Lagondaforum

Subject: 1955 Lagonda 3.0 Litre 2-door for sale

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A link to yet another Lagonda 3.0 litre for sale, this one is a 2-door.

It looks like it might need a respray, and some work in the passenger compartment, but no doubt a thorough inspection is advised! Am waiting to hear what the owner has to say, and hopefully he will respond, with chassis and engine number details :

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=120898020594

Kind regards

Simon

Extra info from the owner:

Thank you she is a very good example for her year. I am not sure it
is the original engine, the car club thinks it is not, but when she comes home
later this week I will take her numbers off chassis and engine and send
them into the club to verify.

Off the Reg doc chassis is LB/290/80

Engine
LB6A50463

Hope this helps.

Genuinely she is a fine car, I am about to
replace the dynamo as the one fitted is off a Rolls the replacement will
not be original but will be mote efficient than the existing.

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Subject: Re: 1955 Lagonda 3.0 Litre 2-door for sale

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Hi Simon,

Thanks for posting - well spotted.

The engine number given, quite obviously, is a 2.6. It doesn't match the number in the records I have to hand either (for good measure). Mention in the listing of a misalignment of the door bottom speaks volumes. This is a classic sign of rotten sills and possibly/probably (take your pick) A posts too.

A nice rolling restoration though, albeit that it will never be 'right'.

Regards,

Tim

Subject: Re: 1955 Lagonda 3.0 Litre 2-door for sale

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Some comments on this ebay sale:

Very sad that he wants to make double money by selling the number plate separately and only giving it with the car if "he is happy with the result" (of the ebay auction) leaving it open to him to give it as a gift if the result is extraordinary...

In the text he says: the original servo was useless from the day it was fitted. This is not true, I have an original servo on my DB 3ltr and it works very well.

The car does not weigh 3 tons but 1.7

I doubt that many have been converted to soft top, not the DB Lagonda, although there is one on the market that does not sell because you see the difference.

Subject: Re: 1955 Lagonda 3.0 Litre 2-door for sale

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Peter,

I agree with all that you say. As I've said in another thread, I'm not aware of any 2 door saloons having been converted to a DHC - indeed, until a post on this forum I'd never heard it said before. There is, as you say, a terrible car 'out there', still with a trader I think, that is two saloons rammed together to make a DHC 'replica'. Yuk!

The listing is full of inaccuracies, of course. This seller appears to me to be the usual sort of 'chancer' into whose hands our cars have all too often fallen in the past, sadly. However, I'm hopeful that the rise in values in recent years will assist us in this regard in the future.

Regards,

Tim

Subject: Re: 1955 Lagonda 3.0 Litre 2-door for sale

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Peter and Tim

I have been in touch with seller, simply to extract more information, which is important for future records and to safe guard these great cars.

He has been going through his large amount of pper-work with the car and Foreshaw of Aston Martin Dorset supplied, and I quote as follows:

" I have reams of handwritten correspondence between Capt Forshaw of Aston Dorset where the engine is
discussed. The 2.6 was already in the car in 1980 and was rebuilt by post.
Fascinating there may be a book here.

Forshaw supplied high compression
pistons and says

The 2.6 is in fact structurally stronger than the 3, and
given the larger carburettors is exactly the same externally...high
compression pistons when coupled with the larger carburettor would bring
the engine virtually to the Vantage spec and performance.

I have the
invoice supplying high compression pistons."

My gut-feeling is that this car, like so many fabulous cars of the 1950's was run into the ground by the time it got to its 3rd or 4th owner, who simply did not have the money to spend on its upkeep. Sometime in the late 1960's or early 1970;s the engine developed a fault cracked block or similar and not economic to repair. A 2.6 litre block was then sourced from an unloved saloon which could be bought for maybe hundred pounds or less.

Of course I could be totally wrong and stand to be corrected!

The pictures underneath the car, show a lot of work has been done, and the engine bay to the car's credit is very nice.

But, and this is the big part, take great care and caution!

Regards

Simon

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Subject: Re: 1955 Lagonda 3.0 Litre 2-door for sale

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Simon,

The late Captain Foreshaw was the doyen of the DB Lagondas and pre-DB4 Astons and certainly knew his onions, and his Lagondas. And, it is certainly true that the 2.6 litre engine is structurally stronger than 3 litre because, as you may know, in order to achieve the increase in capacity the bores were staggered in the block.

The problems with this car, obviously, are the issue of non-original 2.6 litre engine, the structural integrity of the body, the poor paint, and the loss of the original index number. However, if someone is prepared to put the time, effort and money required into the car I'm sure the car will be a joy to own. And, it looks as if it can be done a rolling restoration too, which is a boon.

Regards,

Tim

Subject: Re: 1955 Lagonda 3.0 Litre 2-door for sale

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Tim hi

I hear what you are saying, but the key issue is that it has the wrong engine, it would have been better if it was a 3.0 litre replacement.

When first questioned the owner told me it was the original, the engine number tells you it is a 2.6 litre. He then told me that it had been bored out to 3.0 litres; in other words he has no ideas of what his car is!

There are also a raft of inconsistencies in the information provided.

If you look at the pictures, the dynamo is missing from the engine, so how can it work at the moment, maybe removed for the picture ?

I would suggest that the price is over-inflated, given the sizeable amount of work to do on it, more likely 11-14k would be right.

There is also the issue of the body and paint, which will need to be looked at carefully and the ash frame.

Best of luck, but not one for me Gunga-Din !

Simon

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Subject: Re: 1955 Lagonda 3.0 Litre 2-door for sale

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Not for me either Simon, I can assure you. But, so long as potential buyers go into the thing with their eyes open, and they have the resources to do the job properly, I'm sure that the car will be a delight for them.

T

Subject: Re: 1955 Lagonda 3.0 Litre 2-door for sale

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Seconded, and this one can easily be brought back up to a good spec by an enthusiast who will love the car. There are also 3.0 litre engines around if someone was keen, that would make a substantial difference to the car as well.

Beautiful shape, drop dead gorgeous imho as are all post-war Lagonda's!

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Subject: Re: 1955 Lagonda 3.0 Litre 2-door for sale

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"Beautiful shape, drop dead gorgeous imho as are all post-war Lagonda's!"

Oh yes indeed!