Selling an E-Type

Choosing how to sell

E-Types change hands through the same channels a buyer searches, and the buying and evaluation page describes the process from the other side of the table. For a seller the trade-off is between convenience and cost: the routes that do the most work for you take a share of the price, and the routes that cost least leave every enquiry, viewing and payment to you. Whichever you choose, the preparation is the same, and a car with an organised history file, a factory record and an honest description sells more easily through any of them.

This archive does not buy, sell, list or broker cars, carries no advertising and takes nothing from anyone named on this page. Names are given so that a reader can find them, not as recommendations.

The routes to market

Classic car auction houses

E-Types are offered regularly at classic sales in Britain, Europe and North America, by houses including RM Sotheby's and Brightwells among many others. You submit details and photographs, agree an estimate and a reserve, and sign an entry form that becomes your contract with the auction house. The car is catalogued, shown at viewing days and sold at the fall of the hammer if bidding reaches the reserve.

Seller's charges usually combine an entry or cataloguing fee with a commission on the hammer price, each plus VAT in the UK, often with a minimum fee, and withdrawing a car after entry carries charges of its own. Rates and payment timings differ, so ask for the seller's terms in writing before you sign. Keep the car insured until you have been paid. An auction gives a fixed date and a definite result; the risk is that the car fails to reach its reserve and has to be collected or re-offered.

A catalogue description is written from what you supply, and you remain responsible for its accuracy. Give the auction house the Heritage Certificate and your own record of the numbers, and correct anything in the draft description that goes further than the evidence.

Online auctions and classified sites

Timed online auctions, such as those run by Car & Classic and PistonHeads, list a car for a set period, usually with a reserve and an extension for late bids. The platform typically helps write the description, which you approve and remain responsible for. Fee structures vary, with some charging the buyer rather than the seller, and some platforms handle the payment while others leave buyer and seller to arrange it, so read the seller's terms before you list. Classified sites give the widest audience and leave every enquiry, viewing and payment with you.

The clubs

Members of the Jaguar clubs are often the best-informed buyers an E-Type can find. Two of the British clubs run classified adverts that include cars for sale:

• Jaguar Enthusiasts' Club. The club runs a classifieds site with a cars for sale section that has its own E-Type category, alongside parts, services and wanted adverts. Check its terms for who may advertise and on what basis.
• Jaguar Drivers' Club. The club's classified adverts appear on its website and in Jaguar Driver magazine, and are free to current members.

The Jaguar E-type Club, which describes itself as the only British club devoted solely to the car, publishes The E-type magazine; its website does not describe a classified advertising service, so ask the club directly if you are a member. For American sellers, see the United States section below. The differences between the clubs are set out on clubs and records.

A club sale is still a private sale in law, so everything on this page about describing the car, test drives and payment applies in full.

Specialist dealers

A dealer can buy the car outright, take it in part-exchange, or sell it for you on commission, often called sale or return. An outright sale is the quickest, at a lower figure, because the dealer must prepare the car and make a margin. On a commission sale the dealer prepares and displays the car, handles buyers and payment, and takes a pre-agreed fee when it sells; the car stays yours until then. The agreement should set out the asking price, the fee, any preparation charges, the display period, who insures the car on the premises and when you will be paid. Firms that work on E-Types are described, without ranking, on parts and specialists.

Selling privately

A private sale usually leaves the most money with the seller, along with the most work and the most risk. The sections below on viewings and payment are written mainly for private sellers.

The factory record and the numbers

The first question a serious E-Type buyer asks is whether the car is what it claims to be. Two pieces of evidence answer it together: the factory record, and the numbers stamped on the car.

The Heritage Certificate

The Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust holds the Jaguar production records and issues Heritage Certificates from them. A certificate reproduces the car's entry exactly as it was recorded at the time of production, including the original colour and trim, the build and despatch dates, the original destination and, where one was recorded, the original registration mark.

To apply you supply all four of the car's numbers, chassis, engine, body and gearbox, with a copy of the registration document: a V5C in Britain, or the equivalent title in another country. The Trust warns applicants to check the numbers, because the certificate can only be as good as the numbers it was asked to look up. Read them from the stampings on the car, not from an old invoice or a plate.

If your car already has a certificate, put it at the front of the file. If it does not, ordering one before you advertise answers the first question a buyer will ask, and helps you write an accurate description.

