Our friends at Wyatt Polishing recently completed some restoration work and zinc plating for a number of seat runners and bonnet struts for the Jensens currently in the Bridge Classic Cars workshop.
When components like this look as good as they now do, you can tell that the fully restored cars they become a part of will be as beautiful as ever.
Classic car technician John has once again been working on our 1971 Jensen FF MKII.
He stripped and removed the tachometer and clock from the car as the tachometer needs to be converted to electronic ignition and the clock needs to be repaired.
John went on to polish the chrome window trims at the rear of the vehicle as this was something the customer had requested.
An investigation was needed into why the fuel flap was not opening via the switch on the dash. John was able to trace the fault back to a sticky solenoid which he freed off, tested, and reassembled.
John has spent a lot of time with our 1971 Jensen FF MKII lately but, with good progress being made, his time, effort, and skill have been put to good use.
Our 1959 Jensen 541R has continued to make progress through its restoration journey over the last week or so. Lydia has been hard at work finishing her prep work on some metal parts of this rare classic car. Lydia’s prep work is to get these components ready to be painted at a later date in the Bridge Classic Cars paintshop.
In addition to the work she completed on some of the metal parts of the car, Lydia also spent some time shaping the new foam which will eventually be part of the door armrests, ceiling pad, and dash pad. The centre panel also got cleaned up during the process.
As well as Lydia’s prep work, Monty also did some welding work to repair some of the components Lydia went on to prepare for painting.
The backboards of our 1959 Jensen 541R had new covers fitted by Lydia too. She sewed piping around the covers as well as sewing the pockets up and onto the backboards too.
Our 1971 Jensen FF MKII has been in the hands of classic car technician John lately. He has spent quite a bit of time working on this beautiful classic car replacing all of the interior switches with new ones.
As well as his work on the interior switches, John also replaced both headlights. The sidelights were rewired to the new bulb holders John installed too. These were tested after they were fitted and everything worked exactly as it should.
John polished the chrome bezels to make sure they looked as good as possible when refitted to our FF MKII.
A new adjuster was made for the offside before the same was done for the nearside too. These were also tested and worked perfectly.
After his work on the lights was complete, John then went on to rewire a new air-con fan and refit the grill of the car with a new bolt being used on one side.
The time then came for the switch panel to be reinstalled in our Jensen FF. While doing this, John replaced the voltage gauge from the glovebox area, replaced a fuse, and fitted a new stop screw to prevent the glovebox from opening too far, before securing the switch panel and trim.
All the switches were tested and John was satisfied they were all working as they should.
The electric window switches were next to be replaced. John needed to modify the switches and bond them in place before reconnecting and testing. John then modified the panel so that the gear lever locks in the park position freely.
Finally, John fitted the correct volt meter to the car and tested to make sure it was working correctly. The cigarette lighter was cleaned, tested, and seen to be working as expected too.
Our 1971 Jensen FF MKII is now even closer to being ready to leave us and be returned to its owner. With these jobs completed, this eye-catching classic car continues to make good progress on its restoration journey.
We love Jensens here at Bridge Classic Cars. We think they are very special cars and we have spent lots of time working on various Jensen models from Interceptors to FFs, 541, 541R, and more.
One extremely special Jensen is our 1960 Jensen 541S which has recently returned to the workshop.
While it has been with us, it had its fog and spot lights swapped over by classic car technician Ryan as well as receiving some attention from Dave too.
Dave’s focus was on the driver’s side door. The door didn’t quite align right with the body of the car when it was closed. Dave did some alteration work and was able to improve the alignment of the door so the chrome part of the frame now fits much better.
As the time approaches to once again say goodbye to our 1960 Jensen 541S, we are pleased to have been able to make improvements to this beautiful, award-winning classic car.
After noticing a minor fuel leak on our 1971 Jensen FF MKII, classic car technician John replaced the fuel pipe and clips. This stopped the leak and resolved the issue.
However, when John started the car, the oil pressure gauge showed low pressure. After speaking with the owner of the car, it was confirmed that the gauge normally displays a pressure of around 60 psi. John wanted to know if the issue was a faulty pressure gauge or if there was a bigger issue causing a drop in pressure.
