The Jensen Interceptor is a grand touring car that was hand-built at the Kelvin Way Factory in West Bromwich, near Birmingham, England, by Jensen Motors between 1966 and 1976. The Interceptor name had been used previously by Jensen for the Jensen Interceptor made between 1950 and 1957 at the Carters Green factory. Jensen had extensively used glass-reinforced plastic to fabricate body panels over the preceding two decades, but the new Interceptor was a return to a steel body shell. The body was designed by an outside firm, Carrozzeria Touring of Italy, rather than the in-house staff. The early bodies were built in Italy by Vignale, before Jensen took production in-house, making some subtle body modifications.
History and specifications
Jensen Motors used Chrysler V8 engines for the Interceptor, starting with the 6276 cc with optional manual (Mark I, 22 built) or TorqueFlite automatic transmissions driving the rear wheels through a limited slip differential in a conventional Salisbury rear axle. In 1970, the 383 c.i. produced 335 hp SAE gross, or 270 hp SAE net. Since this engine was detuned by Chrysler for use with low octane petrol, and only produced 250 hp SAE net in 1971, Jensen chose to use the 440 in3 Chrysler engine for 1971.