Matching numbers

"Matching numbers" means that the chassis, engine, body and gearbox numbers on the car correspond to the numbers the factory recorded for that car. It is a statement of fact, and a buyer is entitled to rely on it, so make it only when you have checked it.

• Read every stamping on the car itself, not only the plate in the engine bay. Plates can be replaced and reproductions are freely available. The chassis and engine numbers page explains the system, and there are separate pages for the chassis number, the engine number and the body number.
• Compare each one with the certificate and with the V5C.
• If a number differs, say which one and what you know about it. Engines and gearboxes were exchanged by dealers in period and by owners since; a correct-type replacement, openly described, is ordinary history for a car of this age. A changed gearbox, such as a later all-synchromesh box fitted to a Moss-gearbox car (see the Moss to 4.2 gearbox conversion), should be described as such, with the original kept if you still have it.
• "Matching numbers" says nothing about what is inside the engine, or about how much of the shell is original metal. If the car has been reshelled or heavily rebuilt, say so; the body number page explains why that matters on a monocoque car.
• A number that has been ground, restamped or presented on a new plate with no explanation is the one thing that will stop a knowledgeable buyer. If your car has one, find the explanation before you advertise.

xkedata

xkedata.com is a large public register of E-Type chassis numbers and many buyers will look your car up there. Treat what it says about your car as a lead, not a record. It is built from contributions, and its own about page tells readers to take what they find with a grain of salt. If its entry for your car is wrong or out of date, you can correct it, but the factory record is the evidence to show a buyer.

The registration number

Many E-Types now carry an age-related or replacement registration after a period abroad or a lapse in records. If the original mark was recorded, the certificate may show it. Reclaiming an original number is done through the DVLA's V765 scheme, with the application endorsed by a club on the DVLA's V765/1 list; the August 2026 list names the Jaguar E-type Club, the Jaguar Drivers Club, the Jaguar Enthusiasts Club and the Jaguar XK Club. The Heritage Trust is not on the list and does not inspect cars. Evidence must link the number to the car, and the DVLA no longer accepts an application on a club endorsement alone, so do not promise a buyer that an original number can be recovered. If you have already done it, the paperwork belongs in the file. The scheme is explained on clubs and records.

Describing the car honestly

The E-Type market rewards originality and punishes surprises, so the description should say plainly what the car is and what has been done to it.

The series. Use the series the car actually is. Series 1, Series 2 and Series 3 are the factory's own divisions. "Series 1.5" is an enthusiast term for the interim 1968 model year cars, which the factory treated as late Series 1 4.2 production; the term is widely used and understood, but describe the features as well as the label. On cars of 1967 and 1968 the headlights alone do not settle the question, so check the carburettors, the switches and the cam covers against the series identification page and the Series 1.5 page, then check the chassis number.

Covered headlights. Glass headlight covers belong to Series 1 cars. Cars have been converted in both directions, most often by fitting covered headlights to a later car, and the chassis number and the build date on the certificate usually settle the question. If yours has been converted, say so.

Engine and specification. State the engine size and type, whether it is the engine the certificate shows, and whether the car has the carburettors it left the factory with. American-market six-cylinder cars from the 1968 model year onwards were built with two Zenith-Stromberg carburettors where other six-cylinder cars kept three SUs; every Series 3 V12 has four Zenith-Strombergs, so a change in either direction is part of the description.

Left- and right-hand drive, and repatriated cars. Most E-Types were built in left-hand drive, and many cars in Britain today came back from America and were converted. The chassis number records the steering side the car was built with, because left- and right-hand drive cars were numbered in separate ranges, so a buyer can check it in seconds. Say whether the car was built for the home market or for export, whether it has been converted, when and by whom, and keep the evidence of how it was imported and registered here. A properly done conversion is not a problem in itself; a poor one is, and a buyer will look at the pedal box, the steering, the wiring behind the dashboard and the brake pipes. Owning one in America lists the parts that differ by hand.

Imported cars. A car brought into the UK must be notified to HMRC, normally through the NOVA service, within 14 days, and it cannot be registered with the DVLA until that has been done. If you imported the car, keep the NOVA confirmation, the duty and VAT paperwork and the foreign title or registration document (the DVLA keeps the original foreign registration document when it registers the car, so keep a copy). A buyer of a repatriated car will want to see that it was imported and registered properly.

Restorations and the manufacturer's own cars. Restoration claims should be supported by invoices, photographs and dates rather than adjectives. If your car was restored by the manufacturer's own classic department, for example as one of the E-type Reborn cars announced by Jaguar Classic in 2017, include the documentation that came with it.