The oil filter was removed and John ran a test using a gauge that he knew was working correctly. Without the oil filter fitted, the gauge showed 50 psi. After John put the oil filter back in and ran the test again, the working gauge again displayed 50 psi.
This was enough to tell John that the gauge in the car was the issue rather than a more serious issue which was the best outcome in this situation.
Work continues on our 1971 Jensen FF MKII and it won’t be too much longer before it is returned to its owner to enjoy again.
After having an award-winning summer at a number of classic car shows, our 1960 Jensen 541S has returned to us.
Before being put into storage, classic car technician Ryan swapped the fog and spot lights over on this beautiful classic car.
While Ryan has been looking at the lights, Dave was busy working to resolve an alignment issue with one of the door windows.
We have always known that our 1960 Jensen 541S is a beautiful and very special classic car. We love having it back in the workshop with us and the team here is enjoying being up close and personal with it preparing it for its time in storage.
Classic car technicians Monty and Christian have continued their work on our 1975 Jensen Interceptor MK3.
The metalwork of any car restoration tends to be the part of the project that takes a lot of time. This makes sense when you think that the bodywork is the foundation of the vehicle. The metalwork needs to be completed to an extremely high standard as the rest of the car will be built on and around this.
As Monty and Christian are fabricating a strong foundation that the rest of this classic car will be built on, their work will continue until they are completely satisfied that it meets their high standards.
Our 1975 Jensen Interceptor MK3 has definitely made progress as of late and, as more panels are made and as more welding is completed, the car is becoming more and more recognisable to its final form.
Progress has continued on our 1959 Jensen 541R over the last week. After previously painting the chassis, classic car technician Mauro continued his work painting various components that will eventually be re-attached to the newly painted chassis.
While Mauro was painting, Brian continued work on the car’s interior. Although none of the interior components are actually inside the vehicle at the moment, preparation has already begun for things to be installed later on in the restoration process.
Brian fitted the metal brackets to the front and rear door cappings as well as fitting metal brackets to the rear quarter panels too.
Classic car technician Rob was also working on our 541R by bolting the roof frame back onto the chassis. Rob also bolted the body back onto the chassis as well. This has gone a long way in bringing the frame of our 1959 Jensen 541R back together and it is now much more recognisable.
Another big milestone that was achieved this week was the fibreglass work being finished on the car. Once this was done, Chris was able to apply epoxy and inside seal the body. Chris went on to remove the old paint from the bonnet, as well as paint more components, before moving on to putting the panels back onto the chassis ready to be panel levelled.
Chris ultimately put the body of this rare classic car back together and it is now ready for final gapping and panel levelling before moving on to the next stage of its restoration journey.
Our 1959 Jensen 541R has come a long way this year and, as 2022 draws to a close, we are very excited to see progress continue in the new year. By this time in 2023, this classic car will look very different to how it does now (and extremely different to how it did when it first arrived in the workshop).
Everyone here at Bridge Classic Cars has spent a lot of time around Jensens. Considering how rare 541’s are, we have had several in the workshop over the last few years.
One very special Jensen is our 1960 Jensen 541S which has recently returned to us.
After having an award-winning summer, the owner of this stunning car has bought it to us for storage over winter. However, before it goes into hibernation, our team of classic car technicians will be looking to re-align one of the door windows as well as doing some work on the lights too.
We love this very special car and, after a summer of awards being won, it’s earned a rest with us.
Classic car technicians Monty and Christian have continued their work on our 1975 Jensen Interceptor MK3.
They have been busy fabricating a range of different panels and parts for this beautiful classic car. Areas of focus have been the inner quarter panels, the inner wing, the rear heat shields, and the rear rail.
As you can see from the photos below, more and more of the car is coming together.
As work continues on our Interceptor, everyone here at Bridge Classic Cars is looking forward to it moving on to the next stage of its restoration journey very soon.
