2013-08-23 10:28:09 | terry mcgrath writes:

one of the 3 LT cars

2013-08-26 05:07:56 | Lofty writes:

This is LT3 Two others LT1 660917 and LT2 660748

In USA known as Silverstone

2014-07-04 13:13:15 | Blake Leighton writes:

Just wondering where LT# is now. My Grampa Chuck Leighton raced the car through the fifty's. I have photos of the car. A letter from sterling moss regarding preparation of the car. As well as a few stories about the car.
my number is (417) 848-eight five one five. Any info would be great.

2023-02-06 07:55:19 | pauls writes:

Car going to auction 3/23

www.bonhams.com/auction/28010/preview-lot/5656882/1951-jaguar-xk120-lt3-works-li ...

Auction description:

The Amelia Island Auction

*One of only 3 Works Lightweight XK120s built for potential use at Le Mans

*Purchased new by Charles Hornburg and campaigned by him in USA

*Raced by Phil Hill, Sherwood Johnson and John von Neumann for Hornburg

*Offered from the 'Lost Jaguars Collection'

*Present ownership since 1974

1951 Jaguar XK120 LT3 Works Lightweight Sports Racer-LT3

Coachwork by Abbey Panels

Chassis no. 660741

Engine no. unnumbered block, cylinder head E-1012-8 (ex C-type)

3,442cc DOHC Inline 6-Cylinder Engine

Twin SU carburetors

180bhp at 5,200rpm (believed)

4-Speed Manual Transmission

Independent Front Suspension, Rear Semi-Elliptical Leaf Springs

4-Wheel Hydraulic Drum Brakes

Charles Hornburg as West Coast distributor for Jaguar he frequented their Browns Lane factory and happened to see LT2 and LT3 temporarily mothballed. Knowing that production of C Types was still some way away, he did a deal with Lyons and purchased the two completed cars (LT1 itself is believed not to have been finished, beyond creation of the bodywork, until being bought later by Jaguar PR executive Bob Berry and fitted to his standard XK120).

Hornburg brought LT 2 and LT3 back to the USA, and they were guaranteed to him in August 1951. His plan was to show the potential of the Jaguars in racing and to do that he wisely selected two local drivers. A young Phil Hill was an obvious choice, he had already made a great name for himself racing his own XK120 and had recently spent time on a technical course at Jaguar's Foleshill factory. He was joined by Sherwood Johnston.

The cars were named by Hornburg 'XK120 Silverstone's, a name of his own making and not influenced or accepted by Jaguar Cars. They made their debut at Elkhart Lake on August 26, 1951. Although it was not the easiest of debuts, Hill brought this car, LT3 - offered here - home in 3rd place and secured a class win! Hornburg continued to field his lightweight cars, with outings at the Reno, Nevada Chamber of Commerce and SCCA road race on October 21, where Hill pushed Pollock's winning Cadillac powered Allard hard but ultimately had to back off and accept 10th with a technical issue. Later that month at Palm Springs, Phil Hill raced LT3 again, this time bringing the car home in 3rd place.

Winter passed without any activity, but the cars were back out at Pebble Beach on April 20, 1952, where in front of a huge crowd of more than 60,000 onlookers, there Hill placed a respectable 5th. A month later, John Von Neumann drove the car at Golden Gate May 31. The calendar came full circle and in the fall of '52 the lightweights returned to Watkins Glen. There on September 20, the car was piloted now by Sherwood Johnson. As it would turn out this was a sad day for racing with the now infamous accident of Wacker's Allard J2 that claimed a life of a spectator, Johnson was active again at Turner AFB on October 26, coming home 2nd. This was the last outing for the Hornburg 'LT' equipe and it is assumed that the cars were put into storage while both he and his drivers focused on other events. Towards the end of 1952, Charles Hornburg sold the cars which had served their purpose.

LT3 headed to the middle of the country, having been acquired by Art Feuerbacher in St. Louis, remaining in this area for the following two decades. While in Feuerbacher's tenure the car was raced for him by Chuck Leighton, debuting on April 12, 1953 at the Lone Star National Sports Car Championship in Austin, Texas. Leighton would continue to pilot LT3 for some time, with events including races at Columbus, Ohio, and Janesville, Wisconsin in September. Feuerbacher was also running C-Type - chassis XKC010 - and for whatever reason, at some point in this time, its cylinder head was switched with LT3's, as the Lightweight XK120 retains that component, marked 'E-1012-8', to this day. Towards the end of the '53 season, Leighton was able to purchase LT3 from Art, and would continue to campaign it the following year and up to 1956, his last recorded outing being at Smartt Field on May 13, 1956. Bud Eiler is the next known recorded owner, also in St. Louis.