Modifications and MOT exemption. List every modification, with who fitted it and when, and keep the original parts if you still have them. Under the government's criteria a vehicle that has been substantially changed, for example by replacing the chassis, body, axles or engine in a way that changes how it works, is not exempt from the MOT. The criteria treat alternative capacities of the same basic engine and alternative original-equipment engines differently from a modern engine transplant. Do not describe a heavily modified car as MOT exempt unless you are sure; the GOV.UK criteria set out the test.

Preparing the paperwork

V5C (log book). Make sure it is in your name, at your current address, with details that match the car, including the chassis number exactly as stamped, and apply to update it if anything has changed. Show it to buyers in person, but do not send photographs or copies, or share its 11-digit document reference number: GOV.UK warns these can be used to obtain a fraudulent copy of the log book.

MOT history. An E-Type that has not been substantially changed is exempt from the annual MOT, because it was built more than 40 years ago. Exemption does not stop you taking a voluntary test, and a recent result is independent evidence a buyer can check for themselves on the free GOV.UK MOT history service, which shows past results and recorded mileage from the registration number.

The history file. Put invoices, receipts, old MOT certificates, old registration documents and photographs of work in date order, and flag the major items: the structure (sills, floors, the rear end and the front frames), engine rebuilds, the rear suspension and inboard brakes, and any conversions. The rust and bodywork and restoration pages show what a buyer will look for first.

Numbers. Write down every number as stamped, with where you found it, and keep that note with the certificate.

Preparing the car

Gather every key, the handbook and any workshop manual, the tool kit and jack, the spare wheel, the hood and tonneau or hardtop if the car has them, and any original parts removed during upgrades. Clean the car inside and out, fix small faults that cost little, and write down anything that does not work. Faults disclosed at the start do far less damage than faults discovered on the test drive. If the car has been laid up, recommission it before you advertise; the recommissioning after storage article covers the essentials.

Photographs. Take them in even daylight against a plain background:

• every exterior angle, and for an open car, hood up and hood down
• the engine bay, and a cold-start video if you can
• the chassis, engine and body number stampings and the plate in the engine bay
• the interior, the dashboard with the ignition on, and the boot floor and spare wheel well
• the underside, sills, floors, rear wheel arches and the front frames
• wire wheels, where fitted, including the hubs and splines
• known faults, damage or repairs
• the Heritage Certificate and the main invoices, with personal details covered

Never include a readable image of the V5C or its reference number.

Setting a price

Look at what comparable cars have actually sold for rather than at asking prices. Auction houses publish results for past sales, and several websites gather them together. Check whether a figure is the hammer price or includes the buyer's premium, note how many cars failed to sell, and compare like with like: series, body style, engine, steering side and any conversion, matching numbers or not, the quality of the restoration and the depth of the history file all matter. For a figure on your own car, take advice from an independent valuer or a marque specialist who has seen it, and remember that a valuation for insurance and a likely sale result are not the same thing.

What the law expects of a seller

This is general information about the law in Great Britain, not legal advice.

Private sellers. The car must match the description you give it, in the advert and in conversation: under section 13 of the Sale of Goods Act 1979, goods sold by description must correspond with that description. A buyer misled by a false statement may be able to claim for misrepresentation and, in some cases, undo the sale. You must also have the right to sell the car. A private seller does not have to guarantee satisfactory quality or volunteer every fault, but anything you do say must be true. "Matching numbers", "Series 1", "covered headlights", "original right-hand drive" and "full restoration" are all statements of fact.

Roadworthiness. Under section 75 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 it is an offence for anyone, private sellers included, to supply a vehicle in an unroadworthy condition. There is a defence where the seller had reasonable cause to believe it would not be used on a road until made roadworthy, which is how a project can be sold lawfully. Say so plainly in the advert and on the receipt, and expect the car to leave on a trailer.

Trade sellers. A business selling to a consumer is bound by the Consumer Rights Act 2015: the car must be of satisfactory quality for its age and mileage, fit for purpose and as described, and a trader cannot remove those rights with phrases such as "sold as seen".

What "sold as seen" means. In a private sale it records that the buyer has inspected the car and accepts its condition. It does not excuse a false description or an unroadworthy car. Give the mileage as "indicated" unless you can prove it, and list known faults.

