Jensen S-V8

The S-V8 was the last car to carry the Jensen name. The brainchild of Hugh Wainwright, former owner of the residual Jensen concern in the 1980s and 90s, the S-V8 was a blank sheet creation with no links to the Jensen cars of old. The prototype was unveiled at the Motor Show in 1998, a two-seater sports car powered by a Ford 4.6 litre V8. It had been developed by Creative Manufacturing Systems, a Midlands engineering firm which had been working on it since 1996. In January 1998, Creative purchased the rights to use the Jensen name on the design, the intention being to market a new Jensen into the 2000s. After a few experimental cars were made by Creative at Redditch, government funding was obtained to build a factory at Speke on Merseyside. In 2002, in the wake of quality control problems and poor sales, the Speke premises were sealed and an administrator appointed. In 2003, the Cirencester-based SV Automotive was engaged to take over the assembly of the remaining parts, a process which came to an end in 2005. In all, approximately 40 S-V8 body shells were built, not all of which were brought through to roadgoing standard. S-V8s were not marketed outside the UK but one is now down under.