The slim tubular front bumper, designed to accommodate Dunlop Racing tyres, also allowed for the fitting of large brake ducts to ensure better cooling, the exhaust system, which lacks baffles but features two identical tailpipes, and a second fuel tank mounted in place of the spare wheel – whilst retaining the original fuel filler, unlike those that would follow – complete the list of modifications. Whilst the interior is left to the tuners’ discretion, all retain their wood trim but swap their front seats and rear bench for special bucket seats. ‘217687’ still retains its original upholstery, its two bucket seats and a few accessories, including a passenger-side starter button to restart the car more quickly in the event of a ‘spin’, or its quick-release bonnet, amongst other things…

For this edition, the route of approximately 5,300 km is divided into five stages, returning to the traditional start and finish in Nice. Compared to 1960, the route has been slightly updated: the Nürburgring is no longer on the programme, Spa has been replaced by Brussels, with nine hill climbs and six circuits, plus two brand-new timed trials in Corsica! 

Bernard Consten once again put his experience to good use, leading the race for the vast majority of the stages despite fierce competition from the four other Jaguar Mk2 Tour de France cars, including Jopp-Baillie’s No. 86. A symbol of his superiority, the man who was not yet known as ‘Monsieur Tour Auto’ at the time left the competition trailing in the Massif Central during the night-time climb up Mont Revard. With a 28-second lead over Jopp’s Mk2, his performance would have placed him 5th overall in the GT and Touring car categories; only the four Ferraris driven by Mairesse, Gzendebien, Oreiller and Simon managed to be faster! 

 As soon as the 1961 Tour de France was over, the car was exhibited at the Motor Show on the Jaguar stand alongside the new E-Type.