In 1959, my Father came to America from Europe in at the age of 23 with his Mother and Father and nine brothers and sisters. After acclimating to California for a few years, he purchased a 1954 Jaguar XK120 from the original owner in the San Francisco Bay area.
Within a couple of years he met my Mother and they drove to Reno in the Jag with some friends following and got married. A year later, in 1963, I was born.
In 1965, with two kids it was time to park the Jag and let it sit while my Father drove more practical cars while the family was growing up.
I remember being a little kid and sitting in the Jag all covered in dust in the garage and pretending I was driving.
Long story short: 26 years later and three storage areas (which is a whole other story), we started the full-frame off restoration in 1992. Fast forward 13 years later and the car is complete.
My Father rebuilt the whole frame and running gear. I did the trim, glass, electrical and reassemble. The only thing we farmed out was the paint, top and seat upholstery.
Since 2015 we have put about 150 miles on the car and taken it to many local shows, with the car receiving several awards. It is very nice to have to have shared the whole restoration process with my Father, along with going to shows and sharing this car’s 50-year-old story of ownership history.
My father is 82 years old now and still loves to drive the car occasionally around my neighborhood where the car is currently stored in my garage.
— John Verhoek, Brentwood CA
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John….what an incredible father & son story! The restoration turned out beautiful.
Thank you. Many great memories working on this car with my Father. So blessed we also get to enjoy it now that it is done.