Daimler and Lanchester cars

For as long as I have been conscious of motor cars, I have always admired the Sovereign 420. I was a small boy when it was launched in 1966 and remember seeing a brand new pale blue one out on the road, I loved the distinctive cigar shape. When I was fourteen my parents had a caravan at Burnham on Sea, on one memorable occasion on the short drive to the beach, we followed a Sovereign 420. Its boot was open, and in it sat two pretty girls wearing bikinis. I thought they looked so cool – irritatingly the open boot detracted from the car’s smooth lines…
Throughout the 1970s, the Jaguar 420 appeared on the TV every week, in virtually every police themed programme, as the bank robber’s getaway car, an odd coincidence as in earlier days the Daimler 420 was the first choice of bank managers.

Unrestored but well maintained

I started to watch on line advertisements for the Sovereign 420, and was surprised at how low their prices were, even for apparently good ones. The more I looked, the more I liked the idea of owning one. The Daimler 420 (and the Jaguar equivalent) is a real Cinderella model, prices lag far behind the V8s. A Daimler Consort or a Lanchester 10 will probably cost you more.Whilst my LQ3/20 was advertised for sale, a grey Daimler Sovereign 420 appeared on ebay. I recognised the car immediately as it belonged to an old friend Don Miles, now deceased. The Sovereign had often been displayed at the Bristol Classic Car Show and was a mainstay of our Great Western Rallies at Wroughton, South Cerney and Kemble. When Don purchased the car in 1984, it had only one previous keeper with a proven mileage of just 26,000. Now showing 80,000 it is still in lovely, mostly unrestored condition.

Some of the photographs with the advertisement dated from 2010 when Don, and his son Chris joined Fred Williams and me in a tour across Belgium and Holland to attend the DLOC International Rally in Apeldoorn (where the Sovereign won ‘Best Jaguar built Daimler’). By the time my LQ3/20 was sold, the advert for the Sovereign had ended, and I presumed the car had found a new keeper, however I had to be sure. I still had Chris Wright’s contact details from the time of our trip to Holland, so sent him an email asking whether the car was still available. It was. I made arrangements to view the car and was delighted to discover that it was just as I had remembered.

Apart from a new headlining the interior is original

Apart from a new headlining, fitted twelve or fifteen years ago, the interior is all original, it has the smell that only unrestored cars have. The carpets are slightly worn and faded and the leather is lightly creased, the woodwork and instruments are all in perfect condition. The coachwork had been treated to a bare metal respray in the ’eighties, and still looks good with just a few minor blemishes to show that it has been used. The condition of the car is just to my liking, it reminds me of the six or seven year old cars I out sought for daily transport when I was a young man. I always looked for cars with a good history, but my cars then were usually MGs, Triumphs, Fords or Vauxhalls. Daimlers, even six or seven year old ones, were way out of my price range.

Needless to say a deal was struck and the Daimler did not disappoint. From the moment I pressed the starter button the thrill of owning something special struck me. Starter motors can sound tinny, rattly or grind and graunch, this one sounds smooth, silky and substantial, just like the XK engine it spins. The engine fired up immediately and ran as smooth as a piece of silk and was as quiet as the V8 Daimlers I am more familiar with.
As it was getting dark and I was unfamiliar with the car’s controls, I decided to take the quickest route home, which involved a short run along the M32. The first stretch has a 40mph limit, but as the de-restriction sign loomed, I pressed the accelerator for kick down and the Sovereign leapt to 70mph in the blink of an eye. I eased off and let the car continue at the legal limit. The driver of a modern 4×4 that had been following me, pulled into the outside lane before the end of the 40mph zone, but his acceleration simply did not match that of the Daimler. The driver’s response, once he had caught up, was to blast past me and carry on accelerating up to 90mph and more. I did smile – I know he was taken by surprise – most modern drivers find it hard to believe that these old cars go so well.

