Kevin Keegan is a football legend, an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, and the former owner of a vintage Jaguar that was recently restored by E-Type UK. Presently, the vehicle resides with a private owner in Middlesex, South East England.

Everything wasn’t always coming up roses for the car. After leaving Keegan’s ownership, the 1972 Jaguar E-Type 3 Roadster was left bruised and battered as the result of an accident. When it came time for a repair, E-Type UK’s team was able to discern that most of the damage was superficial. They the set about on a complete restoration of the model, restoring it to very near the condition it was in when it rolled off the assembly line in Coventry in 1972.

E-Type UK’s restoration technicians started by stripping down the car, removing all chrome and brightwork. It then became apparent. The latest crash wasn’t the E-Type’s only one. The Roadster had been subject to numerous scuffs in the past and a number of poorly executed repair jobs.

The workshop team removed the repair victims, the offside sill and top scuttle, and fitted new ones, before reshaping the vehicle’s hood back to its iconic curve.

Once the metalwork had been repaired the car was filled and primed, and made ready for its respray. All the car’s panels had been cleaned, hardened, and block sanded.

The current owner of the car made it clear. They wanted it finished in its factory color – Jaguar Willow Green. And so it was.

Jaguar E-Type Paint Restoration – Willow Green

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Once the exterior of the vehicle was completed, the interior leather was trimmed in biscuit with a matching mohair hood.

The final steps of restoration checked off items on a list of requests from the owner: adding period-appropriate number plates, side mirrors, and factory standard wheels. The car also got a stainless steel sports exhaust and a 14-inch Motor-Lita steering wheel.

E-Type UK Founder, Marcus Holland said: “We are particularly proud of this restoration and delighted with the way that it looks after spending time in our workshop. The owner was particularly upset after the car was involved in an accident and wanted us to restore it to its former glory. With its celebrity past due to Kevin Keegan’s former ownership, we worked hard to bring it back to factory standard, with a glorious Willow Green finish. Not only are we delighted to have delivered our client with his car back in perfect condition but we are honored to have played a part in the ongoing story of this iconic British sportscar.”