Back in 2008, Mike became the proud and sixth owner of this wonderful 1974 Jensen Interceptor convertible. This particular example has always been a California car. One year after Mike purchased the Interceptor, he had removed all the trims, glass, and complete interior before taking the car to a shop for a repaint of the original color. Once the paint job was completed, Mike then reassembled/installed all the trims, glass, and interior. Speaking of the interior, Mike had customized the back seating by replacing the two bucket style seats for a solid bench (see photo), in order to facilitate the need for taking his three kids along. Mike swapped out the 15″ stock wheels for 17’s.
Jensen’s Interceptor Mark III production years were between 1966-1976, for a total of 6667 units. Of this total, only 456 were convertibles, and these were only produced between 1974-1976. The Jensen Interceptors are powered by a 4 barrel 440, 7.2 litre V8 Chrysler engine and Mike’s is believed to be one of the highest mileage Jensens still on the road with 104,000 original miles. And why is this? Because most Jensens conk out before that, due to the fact that they were notorious for having electrical problems. Mike’s Mark III came to him complete with every record on it from 1984, including a poster size diagram of the electrical system-for reasons stated above.
The Jensen Interceptor III is the big brother of the Jensen Healy; the warranty work on the Healy was the demise of Jensen. All the parts in the Jensen Interceptor are from different manufacturers. The engine and transmission are products of Chrysler, the door handles from Alfa Romeo, rear view mirror assembly, from Mercedes, side view mirrors are AMC, the Air conditioner controls are those of a British commercial refrigerator. I suppose one could say that this is a kit car, but that would be rude. Back in the day, these hand built cars with alloy wheels, sold for $22,000, nearly double the cost of a V-12 E-type Jaguar. All but four were equipped with automatic 3-speed transmissions. In addition to having a temperamental electrical system, the Jensen had real problems with rust; however, I saw no evidence of any rust in Mike’s baby. The Jensen was a high performance touring car that competed with Bentley and Rolls Royce. The Jensen FF was the first all wheel drive ABS ever built. In fact, in 1986, Porsche modeled their 959 after studying the Interceptor – an inception that took 20 years in the making.
Thank you, Mike for bringing your Interceptor out last weekend. I’ve seen it four times now at our various meetings, and it’s always a treat for me whenever I see it.
Photos and story by Carol Marcopulos