Our 1971 Jensen FF MKII recently had a new fuel tank installed. Workshop manager John has been modifying the breather pipes on the new fuel tank.
While he was working on this, he found that the reason why the tank sender was not working was that the metal strip had corroded away.
Our 1971 Jensen FF MKII is a beautiful car that certainly holds the attention of everyone here at Bridge Classic Cars. Work will continue on our FF until the workshop team is completely satisfied that it is ready to be returned to its owner and get back out on the road.
Our team of classic car technicians continue to work on our 1959 Jensen 541R.
Lydia has been stripping the old foam, leather, and vinyl off various interior pieces and prepping some of the metal work for repainting by sandblasting and sanding to remove rust, old paint, and glue.
While Lydia was working on the interior of our 541R, Al was continuing his work on the fibreglass bonnet. After his previous repairs on the underside of the bonnet, he cleaned the underside ready for the rest of his work to be completed. Once he had done this, he continued with his repairs. Al found some previous repair work that had been completed at some point in the car’s past. These repairs did not meet Al’s high standards so, despite making his repair work more challenging, he repaired the bonnet in full, including re-doing the previous bad repairs.
Mauro has also been working on our 1959 Jensen 541R. He has been refurbishing multiple components of this rare classic car. Alongside his refurbishing work, Mauro also painted the chassis too.
As work continues on our 541R, we look forward to seeing progress continue to be made as it moves through its restoration journey here at Bridge Classic Cars.
We recently welcomed our 1957 Jensen 541R back into the Bridge Classic Cars workshop.
It was only a short visit but our team of classic car technicians was still able to resolve a couple of issues the owner was experiencing.
Classic car technician Dave turned his attention to resolving a rattle coming from the driver’s door of this rare classic car as well as investigating and resolving an oil leak.
Dave resolved both issues and, as quickly as it arrived, our 1957 Jensen 541R was leaving us once more. As you can see from the photos below though, its owner, Jeorg, was very happy with the quick turnaround.
Having any Jensen in the workshop is something we thoroughly enjoy, but having one as beautiful as this one is extra special and we hope to keep updated with its adventures in the future.
Our workshop team have been hard at work with the restoration of our 1959 Jensen 541R.
Lydia has been stripping various interior parts ready for them to be re-covered and fully restored to their former glory. Brian has also been working on the interior of our Jensen 541R. He repaired the rear quarter panel top wood section. He did this by first marking out the side window surround panels and rear window top panel. He then cut out the new panels and the new rear quarter panel wood.
These wood sections were screwed together to form the rear quarter top panels. Brian then cut out the rear quarter side panels from mill board before bending the panel to shape. He then glued and stapled the side panels to the top panels.
The kick panels were then marked and cut out as were the glovebox end panels. Brian then went on to cut out the footwell panel and rear boot trim panel.
While Lydia and Brian were working on the interior of this rare classic car, Al was repairing and rebuilding the underneath of the bonnet.
Classic car technician Paul prepared the front upright bearing spindle for crack testing too.
Chirs has also been working on our Jensen 541R. He has been completing fibreglass work, filler work and panel gapping. Chris also removed the panels from the chassis so that it can be sent away for sandblasting.
Some components of our 1959 Jensen 541R have been refurbished and will soon be ready to be re-installed in the car as it continues to make good progress through its restoration journey.
Our 1971 Jensen FF MKII has had the attention of classic car technician Jon recently.
The first job Jon completed was to remove the old distributor and replace it with a new one. He also re-routed the speedo cable and fitted a new fuel filter too.
Jon went on to strip, clean, and inspect the brakes of this very impressive-looking classic car.
The cooling system of our Jensen FF was drained by Jon too. So he could gain access to the water pump and thermostat, he had to remove some of the components surrounding them. This gave Jon the opportunity to thoroughly inspect each component and replace any that were no longer in full working order.
All hoses were removed and all mating surfaces were cleaned.
Jon continued his work on our 1971 Jensen FF MKII by making a new gasket for the thermo housing. The cooling system was flushed and blown out too.
The grill was removed so Jon could access and remove the a/c fan.
