According to Jaguar, this XK140 MC started life as a black car with a red interior (See Jaguar Heritage Letter pictured below).

The known car history goes back to 1982

The 3rd owner of the car purchased the XK140 in 1982 and restored it to Jaguar Club of North America standards, scoring 99.75 points at a June 1998 judging event, and taking home the Best of Show Award.

I'm a Corvette guy, so driving the XK140 is a fascinating experience. The XK is much more refined than my 53 Corvette, as you would expect. The 53-55 Corvettes were not great cars. My 59 Corvette is a really nice sports car, however, and is comparable to the XK, and better in some ways. The gearbox on the XK is basically a nightmare. Non-synchromesh gearing makes shifting gears a chore in the XK. As far as styling goes, the XK and 59 Corvette a both look wonderful to the eye.

My XK140 runs PERFECTLY. I had some over-heating and gearbox issues after acquiring the car. So I let my mechanic, a long time and very successful SCCA racer, dig into the car. Among other things, he added a pusher fan and an overflow tank, a 5 speed transmission, and slightly larger 2" exhaust pipes. The car is now a real joy to drive, and I now appreciate just how wonderful the XK engine is.