Nigel Havers to auction classic Jaguar E-Type as potholes cause more drivers to break down
The Coronation Street and Downton Abbey star Nigel Havers has complained about the worsening state of the roads, announcing he is selling his classic car.
The actor Nigel Havers has announced that he is to sell his classic Jaguar E-Type sportscar due to fears that potholes in his area could damage it.
The 72-year-old has owned the car for several decades, but is concerned that the rise in issues with the roads may lead to problems with the tyres, suspension and steering setup.
Speaking to Good Morning Britain, Nigel voiced his frustrations for potholes, stating that they often cause him to choose between damaging his vehicle or heading into oncoming traffic.
He explained: "The thing is enough people are shouting about this now, everybody has a road that they know is lethal. And what happens is you avoid potholes because you get to know where they are, and you head into oncoming traffic which can be really dangerous.
"Sometimes you're left with going onto the pothole because there is nothing else you can do, and the whole car just shudders."
During 2023, the RAC were called out to 29,377 breakdowns related to potholes, an increase of more than 35 percent in two years.
The breakdown organisation has announced that to make councils more aware of problems with their roads, they have partnered up with Metricell, makers of a pothole scanning smartphone called Stan.
Using AI, Stan is capable of identifying over 40 different types of issues with the road network and automatically sends the location of the fault to the authority in charge of the roads.
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To cope with the increasing amount of potholes on the roads, Nigel highlighted that he has swapped the Jaguar for a motorbike, but will still be sad to see the classic go.
He added: "It's a real shame, it's going up for auction on Sunday. The E-Type is very low, so you feel every bump. I haven't driven a car for years, I've only ridden a motorbike because I'm guaranteed to get from A to B.
"You still have to be really careful [around potholes], but I don't have any distractions, I'm just concentrating on the road. But the amount of drivers and cyclists who are not concentrating is quite something."
The 1970 Jaguar E-Type Series II owned by Nigel will go under the hammer at the Practical Classics Classic Car & Restoration Show at the Birmingham NEC on Sunday, March 24 2024 by Classic Car Auctions.
Powered by a 4.2-litre six-cylinder engine, when pushed, the E-Type is capable of accelerating from 0-60mph in 6.6 seconds and reach a top speed of 150mph.
However, motorists interested in buying a national treasure that was owned by a national treasure will need a full wallet, with a guide price of between £60,000 and £70,000.