BOOK REVIEW BY LETITIA MACE: “ONE MOORE FOR THE ROAD” BY DAVID MOORE
- Esta-Jane Middling
- 4 days ago
- 5 min read
Background
Back in 2013 I was given the task of finding some unusual Jaguars for the JEC Southern Day at Littlecote. I managed to assemble an interesting group that included an XJR-15, the XJ Sentinel (a fully armoured X351), a faithful replica of the Lumsden-Sargent lightweight
E-type, and an XJ220 …. The one that got away was the XKR-S GT and it was to have been the star of the show. There was only one prototype, so never dreaming I would get it, I hadn’t even dared to ask.
Then one day completely out of the blue, an email arrived from someone at Jaguar who claimed to be responsible for the XKR-S GT Prototype and they offered it to me for
Littlecote! After pinching myself several times and checking that it wasn’t April Fools Day I replied and accepted the offer. The event brochure went to print with the promise of
the XKR-S GT Prototype as the star attraction.
Alas, it was never to be …. With just a few days to go another email confirmed that Jaguar needed the car elsewhere for important promotional work. I consoled myself with the fact that at least the person who was responsible for the car had the decency to let me know.
I still remember lusting over the official video of the new Jaguar XKR-S GT time after time!
Roll forward 7 years to 2020 and Tony O’keeffe sent me details of a book written by a member of staff at Jaguar Classic, asking me if I would promote it. Well, of course I
was happy to, and after reading the few brief details I felt that I must have a copy and do a full review in due course.
Normally, the offer of a review ensures me a free copy, but not in this case, my signed copy was fully paid for – that’s not the way to ensure a good review, is it?
The book, entitled “One Moore for the Road” has been written by David Moore, and even though I am a regular visitor to Jaguar Classic the name didn’t ring any bells … That
is, not until I had read the first chapter which introduced the reader to all the stories that would follow in full.
One of the chapters was about developing the XKR-S GT - this, it said, was David Moore’s baby. Turning immediately to my little black book, there it was, 2013 – David Moore, along with email address and work phone number, personally bringing the XKR-S GT Prototype to
Littlecote on 1st September 2013 and available to answer questions about the car!
I have since received a full personal apology from Mr Moore along with the promise of a spin in the car at some point in the future, as it apparently resides at Jaguar Classic along with its creator! Too late, I fear, as the infamous Rob Jenner was loaned an XKR-S GT at
Castle Combe last year, and although not the prototype, it was absolutely amazing and behaved impeccably on the track - a very impressive piece of kit, I have to say!
About the book
But this book is not just about the XKR-S GT or even about David Moore, it is a very interesting insight into modern day development of Jaguar cars and where your career can take you. Until now, nothing had been written about Jaguar behind the scenes after circa 1990 and that is where David Moore’s story begins.
There’s more, much more, if you’ll pardon the pun, but without writing a book about the book, if you don’t see enough here to entice you to read it, google “One Moore for the Road” and you will find several reviews.
Some just quote chunks of text from the book and all make reference to the same events – Pikes Peak, the Mille Miglia and the fire in the desert. Here, I try to give an overall flavour of the books’ contents, leaving you the thrill of discovering the stories for yourself.
“THEN, AS HIS CAREER PROGRESSED HE MOVED ON TO SPECIAL PROJECTS THAT INCLUDE DEVELOPING NOT ONLY THE XKR-S GT, BUT ALSO THE PROJECT 7, PROJECT 8 AND RECORD BREAKING BONNEVILLE XFR.”
Inspired by the TWR years and Jaguars’ successful return to Le Mans, David was determined to work for Jaguar and throwing himself into his work 100% with a ‘can do’ attitude, and a thought process that was usually outside the box, he became ever more deeply involved in the development, proving and marketing of Jaguar cars from 1990 onwards and in his book he shares the stories of working on standard production models. Then, as his career progressed he moved onto special projects that include developing not only the XKR-S GT, but also the Project 7, Project 8 and record breaking Bonneville XFR. These amazing cars are an integral part of DM’s story.
If, on the other hand, it is name dropping that turns you on, stay tuned for multiple trips around the globe, stopping off at exotic locations that include Monaco, Goodwood, Pikes Peak, Le Mans, and Italy, for the Mille Miglia, meeting celebrities, royalty, film stars and the aristocracy along the way!
DM’s achievements went literally above and beyond merely working for Jaguar, with the opportunity to race cars and even fly a jet fighter – hard work, driven by passion, has its rewards.
Final Verdict
DM has been nagging me for my thoughts on his book since I began reading it, but I never pass judgement or leave feedback until I’m satisfied that I’ve reached a fair verdict.
Inspired? YES!
Maybe I too am very lucky because my life has been touched by all of these cars, and some of the people and places, so reading this book was very special.
Very much in my own style, and appealing to my sense of humour, it is written with the enthusiasm that would have enveloped the events themselves and relayed to the reader in a conversational manner which holds your attention and makes it very readable and entertaining.
It is, in fact, as informative as it is entertaining, a real inspiration to anyone starting out on an automotive career, and I would recommend it to future Jaguar historians as essential reading.
Primarily written with his 3 daughters in mind, it will be interesting to see if they take up the baton and pursue an engineering career at Jaguar, in the footsteps of their father.
Tony O’keeffe, Ken McConomy and Kev Riches are all part of the story and there are lots of other names I hope to remember, and people I’d now like to meet – not the celebrities, but DM’s co-workers at Jaguar, those whose skills created some incredible pieces of automotive engineering in the name of Jaguar, marketed them and made them available for us to see
and hear and feel, if not to own!
Equally, there are ideas that I would like to remember and put into action if ever the opportunity were to arise.
This is one book that should definitely be in your Jaguar library, and being a softback available from Amazon at £7.99, or Kindle at £1.99 it is easily achievable by any
Jaguar enthusiast.
The remarkable thing is that it has been like reading the modern history of Jaguar through the eyes of a friend – the inside story of what we read in the press, written in a style that suggests that DM has a robust sense of humour and would take my comments on the chin.
Being critical, just as a prototype vehicle needs proving, the text could do with a good proof read before a second edition goes out, which I am sure is imminent if Amazon’s claim to have one copy left is correct?
All prices correct at the time of this articles print, August 2020.
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