<HTML>David:
My gut reaction is to have the car shipped. You're not familiar with the car, so attempting a long trip would seem to be risky.
I would hope that your Dad started it up more than a couple of times a year. Most would consider a once-a-month routine to be preferable. Also, just starting it up is not enough, one should drive it for a few miles, get it fully warmed up, see to it that the lubricant gets around the gears in the transmission, that sort of thing. Also, the brakes need to be used or seals will bind up.
There is no hard and fast rule for waking up a car like your E-Type, but this is what I would do.
1) Replace all fluids, including the engine oil, and transmission and differential fluids.
2) Unless you know the contents are fresh, (less than six months old) I would drain the fuel tank. Gas that sits for a long period of time does strange things, like turn to varnish, etc. This is another reason driving the car at least few miles is preferable; the fuel does not get a chance to settle.
3) Replace the fuel and engine oil filters.
4) Replace the engine coolant.
5) Unless you know that it has been changed recently, I would replace the brake fluid.
You should consider turning the car over to a E-Type specialist. A good one could evaluate it, perform the various tasks mentioned above and recommend others. You would then start your ownership experience from a more confident point.
-Paul Pollock
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