Welcome to the Official Jensen Owners' Club site:-
Home of the Jensen 541
Why is this 1950's sports tourer so noteworthy? Scroll down to
find out!
Have you tried the Jensen541.com News page,
last modified June 2023?
July 1959.
The glamorous Daily Mail London-Paris air race is staged, starting at Marble Arch and ending at the Arc de Triomphe. Any method can be used, from bubblecar to Helicopter using relay transport. The winning time involves bike couriers and a Hunter jet, and is just 40 minutes, but the best reward for a manufacturer is to see his car complete the whole course.
One car has managed this in 2 hours 27 minutes and 17 seconds.
It was chosen for its high top speed, sharp handling, good urban performance and reliability. Good looks and handbuilt exclusivity probably helped too. That car?
The Jensen 541R.
Its "fastest ever" time set a record for London to Paris in a car that
has never been beaten, and included covering the 73 miles to the Kent
airfield in just 72 minutes.
The driver, John Webb, even beat Stirling Moss in a Renault by 28
minutes.In a world of sidecar combinations and pre-war sidevalves, it must have been regarded as we think of a Bugatti Veyron now. Luckily for us, a large proportion of the 500+ production survive, and this fine car is now owned by enthusiastic owners who have avoided the "collectors prices" of other 50's classics.
The performance - shattering in the 1950's - is now less impressive, but it can still show a clean pair of heels to most cars on the road. The fourseater body provides comfort on longer trips, and the reliability factor is even more important now that parts are 50 years old. Reliable Austin parts in a handbuilt welded steel chassis are clothed in a glassfibre body shell. One thing that has never changed is the handsome appearance.
This official Jensen Owners' Club site is dedicated to supporting the 541 & deluxe, 541R and 541S.
Thinking about buying a 541? Click on the twist knob above for FAQs