The coolant pipe was found to be badly corroded so this needed to be cut and modified to resolve this issue. Once the new pipe was cut and painted, the whole system was refitted to the car.
Jon’s work on the cooling system of our 1971 Jensen FF MKII carried on with a new fan switch being fitted, rewiring the fans, and filling the system vacuum with the old coolant that was saved earlier in the process.
Work on the car wasn’t done yet though as Jon went on to remove the fuel tank. He did this to investigate the leak that the owner of the car says happens when the tank is full. Jon’s investigation began by pressure testing the fuel tank. A hole was found in the tank seam once the rust was removed.
Classic car technician Jon cleaned and prepared the new parts that will be needed to fit the new fuel tank. The tank straps were sanded and painted and a new filler neck hose was shaped ready to be fitted.
A new electric fuel pump was installed in our 1971 FF MKII. For this to happen, Jon prepped the area by removing the rear seat so he could secure the new mounts through the floor. The mechanical fuel pump was removed and a blanking plate and gasket were made, painted, and fitted.
Jon’s attention then turned to the wiring that leads to the new fuel pump. The fuel pipes were replaced and joined at the front while armouring was used in places to make sure the wiring was properly protected.
Jon has put a lot of time, effort, and skill into our 1971 Jensen FF MKII lately. Lots of progress has been made and work will continue until this beautiful classic car is ready to drive out of the workshop and get back on the road with its owner.
The body of our 1959 Jensen 541R has undergone lots of restoration work recently. With classic car technician Rob modifying the front chassis, welding, and rebuilding various parts of this rare classic car, it has certainly made lots of progress on its restoration journey.
As work continues on the external elements of the car, classic car technician Brian has turned his attention to the interior. In particular, Brian has been working on the seats that will eventually help make the inside of our 541R as impressive as the outside.
Brian’s work started by cleaning the old foam and glue from the front seat frames. He could then fit the new foam into the front seat base tubs. Foam was fitted to the front edges and the inner rear edges before the front squab seat side foams were cut and glued in place.
The centre foams were also cut, fitted, and glued into place before the centre pad foams and wadding were added to the side foams. New backboards and new base foams were also cut.
Brian went on to cut and glue the front edge foams and trimmed them to shape. The wood for the seat base frame was also cut to the right size.
Our 1959 Jensen 541R is a very rare car. We have restored many Jensens in our workshop and we definitely enjoy seeing cars like this one get better and better the longer they are with us.
Our 1971 Jensen FF MKII hasn’t been in the Bridge Classic Cars workshop very long but it has already had classic car technician Jon’s attention this week.
The first thing he wanted to do was to get the engine up and running. As Jon was working on making this happen, he discovered that the battery was flat and the starter motor was no longer in working order.
The battery was charged and the old starter motor was removed with a new one being installed in its place.
Once the new starter motor was installed, Jon modified the 4×4 front prop mount to clear the starter. Once this was done, he was able to reassemble everything.
When Jon removed the spark plugs of this rare classic car, it was obvious that they had not been changed for a while. New spark plugs were installed so this should certainly help our Jensen FF get back onto the road.
Another issue noted was that the driver’s door was not closing properly. Jon also managed to resolve this issue by making new spacers for the striker that he fitted and adjusted to make everything fit nicely.
We may not have had our 1971 Jensen FF MKII with us for very long but Jon has already investigated, assessed, and resolved some of the issues identified.
Only 320 Jensen FFs were made and only 110 MKII versions like this were produced. With so few being in existence, it’s really important that we keep as many on the road as possible. Everyone at Bridge Classic Cars enjoys working on rare vehicles and we are certainly excited to have a car as rare (and as beautiful) as this in our workshop.
Work will continue on our 1971 Jensen FF and we look forward to seeing what the future holds for it.
Another rare car has recently arrived at Bridge Classic Cars in the form of our 1971 Jensen FF MKII. With only 320 of these beautiful classic cars being made, we are very excited to have one in our workshop.
After not being used for a while, the car is experiencing some issues that we will be looking to resolve.
