VIN: the Peter Blond / Jonathan Sieff Jaguar D-type chassis XKD 518
History of chassis XKD 518
Chassis XKD 518 was one of 67 privateer D-type racing cars built, of which only two were painted red. It had matching red upholstery and was dispatched to Henlys of Manchester on December 29th 1955. Upon arrival it was registered KDB 100.
Unable to find a buyer, Henlys’ traded the D-type to London car dealer, Bernie Ecclestone.
Ecclestone sold the red D-type to local amateur driver, Peter Blond, who had previously raced an XK120 and an ex-works C-type. Before these, Blond had been given the funds required to purchase a Jaguar SS100 having fulfilled his father’s conditions not to smoke or drink alcohol before his 21st birthday.
Blond purchased XKD 518 on a hire purchase agreement for £3500, but when he asked to clear the balance early, Ecclestone demanded the interest in full.
Peter Blond successfully raced XKD 518 throughout 1956. He contested a number of major English races and notably finished tenth overall in the Daily Express Trophy at Silverstone, fifth overall at the Aintree 100 and sixth overall at the Oulton Park International meeting.
The 1956 campaign yielded an outright victory at Snetterton in his penultimate event of the year.
For 1957, Blond took a works drive with HWM and XKD 518 only saw sporadic action. As a result, in August, Blond decided to sell the car to his cousin, Jonathan Sieff.
Sieff raced XKD 518 until the end of 1958. He too picked up several good results and even ventured to Austria with the D-type for the Aspern airfield race in April 1958.
At some stage, XKD 518 was modified with a wide windscreen and tail fin.
Sieff raced a Lister Costin in 1959 and, during the course of the year, sold XKD 518 to Monty Mostyn of Speedwell Garage. Mostyn used it for a couple of sprints and hillclimbs.
The red D-type subsequently went through the hands of several notable owners to included John Houghton, Jean Bloxham, Led Zepellin manager Peter Grant and George Stauffer, who exported the car to the USA and retained it until the mid 1990s.
In January 2021, XKD 518 was sold by RM Sotheby’s in Arizona.
Notable History
Red / Red
29/12/1955 dispatched to Henlys of Manchester
Registered KDB 100
1956 sold to Bernie Ecclestone
1956 sold to Peter Blond
14/04/1956 IND British Empire Trophy, Oulton Park (P. Blond) 15th oa, 6th S2.7+ class (#56)
21/04/1956 IND Aintree 200 (P. Blond) 7th oa (#27)
05/05/1956 IND Daily Express Trophy, Silverstone (P. Blond) 10th oa, 5th S3.0+ class (#11)
21/05/1956 IND Goodwood Whit Monday Trophy (P. Blond) DNS (#54)
17/06/1956 IND Snetterton Sports (P. Blond) 2nd oa, 1st S3.0+ class (#48)
23/06/1956 IND Aintree 100 (P. Blond) 5th oa, 4th S2.0+ class (#37)
18/08/1956 IND Oulton Park International (P. Blond) 6th oa, 5th S2.5+ class (#26)
02/09/1956 IND Snetterton Unlimited Sports (P. Blond) 1st oa, 1st S2.7+ class (#??)
08/09/1956 IND Goodwood Trophy Sports (P. Blond) 9th oa (#15)
31/03/1957 IND Snetterton Sports (P. Blond) 2nd oa, 2nd S2.7+ class (#??)
31/03/1957 IND Snetterton Jaguar Handicap (P. Blond) 3rd oa (#??)
06/04/1957 IND British Empire Trophy, Oulton Park (P. Blond) 16th oa (#55)
06/07/1957 IND Oulton Park Sports (P. Blond) 4th oa (#42)
06/07/1957 IND Oulton Park Formula Libre (P. Blond) 4th oa(#42)
08/1957 sold to Jonathan Sieff
31/08/1957 IND Goodwood Handicap (J. Sieff) 5th oa (#??)
12/10/1957 IND Oulton Park Formula Libre (J. Sieff) 8th oa (#53)
12/10/1957 IND Oulton Park Sports (J. Sieff) 5th oa (#53)
12/10/1957 IND Oulton Park Handicap (J. Sieff) DNF (#53)
12/04/1958 IND British Empire Trophy, Oulton Park (J. Sieff) DNQ (#75)
19/04/1958 IND Aintree 200 (J. Sieff) 14th oa (#80)
15/05/1958 IND Aspern (J. Sieff) DNF (#2)
05/07/1958 IND Crystal Palace National Open (J. Sieff) ran (#43)
12/07/1958 IND Full Sutton Sports (J. Sieff) 2nd oa (#??)
12/07/1958 IND Full Sutton Formula Libre (J. Sieff) 2nd oa (#??)
04/08/1958 IND Brands Hatch (J. Sieff) 6th oa (#81)
13/09/1958 IND Oulton Park Tourist Trophy (J. Sieff / M. Charles) 9th oa (#12)
20/09/1958 IND Oulton Park Gold Cup (J. Sieff) 8th oa, 6th S2.0+ class (#40)
1959 sold to Monty Mostyn (Speedwell Garage)
1959 sold to John Houghton
1960 sold to Jean Bloxham
1962 sold to John Houghton
1967 sold to John Coombs / Richard Wilkins
1974 sold to Clive Lacey
1977 sold via Adrian Hamilton to Peter Grant
1982 sold via Adrian Hamilton to George Stauffer
Text copyright: Supercar Nostalgia
Photo copyright: Patrick Ernzen - http://patrickernzen.com/ courtesy RM Sotheby’s - https://rmsothebys.com/