Sovereign 420 was the first Daimler to have a Jaguar engine

The Sovereign 420 was the first Daimler to be fitted with a Jaguar engine; the 6 cylinder 4.2 litre XK type which also powered the Mark 10 and E type Jaguar, the Sovereign was fitted just two S.U. carburettors in place of the other cars’ triple set.
This was the first truly badge engineered Daimler, the earlier V8 saloons, although based upon the Mk2 Jaguar, had Daimler’s own Turner designed engine. For a Daimler enthusiast it would have been wonderful had the Sovereign been fitted with the 4½ litre version of the V8, but alas it was not to be. The XK engine was already twenty years old when the 420 was launched, but it was a masterpiece, well trusted, bullet proof and economical to build, it was the logical choice to propel the modern Daimler.
My early experience with the Sovereign is that the Jaguar engine, combined with the Borg Warner Type 8 automatic gearbox, is silky smooth and effortless to drive. Gear changes are almost imperceptible. The dual circuit disc brakes are light in operation, and the Marles Varamatic power steering provides good feedback to the driver, something I know from experience that other early power systems failed to do.
The car is remarkably quiet on the move, very comfortable and has the benefit of a fabulous instrument and switchboard layout, not particularly ergonomic, but satisfyingly attractive! From the driver’s seat the car feels similar to the V8 250. It is happy to drift along at low speed, yet leaps into life if the kick-down is invoked, this action changes the car’s entire demeanour, from silky town car to sports car in a flash. It’s road holding is impeccable, the car feels safe and inspires confidence. The ride quality is superb and helps to make the car feel far more modern than its sixties appearance might suggest.
The Sovereign was intended to appeal to the well healed buyer who wanted something larger and more modern than the compact Daimler V8 250 but did not require a car of limousine proportions like the huge Mark 10 Jaguar. The new model borrowed parts and styling cues from both cars. The cabin is from the Jaguar Mark 2, the front and rear end, from the Mark 10, (later known confusingly as the 420G – G for Grand), its independent rear suspension was based upon that fitted to the E type Jaguar and is the single feature that to my mind makes it stand apart from the V8 250. Had Daimler remained independent, the Sovereign 420 would have been just the type of car they would have been delighted to offer to their customers. When new it found a niche market, being priced well below Bentley or Rolls Royce, yet providing similar levels of comfort and kudos. The nearest car to compare it to on price, would have been the Rover P5, but the performance, road manners and sleek appearance, combined with Daimler’s Royal connection, placed the car a world away from the admittedly dignified and comfortable Auntie Rover.
In the classic car world, the Jaguar 420 has always been overshadowed by the more successful Mark 2 and E type, and the same applies to the Daimler Sovereign 420 when compared to the V8 saloons and SP250.
The forward sloping Daimler radiator grill is more impressive than the Jaguar version, the overall appearance of the Sovereign is dignified, yet epitomises the sixties. It is one of those cars that is handsome from any angle and looks as if it is moving when stationary. Almost 6,000 were sold, a good number for a Daimler of any type. Jaguar’s marketing strategy was very clever, they recognised that the typical Daimler buyer would probably not have purchased a Jaguar badged car, and may well have moved his allegiance to a foreign brand. By giving the model the fluted grill, and including all of the options in the price, the wealthy buyer was happy to pay the extra couple of hundred pounds over the Jaguar’s price tag for the prestige of owning a Daimler.

Impressive switch gear, but not really intuitive or ergonomic!

Good unrestored cars of any make from the 1960s are hard to find, they are far more prone to rust than earlier chassis based cars and the 420s seem to have suffered more than many in old age. Because they were quick and cheap, many found their way on to banger racing tracks, many more simply rusted away. These cars, if neglected, will dissolve before your eyes. However, corrosion free, low mileage, low owner Sovereigns do still turn up. Many of their first keepers were older individuals who cosseted their Daimlers and kept them well into their retirement years. If the vehicle then found its way to an enthusiast owner, it stood a fair chance of becoming one of the lucky survivors. My car is one of these examples, it was purchased new by a firm of Quantity Surveyors in Kensington, and remained with them until Don Miles bought it to use as his daily driver. After several years he retired the car into preservation, and drove it only on high days and holidays. Don owned the car for 35 years and I am the third registered keeper. The extensive service history shows that Kunifer brake pipes and a stainless steel exhaust system are the only departures from the manufacturers original specification.
Following in the footsteps of the Daimler’s two previous keepers, it is my intention to maintain and regularly drive it. I have fitted thick pile over mats to protect the carpets, cleaned and treated the leather with conditioning balm, touched in a few stone chips and given the car a polish and a service, no further work is required. So far I have used the Sovereign to travel to a couple of local motor shows and for several short trips to restaurants and shops. The Sovereign is remarkably comfortable and the fully operational heater is a welcome addition to my old car motoring experience!