From Eiler the car passed into the noted collection of Jack Reuter, in November 1970, where it shared stable with such other important racing cars as a Ferrari 166 Barchetta, Maserati 250F and Bugatti Type 37, as well as the striking 1955 Fiat Abarth 209A that had been on the stand at the Paris Auto Show.

By the early 1970s Thomas Hendricks was well known on the show circuit for his XK120M, offered in this sale and which his father had bought new and he in turn repurchased in 1961. Following extensive detailing, it was a regular show car, and garnered many awards as we record in the description for that car.

On one particular occasion he was displaying the XK120M when someone came up to him and began to tell him about a car he'd just seen for sale that was different from and quite unlike his car. Hendricks' encyclopedic knowledge of the make meant that he immediately knew that the man was referring to one of the Lightweight cars. He wasted no time at all and quickly acquired it. As bought, the car was substantially complete but had clearly not been used for some time. Photographs taken at that time support this.

Initially Hendricks contemplated the car's restoration, he wrote to various people in Jaguar circles, including Phil Hill and Charles Hornburg with questions as to their recollections of the car and the few details that weren't clear – what color had the upholstery been? How was the interior? Etc. Responses do not seem to have been forthcoming in letter form, but his wife recalls him having conversations with them both.

It is not entirely clear why, but a restoration was never actually begun. LT3 therefore remained secluded at his home in Olney, Maryland and was rarely seen. Its most recent outing was for the 50th anniversary of the C-Type which was held in Nashville, Tennessee in 2001. On that occasion, he would again regale his intentions to restore the car, to which many reacted that it was so original that they didn't encourage him to pursue such action.

This exclusive trio of Lightweight Works racers, and the Hornburg pairing, has become increasingly more documented over time, with various articles by luminaries in the Jaguar world, and appearing on the cover of the recently published book 'Inside Track' charting Phil Hill's career from his own archive library of photos.

In the 1980s, the then owner of the later completed LT1 also corresponded with Mr. Hendricks, and current owner of the sister Hornburg car LT2, which had endured a longer racing career than LT3 had made extensive research and comparisons with LT3 to ensure the accuracy of his car's restoration. Yet, throughout, LT3 has remained largely off the radar. With Mr. Hendricks' passing last year, it is now his family's decision that the car should find new ownership providing a mouth-watering chance for any Jaguar collector.

Viewed carefully, the car is substantially original right down to many of the detail features that were unique to this trio of cars. The body is unquestionably in the genre of the XK120 that we know, but at the same time very different, being entirely of aluminum and in a one-piece form, even its firewall is fabricated in aluminum as are its inner front wheel arches and belly pans. It retains the original gearbox listed on its chassis plate, but the engine is unnumbered aside from the aforementioned cylinder head fitted during the Feuerbacher ownership. Additionally, parts with the car include one period seat base and old trim pieces, together with a set of refurbished sand-cast SU carburetors and later exhaust manifolds that were on the car as acquired, as well as license plate carrier, sump guard, headlamp surrounds, Jaguar badge and a few other pieces sourced by Mr. Hendricks.

Bonhams is honored to offer this amazing find, a genuine Works-built racing Jaguar built potentially for Le Mans, but which would ultimately encourage the success of the brand in America. It promises boundless opportunities for its next custodian, be it to sympathetically refurbish for display or to return to racing, it will surely be welcomed wherever it goes, most certainly on US racing circuits, and such international events as Goodwood Festival and/or Revival, who knows, potentially it may even make a trip to Le Mans after all!

2023-12-30 18:21:30 | pauls writes:

Car returns to auction 2/24

cars.bonhams.com/auction/29261/preview-lot/5775127/1951-jaguar-xk120-lt3-works-l ...

Auction description:

1951 Jaguar XK120 LT3 Works Lightweight Sports Racer-LT3

Coachwork by Abbey Panels

Chassis no. 660741

Engine no. unnumbered block, cylinder head E-1012-8 (ex C-type)

Please note this lot was previously sold.