Viewings and test drives

Keep your phone number out of the advert text if the platform allows it. Hold viewings at your home or another place you know, in daylight, with a second person present if possible. Be cautious if several people arrive together: trading standards have warned of groups who distract a seller while one of them tampers with the car, then claim to have found a fault and demand a lower price.

Before any test drive:

• see the buyer's driving licence and check the photograph matches the person
• confirm they are insured to drive your car; your own policy may not cover them, and the "driving other cars" cover that some policies carry is often absent, limited to third party, or subject to conditions, so ask to see it in writing or ask the buyer to arrange temporary cover
• go with them, sitting in the passenger seat, and keep the keys until you are in the car
• never let a buyer take the car out alone or leave with the keys

A knowledgeable buyer will want to start the engine from cold and watch the oil pressure, and will expect to see the car on a lift or on axle stands, as the buying and evaluation page advises. Leave the engine unstarted on the day of the viewing, allow time for the inspection, and expect a serious buyer to want an independent inspection by a specialist or through a club.

Getting paid safely

Payment is where most of the risk in a private sale lies. The rule is simple: the car, the keys, the new keeper slip and the history file stay with you until the money is cleared and visible in your own account, checked by you in your own banking app or online banking, which you have opened yourself.

Bank transfer. A transfer is generally the safest method for a private sale. Faster Payments usually arrive within seconds, occasionally within a couple of hours, but each bank sets its own limit on a single payment, so the buyer may not be able to send the full price that way. CHAPS is designed for large same-day payments and has no scheme maximum, though the buyer's bank sets its own cut-off times, limits and fees. Agree the method in advance.

Fake payment screens. Police and Which? have reported fake banking apps that show a convincing "payment complete" screen when no money has moved, often with an explanation that the transfer will take a couple of hours to arrive. A screenshot, an email or a screen on the buyer's phone proves nothing. Only your own account counts.

Overpayment. A buyer who pays more than the agreed price and asks for the difference back, sometimes to a third party such as a shipping agent, is almost certainly attempting fraud: the original payment later fails and the refund is lost. Refund nothing until the full amount has cleared and cannot be reversed, and then only to the account it came from.

Shipping agents and overseas buyers. E-Types are bought and sold internationally, and genuine overseas buyers exist. Be wary, though, of a buyer who offers the full price unseen and asks you to pay a shipping, insurance or export fee upfront to an agent they recommend. Those costs are the buyer's to pay.

Escrow and holding accounts. Fraudsters send convincing emails claiming that money is being held in a secure "holding" or "escrow" account by a well-known company; Action Fraud (now Report Fraud) warned that Amazon, for example, provides no such accounts. Some genuine online auction platforms build a payment service into their own process. Use only that, reached through the platform's own website, never a link a buyer sends you.

Cash and banker's drafts. If a buyer insists on cash, complete the sale at your bank so the notes can be checked and paid in. Banker's drafts can be forged, so have your own bank confirm one with the issuing bank before you release anything.

If something feels wrong, stop; a genuine buyer will wait for funds to clear. If you are targeted, contact your bank straight away. Fraud in England, Wales and Northern Ireland is now reported to Report Fraud, which replaced Action Fraud, at reportfraud.police.uk or on 0300 123 2040. In Scotland, call Police Scotland on 101.

Handover and the DVLA

Once the money has cleared:

1. Write a receipt. Two signed, dated copies, one each, with both names and addresses, the registration, chassis and engine numbers, indicated mileage, the price, "sold as seen" for a private sale, and anything else you agreed.
2. Hand over the documents. Give the buyer the green "new keeper" slip (V5C/2), the keys, the history file and the Heritage Certificate. If you sell to a motor trader, keep the yellow slip (V5C/3): destroy it if you tell the DVLA online, or have the trader fill it in and post it to the DVLA yourself.
3. Tell the DVLA. Online is quickest, using the V5C reference number and the buyer's full name and address; you can also post the log book. After telling the DVLA online about a private sale, destroy the rest of the log book. You remain legally responsible for the car until the DVLA has been told.
4. Vehicle tax. Tax does not transfer. The DVLA cancels yours, refunds any full months remaining and cancels any Direct Debit. Every E-Type was built before 1 January 1986, so it qualifies for the historic tax class and pays nothing, but the buyer must still tax it at the nil rate before driving away, or declare it off the road (SORN).
5. Insurance. Keep the car insured until the sale is complete, then tell your insurer; a policy does not end automatically when you sell.
6. Personalised registration. To keep a private number, take it off the car and have the retention certificate (V778) and new log book back before you sell. A historic vehicle needs a current MOT for this, even though it is normally exempt. The car must also be able to move under its own power and must be taxed or SORN now and have been continuously for the past five years, which matters for a car that has been laid up. An original number reclaimed under the V765 scheme is issued on a non-transferable basis, so it stays with the car.

