Jaguar SS100 or Aston Martin Mark II, depending on the purpose of your purchase

The moment, one decides to buy a pre-war car is a good moment. But making the final decision can be very difficult. Look at the supply and demand here at PreWarCar.com. There is currently so much choice. Probably many different cars you like and so you are comparing two (totally) different pre-war cars. Various factors you can and should take into consideration when buying a pre-war car. An important question you can ask yourself is; what is the purpose of my purchase?

This can be very personal, for instance, an emotional bond or memories. But also, the interesting history of the car. Maybe it is the (overall) look of the car, the colour(s), the amount of space, the comfort, the engine, the matching numbers, you name it… Very likely it is a combination of factors. Something else to definitely take into consideration is the price range in which you can afford to buy. What you think the car is worth in the current market? Maybe you would like to buy a pre-war for investment and do you also think about the (potential) increase in value.

When going through the catalogue for the upcoming Bonhams auction, the Goodwood Revival sale we found various interesting cars. Different in price, condition and technical specifications. We picked out two: a 1937 Jaguar SS100 and a 1934 Aston Martin Mark II. We are not going to tell you which one you should buy, but compare the two different cars. Then you can decide for yourself which one is your ideal car.

To look at the purpose of the Jaguar and the Aston Martin, we looked at 4 different factors you can take into consideration when purchasing a car. Namely: the car itself, the maintenance, the current state and THE use for touring and/ or racing.

The cars itself

Let`s start with the cars itself. The 1937 Jaguar SS100 Roadster has a 3 ½ liter engine. It is one of the earliest circa 116 3 ½- litre models built. The car was supplied new on the 1st of December 1937 via Appleyards of Leeds. This Jaguar is presumably a matching number car. Which sounds strange but a change of engine, from '514E' to 'M536E', is recorded on an accompanying registration application dated on the 1st of December 1937, so presumably was carried out at the factory. This short 102"- wheel based car with chassis no. 39007 has a known ownership history and is currently registered in the UK (no. CAK 253). Where it for the last 53 years belongs to the same family.

Where the 1934 Aston Martin Mark II Tourer has a 1 ½-liter engine. His highly desirable short chassis with the Ulster competition model is presently registered in the Netherlands. These robust and durable Bertelli-era Aston Martins were never common. Especially if you find an example like this which has matching chassis and engine numbers ('E4/438/S').

The maintenance of the cars

The company to go to for the SS Jaguar is, of course, Zwakman Motors Europe. They have tons of experience with this type of car and a warehouse full of old and new parts. Many price-winning SS Jaguars have been maintained by them. Another renowned marque specialist is Davenport's of Biggleswade, where the car was professionally restored between 2008 and 2012. Total cost: around £130,000 (the bills are on file). Some notified deviations from the factory specifications are made, they include flashing indicators, an electric radiator fan, and a five-speed gearbox conversion (as the original gearbox was unusable).

For the Aston Martin, Ecurie Bertelli is your company. Very experienced in both racing cars as touring cars. They have a good reputation with this cars and can help you with almost everything. In the car's AMOC Register entry states that it underwent a 'total rebuild' in 1989/1990. Many years later, in 2012, the engine was rebuilt by Ecurie Bertelli to the enhanced Ulster specification. An extensive further restoration was carried out by Gert Jan van der Meij, and finally, the car was fine-tuned in 2013 by Speedcenter at Geldermalsen.

The current state of the Jaguar and the Aston Martin

The fact that the Jaguar only drove circa 1,000 miles since the rebuild's completion in 2012 makes that the car is in an excellent condition. On top of this, the car has been serviced annually. We would say the car is in Concours state, which can also be seen in the photographs.

Also stated in the car's AMOC Register entry is that the Aston Martin in 1991 won its class at the Stanway Concours. Which was one year after the 'total rebuild' was completed. Between the 'first' and the 'second' restoration in 2012 as we explained earlier the Aston Martin Mark II participated twice in in the Mille Miglia. Also this car is currenlty in an excellent condition. We cannot say one is in a better state then the other.

Touring or racing?

Launched for 1936, the SS100 was the first real high-performance model produced by SS Cars Limited. Which employed a shorter, 102"-wheelbase chassis and a revised version of the 2,663cc Standard six which, equipped with Westlake's overhead-valve cylinder head and breathing through twin SU carburettors, now produced 104bhp. The Jaguar was one of the fastest and best-handling sports cars of its day, as its competition record both before and after the war bears witness to. So we would say this SS100 is perfect for (very) fast touring, you can also call it racing.

It is often said that the 1 ½-liter Aston Martins are the best sports cars available. Do you agree with this? Having a reputation for high performance and power this Mark II, which was introduced in 1934, is definitely a race car. The short chassis and the counter-balanced crankshaft make the car very manoeuvrable. But on the other hand, the stylish four-seater sports saloon coachwork by Enrico Bertelli that were built are also perfect for touring. So would you use this 1934 Aston Martin for touring or racing?