Classic British car collection found in “secret location”

A first-generation Land Rover and AC Ace Bristol once owned by pioneering female racing driver Betty Haig were found alongside five other classics at a “secret location.” 

An impressive collection of classic British cars — including one reportedly owned by pioneering female racing driver Betty Haig — have been found in an abandoned “secret shed” in the latest example of a rare ‘barn find‘.

Stacked three high and with weeds growing into bodywork, vehicles recovered include an original Series I 80 Inch Land Rover, three rare AC sports cars, and three Jaguar E-types.

The shed appears to be tucked behind an dilapidated suburban house in England. Little backstory on the collection has been provided, but the owner suggests all seven cars have been in storage since the 1970s.

“We can’t disclose where this is,” Guy Snelling of Anglia Car Auctions — which is selling some of the vehicles — said in a promotional video. 

The Land Rover is believed to be a 1951 80 Inch variant, with the measurment denoting its wheelbase length. It has deteriorated significantly — with plants growing in the footwells and the steering wheel broken off — but includes matching chassis and engine numbers.

AC models include the 1959 Ace, 1955 Aceca, and 1957 Ace Bristol. The latter reportedly once belonged to pioneering female racing driver Betty Haig, who is believed to have raced it across Europe in hillclimbs. 

The 1969 and 1970 Jaguar E-Types include one coupe and two convertibles. One appeared to have been crashed, and the coupe has a sizable hole in its roof. 

Two additional Jaguar E-Type body shells were pulled from the shed. It’s unclear if these are original parts or spares for the complete cars.

The three AC cars are going under the hammer through Anglia Car Auctions at King’s Lynn in England on August 19 and 20, 2023. No price guides or reserves have been set.

The full collection comprises:

• 1951 Series I 80 Inch Land Rover
• 1970 Jaguar E-Type 4.2 SII EHC
• 1955 AC Aceca
• 1959 AC Ace
• 1969 Jaguar E-Type 4.2 Roadster SII convertible
• 1969 Jaguar E-Type 4.2 Roadster SII convertible
• 1957 AC Ace Bristol

In 2021 one of the biggest barn find collections in history

— with about 174 cars — was put on public display in London.
A year prior a 1967 Ferrari 330 GT V12 2+2 was found bricked up in rural NSW. Its buyer described it as the “world’s oldest Ferrari barn find.

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