Selling in the United States

Title and bill of sale. The seller normally signs the transfer section of the title and gives it to the buyer, who applies to the DMV for a new title. States differ on the paperwork around it. New York, for example, asks the seller to sign the title and a bill of sale on its own form; Texas asks for a properly signed title with the date of sale and a signed title application showing the sales price; California accepts any bill of sale that identifies the vehicle. Some states do not issue titles for older cars at all: in New York, a car of model year 1972 or older passes on a transferable registration and a bill of sale.

Release of liability. Most states give the seller a way to tell them the car has been sold, which protects you from tickets, tolls and liability incurred by the new owner. The name and the deadline vary: California's Notice of Transfer and Release of Liability must reach the DMV within 5 calendar days of the sale, while Texas recommends a Vehicle Transfer Notification within 30 days. What happens to the plates also varies by state.

Odometer. Under federal rules (49 CFR 580.17), vehicles of model year 2010 or older are exempt from federal odometer disclosure, so every E-Type is. A state's title form may still have a mileage field; complete it as your state instructs, and describe the mileage as indicated unless you can prove it.

Imported cars. A car imported under the 25 year exemption may carry a title brand recording how it was imported; the wording varies by state, as the importing an E-Type to the USA page explains. Disclose it, and keep the stamped CBP Form 7501 and the other entry documents with the car.

Getting paid. The Federal Trade Commission warns of a fake cheque scam aimed at people selling cars online: a "buyer" who cannot inspect the car sends a cheque for more than the price and asks for the difference back. Seeing the funds in your account does not mean the cheque is good, because it can take weeks for a bank to find that a cheque is fake, and you then owe the bank the money. Do not accept a cheque for more than the selling price, never send money back to someone who says they overpaid, and do not release the car or the title until your bank confirms the funds are genuinely yours. Report fake cheque scams to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

Clubs. The Jaguar Clubs of North America runs classified adverts with a cars for sale section, free to members selling their own cars, and paid otherwise.

Everything earlier on this page about the Heritage Certificate, the numbers and describing the car honestly applies in the United States just as it does in Britain.

Selling checklist

Before you advertise

• Decide the route: auction, online auction, club classifieds, dealer (outright, part-exchange or commission) or private
• For an auction or dealer, obtain and read the seller's terms or agreement in writing
• V5C (or title) in your name, at your address, with the chassis number exactly as stamped
• Heritage Certificate in the file, or ordered using all four numbers read from the car
• Chassis, engine, body and gearbox stampings checked against the certificate and the V5C, not only the plate
• "Matching numbers" claimed only if all four agree; any replacement engine, gearbox or shell described
• Series described correctly, with the features as well as the label for a 1967 or 1968 car
• Headlight conversion, steering-side conversion, carburettor change and other modifications listed with who did them and when
• Import paperwork kept for a repatriated car (NOVA confirmation, duty and VAT papers, a copy of the foreign document)
• MOT exemption checked if the car has been substantially changed; voluntary MOT considered
• History file in date order, structure, engine and rear suspension work flagged
• Keys, handbook, tools, jack, spare wheel, hood, tonneau or hardtop and removed original parts gathered
• Known faults written down and disclosed
• Photographs taken, including the stampings, with the V5C reference number never shown
• Sold results of comparable cars researched; independent valuation taken if you want a figure

Viewings and payment

• Viewings at a place you know, in daylight, with a second person present
• Buyer's licence seen and insurance confirmed before any test drive; accompany every drive
• Payment method agreed in advance
• Funds confirmed in your own banking app, logged in yourself, before releasing car, keys or documents
• No refunds of overpayments; no upfront fees to shipping agents; no escrow except the platform's own

Handover

• Two signed receipts
• Green new keeper slip given to the buyer, with the history file and the Heritage Certificate
• DVLA told, online or by post
• Insurer told
• Private number retained before the sale, if you want to keep it
• In the United States: title signed, bill of sale completed and release of liability filed as your state requires

Common questions

This page is general information to help you sell, not legal or financial advice. Auction terms, fees, bank limits, DVLA procedures and state rules change, so check the current terms that apply to your sale.