V Eight boost for Cropredy Bridge Jensen

Major changes have been announced at the Cropredy Bridge home of the famous Jensen car marque which include a new management team, a new name and an exciting new car about to be launched onto the market.

For more than 35 years the business has led the way in maintaining the Jensen name, having completed over 3000 restorations and repairs. Four years ago the business was bought out by Managing Director Steve Bannister and with subsequent further backing from Technical Director David Duerden, they have trebled that specialist business.

Now they have been joined by Chairman Tim Hearley and Marketing Director Alan Garnett and together created V Eight Ltd, a company which has its sights firmly fixed on expanding upon the traditional Jensen focussed business at their Oxfordshire base.

With a wealth of automotive expertise at companies like Aston Martin and Morgan, the new team are going ahead with the first of their new developments – a refurbished Jensen which combines all of the spirit and class of the original car but with the performance and reliability of a modern day car.

The car will be unveiled at the Classic Car Show next week (November 10/11) on the V Eight stand at the Birmingham NEC in Hall 1, number DL9.

The Jensen Interceptor S is the first serious development of the Interceptor for over thirty years. It is powered by the General Motors 6 litre V8 LS2 engine boasting 414bhp and mated to a GM five speed automatic gearbox. It has independent rear suspension, AP 6-pot racing brakes with vented discs, and 17” wheels with low profile tyres. The car’s weight has been substantially reduced by using modern lightweight materials.

“We believe that the Interceptor S is the best Jensen Interceptor ever built,” says Alan Garnett, Marketing Director. “It is what our customers have been asking for - a fusion of state-of-the-art modern technology with a classic design icon from the past and offers the best of both worlds to the driver.”

The Interceptor S begins life as a classic Interceptor from the 1970s which is stripped to its metal shell before being electrophoretically dipped for corrosion protection and rebuilt with modern features. The interior is tastefully modernised to retain the look and feel of the original but offering subtle variation designed to please and delight. Features such as double-stitched quality leather work leave the driver and passengers in no doubt that they are sitting in a truly excellent example of British workmanship.

And because the car will still sit on its original VIN number, all models originally built before 1972 will be able to use the roads free of road tax!

Managing Director, Steve Bannister says “The Interceptor S has taken us nearly three years to develop and we are very proud of it. Our aim was to build a powerful car that could take its place, once more, amongst the very best of British design and engineering. We believe that the Interceptor S can hold its own with any of the major competitors in the market. The new Interceptor S is significantly more powerful and twice as economic as its predecessor.”

The Interceptor S is a limited edition and only 50 vehicles will be made at the company’s site at Cropredy Bridge, just outside Banbury. The cars are built to order and individually numbered thus ensuring exclusivity and originality. At £74,960 they are favourably priced.

To secure an Interceptor S, V Eight is selling each of the 50 production slots at £5,000 per slot. This is refundable against a deposit once the car goes into manufacture. It takes about four months to build a car and V Eight plan to build all fifty over the next couple of years.