If this doesn’t get the PH fraternity frantically commenting, I’ll eat my trilby. No doubt some of those opinions will be along the lines of “How much?” and “Twenty years ago I nearly swapped an empty Coke bottle for one of those” but hopefully a few at least will be “Good grief, that’s cool”. Because it just is, isn’t it?
The Jensen FF. A grand tourer in the most obvious sense, but also a leftfield option because it wasn’t built by the obvious manufacturers from Britain, Italy or Germany. However, it is British, but in the true spirit of collaboration it used the best bits from around the world. The Italians did the styling, because that’s what they do best. The yanks did the engine, because when you need a big, brawny lump of V8 goodness that’s to whom you turn. And the British did what they do best, which is innovation. Very innovative, in fact.
Now, just to clear up the confusion that often seems to surround this car, this isn’t an Interceptor. The Interceptor was rear-wheel drive. Ergo it wasn’t the first production road car to use four-wheel drive (and yes, there were plenty of dedicated off-roaders using four-wheel drive then, but we're not talking about those here). The FF took that honour. Some of you will know that already, but the merging of these two models is prolific. And you can tell an FF from an Interceptor by the front wing vents: the FF has two, the Interceptor has one. The FF also had a stainless steel roof, but that’s less obvious when it's been covered in paint.
The FF came about because two Black Country brothers, called Alan and Richard Jensen, wanted to create the ultimate fast yet safe cross-country GT car. And they were used to introducing performance and safety into their cars. In 1956 they offered the Jensen 541 with all-round disc brakes – a year after the Citroen DS introduced them, but still a British production car first – and the 541S that arrived in 1960 was the first British car with standard-fit seatbelts. But such things seem prosaic next to the mighty FF’s innovativeness.
That’s because Jensen’s new model came with Dunlop Maxaret ABS, as well as the famous Ferguson Formula four-wheel drive system. That’s where the FF designation comes from, by the way. It didn’t mean ‘Four Four’, or some such; it stood for Ferguson Formula, as in Harry Ferguson, the tractor genius. This system consisted of a central differential and transfer box, with a torque split of 37:63 between the front and rear axles. Sadly, this was part of the FF’s – and the Jensen company’s – ultimate downfall.
It was a complicated system that, inevitably, brought about some teething troubles. It was also very expensive to produce, which made the FF £1,500 more expensive than the real-drive Interceptor, at £6,000. That was right at the upper echelons of the price scale, not far off Sliver Shadow and Mercedes-Benz SEL 6.3 territory. There were other issues that compounded the difficulties the FF faced, too.
The four-wheel drive’s transfer box was bulky, which made re-engineering the car for left-hand-drive markets difficult. Had they managed to do so, then the FF could’ve potentially sold in prolific numbers buoyed by sales in the States. As it was, they’d delivered just 25 by the end of 1967 and that number had increased to only 320 by the end of the FF’s production in 1972. With volumes like that, there was no point in re-engineering the FF to meet the latest US crash regulations, so potentially one of the safest cars in the world was rendered untenable by safety regulations. You couldn’t make it up, could you?
What a crying shame. Not only was the FF a pioneering car and its makers deserving of more fruit for their labours, but it was also a fabulous thing. In terms of fulfilling its remit of being a supremely accomplished GT car, it turned out to be supremely accomplished. That 6.3-litre Chrysler V8 mustered 330hp at just 4,600rpm, with a considerable 425lb ft of grunt to back it up from just 2,800rpm. That was channelled through a three-speed auto and all four wheels to give it its performance potential of 131mph and 0-60mph in 7.7 seconds. The year was 1967, remember, so such a performance level was something to behold.
That was accompanied by the most delicious burbling from the V8, along with a comfortable ride and handling that was, give or take, foolproof. And then there was the cabin. On the early models this was a masterclass in interior design to rival the Lamborghini Miura. The Mk1, produced up to 1969, was beset with exquisitely presented dials and an array of James Bond-esque, Q-Branch toggle switches on the centre console. This car isn't quite so bejewelled, being a later '71 model, but that means it's more ergonomically useful and still has the most gorgeous seats. Just look at them. Tell me you wouldn’t wish to plunge into their plushness and head off to find some European sun? I would, I know that. If I had this car I'd be off to Monaco in a shot, and once I'd arrived there, I reckon this car would draw a crowd. A bold claim, granted, given the cars that dwell in the principality - but I think it's true.
Specification | Jensen FF
Engine: 6,276cc, V8, naturally aspirated
Transmission: Three-speed automatic, four-wheel drive
Power (hp): 330 @ 4,600rpm
Torque (lb ft): 425lb ft @ 2,800rpm
CO2: N/A
MPG: 14 (if you’re lucky)
Recorded mileage: 101,000
Year registered: 1971
Price new: £6,000
Yours for: £119,995
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