While our 1971 Jensen FF MKII is with us, we will be replacing the original ignition with an electronic kit, replacing all spark plugs, investigating a suspected hole in the fuel tank, overhauling the cooling system, looking at some of the switches on the front console, and other investigative tasks too.
The FF (Ferguson Formula) is a rare four-wheel-drive variant of the Jensen Interceptor. At the time of its release, the FF cost around 30% more than the Interceptor and was owned by those who wanted more luxury from their car. Jensen only made the FF with an automatic gearbox to further increase the feeling of comfort and luxury the car provided its driver.
This is a beautiful example of a very rare classic car and we look forward to seeing it progress through its restoration journey with us.
Classic car technician Rob has, once again, been working hard on our 1959 Jensen 541R.
Rob modified the front chassis of this classic car to fit the chassis cross-member. Making sure everything fits together perfectly is extremely important so, sometimes, modifications need to be made in order to get cars like this back on the road again.
Once the modifications to the chassis had been complete, Rob went on to repair the skin fitted on the right-hand door. Once this had been repaired, he was able to fit the door onto the car. He then fitted the right-hand door skin and door too.
Rob needed to make some additional modifications to the bonnet hinges as well. He made some alloy spacers which helped him fit the bonnet to this rare 541R.
The modifications weren’t quite complete just yet though, as Rob had to also modify the boot lid to ensure it fit the car perfectly.
This type of work, where our classic car technicians have to handcraft and modify components in their restoration work, shows how skilled our workshop team is. Technicians like Rob are able to complete this type of work only because they have years of experience to call upon and they are well-equipped to restore a rare car like this from the ground up.
Classic car technician Rob will continue his work on our 1959 Jensen 541R and we are very excited to see it continue to make progress through its restoration journey. Seeing classic cars like this evolve from an empty chassis to the final product that drives out of the workshop is an exciting process to see.
We are looking forward to seeing the rest of the Jensen restoration journey take place and we hope to see this beautiful classic car back with its owner and on the road in the future.
November 22, 2022 11:25 am
Classic car technicians Monty and Christian have continued their work on our 1975 Jensen Interceptor MK3.
After new front panels were fitted their attention turned to the rear of the car. Monty and Christian removed the rear quarter before fitting new panels in its place. Some of the new panel pieces needed to be made by the two technicians to ensure they fit perfectly onto the car.
To make sure everything was installed correctly, Monty referred to photographs taken of the car during the old panel removal process. He was then able to double-check everything he was doing as the new panels were installed.
Our 1975 Jensen Interceptor MK3 continues to make progress towards how it will eventually look when it is fully restored. It has already come a long way since it first arrived with us here at Bridge Classic Cars and, as work continues, it will become an even more eye-catching classic car.
Our 1975 Jensen Interceptor MK3 continues to make good progress and is beginning to look much more like a car now than it has in recent times.
Classic car technicians Monty and Christian have been hard at work fitting new panels to this impressive classic car. After removing a fairly large portion of the old panels, they got to work fabricating parts and making sure everything was measuring up exactly as it should.
It wasn’t too long ago that some new body panels arrived for our MK3 Interceptor. Once these were paired with the parts made by Monty and Christian, the new panels were fitted to the car.
With the new panels fitted, our 1975 Jensen Interceptor MK3 is looking much more car-like and you can really start to see how cool it will look when work is complete.
There may still be quite a way to go before it drives out of the workshop and back onto the road, but our Interceptor has already come a long way and our team of classic car technicians will continue their work on it until it is ready to impress everyone who sees it driving in the future.
Classic car technician Rob has continued his work on our 1959 Jensen 541R. Following the return of the doors from the sandblasters, Rob has been able to make some good progress with the restoration of this rare classic car.
His attention was first placed on the rear wheel arch filler panels. These were made and welded in place. Rob went on to weld the A and B posts too before adjusting and fitting the left-hand sill and panels.
The welding continued with the battery cradle being welded in along with the left-hand inner C panel being welded in as well.
Rob’s attention then turned to the doors of our 541R. Unfortunately, there were areas of corrosion which needed to be cut out and removed. Fortunately, though, Rob has the experience and the skillset required to make new panels and weld these in.
