At heart, I think of myself a hot rodder. But just like any petrolhead, I'm really a car guy. I just like cars. Some of my favourites include the Jaguar XK120, Jaguar E Type, Maserati 200s, Bentley Continental S1 (coupe), Alfa Romeo Balena and the Auburn Speedster. It so happens that Rob's latest creation is a 120XK Jaguar. A Jag with a bubble top is not something you usually see. Let's dive in.
The XK120 was introduced at the 1948 London Motor Show in open two-seater form, and was produced from 1949 to 1954. The sleekly styled body was originally built in aluminium, but as demand for the car turned out to be much higher than anticipated, it was re-tooled in steel in 1950. Around 200 cars were built with the aluminium body. Fixed head and drophead coupé models became available in 1952 and 1953 respectively. The XK120 used a shortened version of the chassis from the Jaguar Mark V saloon, with independent front suspension by torsion bars.
The XK120 was intended as a limited production model which would be a showcase for the new XK engine, before this engine went into full-scale production for the Mark VII saloon model which followed in 1950. This was the world’s first mass production engine with twin overhead camshafts and hemispherical combustion chambers. The enamelled manifolds and polished camshaft covers presented a handsome view when the bonnet was opened. The 3.4 litre engine produced 160bhp, which meant that the car could reach 125 mph (200 km/h), and went from 0 to 60 mph in 10 seconds. via Jaguar Heritage
On 30 May 1949, on the empty Ostend-Jabbeke motorway in Belgium, a prototype XK120 timed by the officials of the Royal Automobile Club of Belgium achieved an average of runs in opposing directions of 132.6 mph (213.4 km/h) with the windscreen replaced by just one small aero screen and a catalogued alternative top gear ratio and 135 mph (217 km/h) with a passenger-side tonneau cover in place. In 1950 and 1951, at Autodrome de Linas-Montlhéry, a banked oval track in France, open XK120s averaged over 100 mph (160 km/h) for 24 hours and over 130 mph (210 km/h) for an hour. In 1952 a fixed-head coupé took numerous world records for speed and distance when it averaged 100 mph for a week. via Wikipedia.
Works test driver Norman Dewis took the XK120 even further, achieving the record of average 140.789 mph on 1st April 1953 on the same Jabbeke motorway. This was a production car world land speed record. So besides pure beauty, the XK was a proper thoroughbred.
I had the pleasure to chat to Rob Ida about his Black Cat.
''The car is a 1950 Jaguar XK 120 that I purchased from the family who has owned it since the mid '60s. I’m the third owner and the person that I bought it from his father restored the car. Buying a restored nice solid complete car helped me see my vision quicker than if I had to go through all of the steps required in a complete ground up build.
The car was originally delivered from England to Colorado in 1950 then made its way to Chicago and has lived there from '60s until I bought the car last year.
My vision was to build a stylized version of the 1950 Jaguar XK120 that was raced by Norman Dewis in his successful speed record race. The style of that car has always fascinated me.
The Black Cat looks like that car, but in a more stylized version so I designed a canopy that covers the drivers head, but also incorporates the shape of a helmet fairing that flows over the decklid. When the canopy is closed, it fits just over my head with a helmet on. Lowering the steering column and rotating the steering box was needed so I can retain the large diameter steering wheel, but to achieve the line I wanted on the canopy profile. The canopy opens easily with a hinge in the center and it flips out of the way for easy entry exit.
Lowering the steering column can be undone and this car can be put back to 100% original in a matter of hours. When purchased, the car was in a modern red metallic color that I removed and repainted the car in its original color it came from the factory with, black.
I created a single seat and upholstered it in leather and Scottish tartan plaid wool and asked my friend ''Mikey Seats'', as he’s known on Instagram to handle the sewing and the leather work on the single seat. I created the car over a course of a few months, working with a company who creates blown canopies for airplanes. I created a shape using flexible pieces of material that gave me the style I wanted on the profile and a Birdseye view.
After the model was created by hand, we took a 3D scanning of it and created a pattern from which the tooling was created and the canopy was blown from polycarbonate plastic by bringing the plastic up to nearly 300°F and introducing air pressure so it blew up like a bubble of chewing gum. Tyler McCormick from Reversion did the 3D scan.
This was a personal project that was mostly done after hours or on weekends with the assistance of my daughter, Gianna, and my shop assistant Jose. We’d also like to mention the hand lettering and stripe was brushed by my friend Frank Inzirillo, who goes by Rooster Graphics and final polishing was my friend Bob Weiner.
The goal was to complete the project and race it on the beach along the Atlantic ocean at The Race of Gentlemen in Wildwood, New Jersey. This race is special to me as it was created by my friend Mel Stultz. Mel let me run the cars on the ocean even though there’s not an actual class that they fit in. I also brought my own competition 1957 Porsche 356 coupe and a car that I did for Al Wester and Ty Wester, a 1954 single seater Corvette.
This past weekend I drove the car through New York City on the lower West Side of Manhattan and took photo opportunities for The Black Cat to be in a completely different environment than it was seen at TROG.
(NB: The photos Rob refers to here are absolutely stunning, but I decided to stick with the TROG ones as I think this is it's best habitat. Check these at Rob's Instagram)
(NB: The photos Rob refers to here are absolutely stunning, but I decided to stick with the TROG ones as I think this is it's best habitat. Check these at Rob's Instagram)
The engine is a rebuilt, original Twin Cam straight six with twin side draft SU carburettors and a four speed manual transmission. The front suspension is a torsion bar system with Coney shocks and rear suspension is parallel leaf springs. In street version The Black Cat will have instead of the closed canopy a cut off version, leaving just the front windscreen and side section of the window and an open top. This allows for better ventilation and also manageable temperatures inside. No modification to the frame at all it’s it is completely stock. It wasn’t really built to race on a track but we used that as a goal to get it done so the project didn’t linger.
It’s difficult to finish my own projects because I have a lot of commitments to clients.''
Many thanks to Rob for all the information provided above. I was absolutely delighted to do this feature of this beautiful car made by a true craftsman of the trade. To make sure you can enjoy the video below, to see and hear The Black Cat, make sure you are logged in on Instagram first; as that it's the source.
Godspeed Rob !
Photo credit: Scott Kucharski.
Many thanks to Rob for all the information provided above. I was absolutely delighted to do this feature of this beautiful car made by a true craftsman of the trade. To make sure you can enjoy the video below, to see and hear The Black Cat, make sure you are logged in on Instagram first; as that it's the source.
Godspeed Rob !
Photo credit: Scott Kucharski.
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