Our (Coventry Foundation’s) most recent donated vehicle is an outstanding example of a 1953 XK120FHC, donated by John C. Couch of Palo Alto Ca. Those are the basic facts, but the story is a bit bigger and more interesting. I always say that one of my greatest joys is getting to know our donors better, finding out their life story as well as that of the car. I tell donors of cars like his, they will remain in our permanent collection as the eventual museum example of this model and will always be displayed with the donor noted.
Like many of our donor’s John is a car guy from his youth growing up in (then) rural Bethesda, Maryland. While in High School John purchased his first car for $150.00. It was a 1938 DeSoto bought from friends of the family. Local scrap yards conveniently provided needed parts for later repairs. The DeSoto was followed by a 1938 Dodge, then a 1939 Buick Special and then a 1941 Packard Sedan. All those cars were like new and in excellent condition at the time. They each in turn became his daily drivers and were enjoyed thoroughly. In fact, he drove the Packard to Ft. Lauderdale, FL during a spring school break. While on that trip he had the chance to test the old Packard on the Daytona Beach racecourse and it performed magnificently.
After graduating from the University of Michigan with undergraduate and graduate engineering degrees, his interest in cars grew along with his expendable income. After a brief fling with a new VW Beetle, John purchased his first sports car, a 1970 Datsun 240Z. Later, as his interest in sports cars grew, and while working at Litton Industries in Los Angeles, he bought as a daily driver a 1963 Ferrari 250GT when they could be bought for $5-6,000.
John’s career is a great success story. With degrees as a Naval Architect and Marine Engineer John spent the first half of his career designing and building large commercial and Naval ships, eventually working for Litton Industries where he became Chief Marine Engineer at the Ingalls Shipbuilding Division in Pascagoula, MS. Later, after receiving an MBA from Stanford John went to work for Matson Navigation Company, a well-established ocean shipping company in San Francisco then owned by Alexander Baldwin Incorporated (A&B), a major landholder in Hawaii with a business portfolio that also included Real Estate Development and Agribusiness (primarily growing sugar cane) in the Islands. He eventually joined A&B and retired as Chairman and CEO in 1999 to fight liver cancer. At that point he had lived in Hawaii 22 years.

He then moved to Palo Alto, CA for treatment at Stanford Hospital. While recovering from a successful transplant operation he bought a home on Lake Tahoe where he began collecting and restoring classic old speed boats. But soon he received a request from a former classmate to help with development of a small family investment business in Palo Alto. Initially he served as a consultant but eventually as CEO to help build the company from a small family office to a prominent private investment firm. He continues to hold the position of Vice Chairman and has worked with the company for the past 25 years. It was during this period in John’s car enthusiasts’ life that he developed an interest in classic Jaguar cars. First owning a 1956 XK140 Drophead, which John drove in the California Mille with long time foundation friend and patron Les Hamilton. That was followed by the purchase of the just donated 1953 XK120FHC. Also included in John’s current collection is a 1966 Austin Healey 3000. And John’s daily driver is a 75th anniversary Jaguar XKR175, one of 200 built. (John mentioned that the top speed of the XKR175 reported by JLR to be 180MPH was challenged during an episode of “Top Gear” and found to be valid.)

I am sure you can tell John enjoys his cars. During our conversation he shared a few great stories. My favorite being the time he was testing the limits of the Ferrari 250GT in the desert on Interstate 10 near Indio, CA and was stopped by a young Highway Patrol officer after reaching more than 140mph. What followed was some friendly conversation about fast cars and the merits of V8s versus V12s and then an inspection of each other’s engine bays (the Dodge police cruiser had big V8 power). In the end, he received a ticket for driving 10 mph over the 70mph limit because, as the officer advised, if he had cited John for doing 140 mph, John would lose my license!

We were introduced to John by his friend Les Hamilton. After much thought and a review of our mission and credentials John decided to make the donation of his outstanding XK120FHC to the Coventry Foundation. We are very pleased to have this car added to our permanent collection and look forward to the time when it will be on display in a permanent facility for the enjoyment of all who visit.

Now semi-retired, John lives on the Stanford University campus. His daily driver is still the 2011 XKR175. It has been a great pleasure for me personally to get to know John and learn more about is life and hobbies.