With less than 200 of these beautiful cars being made, the restoration work that is done here at Bridge Classic Cars by our highly skilled technicians, like Rob, is extremely important. As so few of these classic cars were made in the first place, having one less in the world is never a good thing.
Work will continue on our 1959 Jensen 541R and it will continue to make progress back to its former glory before eventually driving out of our workshop and back onto the road.
The bonnet of our 1956 Jensen 541 has been panel levelled by classic car technician Al.
Once that had been completed, the bonnet was ready for polyester primer to be applied as it moved on to the next stage of its restoration journey in the Bridge Classic Cars workshop.
Our 1975 Jensen Interceptor MK3 has had several parts fabricated recently.
Classic car technicians Monty and Christian have been hard at work making sure the parts being made fit perfectly where they are needed, and can also do the job they are meant to do once the car is back up and running and on the road again.
They have also been assembling parts of the car such as the A-pillar.
While Monty and Christian have been fabricating the parts for our Interceptor, classic car technician Al has been applying epoxy primer to them before welding them to the car. He applied the epoxy primer at this stage as he would not have been able to prime them properly once they were welded together.
There is obviously still a long way to go before our 1975 Jensen Interceptor MK3 is ready to leave us and get back on the road. However, things are progressing nicely and it’s looking more and more car-like each day.
Over the last week, classic car technician Rob has been spending his time putting our 1959 Jensen 541R back together. Since the chassis of this rare car arrived back at the workshop, Rob has had his work cut out fitting everything back onto the car in the right place (and in the right order!)
The rebuild began with Rob fitting the sills back on and then refitting and welding the bulkhead onto the chassis as well.
From there, Rob went on to bolt the front wheel arches and the mounting frames in place and began work on fitting the body and the roof back together again. With this done, our 1959 Jensen 541R started to become much more recognisable as the beautiful classic car that we know it is.
We recently got the doors of our 541R back from the sandblasters. Although some repair work is still needed, Rob reassembled the doors so he could fit them to the car in order to check the A and B post alignment. He also bolted the roof down before making a new C pillar inner panel ready to fit later on.
Rob has moved on with his restoration work and has now made and welded the rear arch filler panels. He has also welded the A and B posts down.
The left-hand sill and panels have been adjusted and fitted and the left-hand C panel has also been welded in too.
Despite the fact that there is still a long way to go (and a whole lot more work to do), our 1959 Jensen 541R is looking extremely different to how it did just a few days ago. It is much more recognisable now and it is much closer to its final look than it has been before.
We are very lucky to have a skilled classic car technician like Rob working on the car and we are looking forward to seeing even more progress made very soon.
The time recently arrived for us to say goodbye to our 1958 Jensen 541R.
This beautiful classic car came to us from Holland and spent a few months with us while our team of classic car technicians bought it back to life. It leaves us looking very different to how it looked when it first arrived at our workshop and we are very happy to see it move on to its next chapter.
November 1, 2022 4:27 pm
Classic car technician Al has been working on our 1956 Jensen 541 lately.
Recently, he has been focused on continuing the painting of the chassis and its numerous components.
As well as painting the rear inner arches of this soon-to-be beautiful classic car, Al also painted the door frames too.
Work will continue on our 1956 Jensen 541 and it is great to see progress being made in its restoration.
Classic car technicians Monty and Christian have been spending quite a bit of time with our 1975 Jensen Interceptor MK3 lately.
From removing the front wings to working on the new body panels that arrived at the workshop, they have been busy making good progress on this special classic car.
As you can see from the photos below, things are progressing well and work continues as our Interceptor moves further along its restoration journey.
Since the chassis of our 1959 Jensen 541R has been back in the workshop, classic car technician Rob has been busy rebuilding the car.
He has already bolted the front wheel arches and the mounting frames into place and he has also started work on fitting the body and the roof back together again.
The car already looks very different than it did when it first arrived at the Bridge Classic Cars workshop and it will continue to change as it moves along its restoration journey.
