In 1954, Brian Lister – a director of his family’s Cambridge-based engineering firm – put the finishing touches on a racing car he’d created. The car would come to be known as the ‘knobbly’ Lister, due to its curved bodywork, and proved immensely successful in international races during the 1950s. But the Lister’s sports racer’s years were numbered and by the end of the decade, the cars were retired from racing.
Applying the Lister name to a number of racing cars after the 1950s meant the company retained a presence in GT racing worldwide. After success on the track, Lister branched out into road cars in the 1980s with a modified Jaguar XJS, which was renamed and re-marketed as a Lister Jaguar. Powered by a tuned 6.0-litre version of Jaguar’s V12 engine, the car produced 482bhp, pitching it against some of the most powerful supercars at the time. Fitted with a five-speed manual gearbox, Lister made improvements to the suspension, chassis, brakes, wheels and – most notably – the bodywork.
This particular car started life as a standard Jaguar XJS in 1983 before it was converted by the company in 1990 and bought by the current vendor in 1993. Taken off the road in 1997, the car has been extensively re-commissioned, including an overhaul of the fuel and braking systems.
Finished in red with cream leather Recaro seats and matching interior, the car will be offered at auction as part of the Bonhams Goodwood Members Meeting on 19 March 2017. Click here for more details.
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