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Ad Rates / Articles / Classified Ads / Editorial / Home / Links / Showtime   Wayback Wheels - Vintage Car Talk   The Jensen Interceptor   By Aaron Neilly As a mechanic, I'll vouch for the fact that cars are becoming more and more advanced and complicated every day. Devices to make cars more comfortable, easier to control in bad weather, brake better, steer better, be safer and even tell you where you're going, are commonplace in the modern world. 40 years ago, a lot of these options hadn't even been dreamed of ... but a few of them made an appearance on one very unique car.   England's Jensen Motors had been building cars since the early 1930s, and although they had a humble beginning, in 1934, American actor Clark Gable commissioned them to design and build him a car on a Ford chassis. This project gained Jensen a great deal of popularity and led to a deal with Ford to produce a limited run of Jensen bodied Ford V8s.   After this, they had the capitol available to build their first true production car, the Jensen S-Type. This was cut short by World War II, and Jensen Motors quickly switched their production over to the "JNSN" brand of heavy duty military trucks, firetrucks and ambulances, aircraft parts and even gun turrets.   Fast forward a few years, and Jensen was a well established manufacturer, producing heavy duty trucks, and commissioned to build bodies for several different cars, namely the Austin-Healey 100, the Austin Gypsy, and the popular Volvo P1800 coupe. They had produced a few of their own vehicles within these years, but nothing quite as cutting edge as the car Jensen introduced in 1966 ... the Interceptor.   The Jensen Interceptor resembled no other car on the road - a long, almost muscle car like nose, sleek, low roof line, and a large, curved glass rear window which doubled as a hatchback. Although Jensen had normally used fibreglass in their bodies, the Interceptor had a steel body, designed by the Italian firm of Carrozzeria Touring. Motive power came from a Chrysler built 383 cubic inch V8, mated to a 4 speed manual, or Chrysler TorqueFlite automatic transmission. Later versions had a Chrysler 440 cubic inch V8, which could propel the car up to 143 miles per hour. The Interceptor was a popular vehicle with driving enthusiasts, and provided something a little "different" to the typical Jaguar, Mustang or Alfa-Romeo of the day ... but Jensen decided to step up the Interceptor to another level in 1967 when they introduced the Interceptor FF. The FF stood for "Ferguson Formula", as the car had a Ferguson designed all-wheel-drive system. This was the first use of a four wheel drive system in a vehicle not intended for off-road use, preceding Audi's "Quattro" all-wheel drive system by 14 years.   The transfer case used a viscous coupling system, and used the rear wheels for 63% of the power, so the car had a true "sports car" handling feel. Because of the unique layout of the transfer case and driveshafts, the FF was never available as a left hand drive car... these components protruded into the space a steering column would have used if relocated, and therefore, the car was never considered for sale in North America, although a few examples have made their way over here.   Now, back to the beginning of this article, where I had mentioned how modern cars were equipped with a vast array of items to make driving less of a chore. The Interceptor FF was advanced with its all-wheel drive system, but it also had a couple of other options which didn't appear on other cars until nearly 20 years later, and are just becoming standard equipment on some lower-end cars today - anti-lock brakes, and traction control. The anti-lock system was a purely mechanical design by Dunlop, which had originally been used on aircraft landing gear.   For a bit of a comparison, an anti-lock system on a modern car pulsates up to 40 times a second, depending on the severity of the stop. The FF's brakes pulsated at around two to three times a second ... quite a difference! These systems were problematic, and often resulted in no brakes- but when working, still allowed the car to be steered under severe braking conditions. There was a primitive traction control system as well, using the viscous coupler of the differential to transfer power from front to rear wheels, if one pair of wheels was spinning at a faster speed than the other. Primitive, yes, but a pretty advanced concept for the time.   The FF was produced until 1971, with only 320 units being built, although regular Interceptors were produced until 1976, with over 6,400 leaving the factory. This would spell the demise of the Jensen corporation - the fuel crisis had potential buyers scared, and sales dropped off almost entirely. Jensen Motors declared bankruptcy later that year.   These days, Interceptors are highly sought after cars, especially the FF, and the even more scarce convertible model. Parts availability is an issue with owning one (excluding the common Chrysler engine and transmission parts), but the Interceptor is definitely a car to turn heads, whether by its looks, or advanced engineering.   Photo 1: A rare Interceptor convertible   Photo 2: Interceptor side profile showing the unique rear glass hatch   Aaron is a certified mechanic who spends a lot of time in, under and around almost anything with wheels, especially if it is of vintage persuasion. You'll find him at many of the popular rally races in Canada and the USA - or in a garage somewhere. He can be reached at bandicoot.rally@gmail.com       Return to top of page   This Is Livin' Publishing © 2009 581 8th Line West, RR1 Hastings, ON, K0L 1Y0 Phone/Fax: 705-696-1833   webmaster