Reasons to avoid an XJS??

My take; sometimes it's nice to just get into a car and have it work. I'm not a numbers guy but I'm having a hard time thinking of what an XJ-S might do better on paper than the SC. Unless "get cheap" is being considered, which I guess might be happening with the crowd here.

I've never owned either, and never will, although I will admit that physically the XJ-S is a prettier thing to look at vs. the 90's Japanese jellybean look of the SC. Otherwise, I think I'd have an SC300 in some light color. Like red.

Sorry to derail the thread a little.

I still think that the XJS, with the Euro lights and bumpers, is one of the most attractive cars introduced in the 1970s.

I asked Mguar about this topic. He said there was a lot of GM parts compatibility including with the trannies.

The XJS uses a different bellhousing than the standard TH400. However, the internals are the same. There are companies that sell swap kits for big dollars but I imagine that there are the standard adapter plates available and I can scrounge everything else.

Why did mguar get the ban hammer?

the heart of this cars are pretty hard to blow up. i have never seen one knocking or a rod out the side and the transmission the same but any good tranny man can do one. the fuel management is pretty dam good too most of the time its in the wiring bad grounds, connectors, if anyone has spent anytime around the xj6 or xjs they are very well built cars. things like switches and the wiring itself is the bad. one of the most undervalued cars out there

In reply to cutter67:

Sweet, I can deal with that and like the way that is heading. However, I will need to track down a pre-HE motor if I do nab one as the HE heads cap power pretty quickly.

93EXCivic wrote: In reply to pres589: Cause the Lexus is ugly and stupid.

Your opinion is wrong.

Just kidding, it is a lot uglier than an XJS, but an XJS is a hell of a good looking car. I don't think an SC is ugly or stupid, just not as amazing as one of Jaguar's most iconic designs, and I'm okay with that. I would rather look at an XJS but would rather own an SC.

I owned an '88 and DD'd it for several years. Do a search and you can find my comments.

cutter67 wrote: , if anyone has spent anytime around the xj6 or xjs they are very well built cars.....

I've heard a lot of things about older Jags, but that's the first time I've heard that.

Still want one though...

"I'm a cheapskate.. My current XJ-S was a freebee from a junkyard.. (I just gave him the same weight of scrap) however they can be purchased really reasonable especially if not running.. (don't worry about that) an upper purchase price of $1000 and personally It would need to be really great to pay that much..

The great thing is a V12 is just three 4cylinders or 1&1/2 V8's Nothing at all exotic. except it's so darn well built.. (The important stuff not the luxury stuff). The best ones are made between 1975& 1980 but they are rather thin on the ground.. less than 15,000 made and sold world wide.. compared to the later HE V12's which they made over 77,000. California is where you want to go shopping. Rust free and the expense of meeting pollution laws turns some really low mileage ones into junk.. Parts wise sedan parts are almost all a bolt in and they made a whole pot full of those. So while a V12 sounds rare and exotic the parts are anything but.

As a combination use the early cylinder heads (they bolt right on) on a 93 or later 6.0 Gotta use different pistons though.

It will be relatively cheap to make 400 horsepower with that package and 700+ horsepower is available if you get greedy..

Best performance improvement? Gut the car.. stock it weighs 4200+ pounds You can get it down to about 3200 pounds easily enough. Next replace the automatic with a manual (4-5-6 speed) and while you're at it go to Corvette swap meets and buy some big rims. Stock the Jag has 15x6. You should be able with a minimum amount of work use a 18x8 and with more work use a 18x10 Just make sure the windows in the wheel are as big as possible.. (brake cooling)

A 400 horsepower Jaguar with a 5 speed, at 3200 pounds& 18x8 inch rims will be pretty darn fast and you should have less than $5000 in it..

Plus you just have to hear that V12 scream when it's unmuffled.. Oh and the idle will confuse you. Listening to it you'll swear it's at 1500rpm but the tach will be around 600 rpm.. That's because unlike a V8 it doesn't have cylinders firing on top of cylinders (which gives it the Burble) each firing pulse is 30 degree apart from the next.. "

"They only made 1275 in 1975 (that's what I have) Corvette uses 4&3/4 inch bolt pattern same as Camaro and a whole bunch of GM cars.. (plus big BMW's) Transmissions while not exactly bolt in are pretty darn easy.. depending on the year engine block You can use a Chevy scattershield Drilled out to the Jaguar bolt pattern. (The alignment bosses are Chevy size) and then after you bore out a Jaguar thrust bearing to the pilot hole size double check that it's not too far in. You might need to space it back a bit.. You will need a aluminum flywheel and pressure plate.. Just buy the clutch plate to fit the splines on the transmission..

Suspension is relatively easy.. If you've got it down to around 3200 pounds stock will be OK once you replace the rubber bushings with urethane.. (there is a whole lot more you can do but let's not overwhelm you)..

The brakes,well if in good shape are OK.. However Wilwood makes racing calipers that will bolt right on.. If you want to you can go crazy with brakes.. Right up to state of the art NASCAR brakes.. but the cheapest Wilwood brakes only weigh a few pounds compared to the 930 pounds the stock Iron ones seem to weigh.. There are tricks to this but just ask I'll walk you through them.. "

This was what was shared with me

93EXCivic wrote: In reply to wlkelley3: I thought he pulled it off the road because it was dumping oil all over the front brakes and it was only running on 10 cylinders.

Combo of all the above. The 10 cylinder engine and front brakes were just the last straw.

Had one loaned to me for a weekend. Dayum that V12 rumble is addicting. Dash lights on the one I drove sucked. Drove it home from my buddy's shop after dark and had to guess how fast I was driving.

I owned and daily drove an "84 XJS H.E. for a while. I had problems, but not with the drivetrain, it was all the ancillary systems such as the air conditioning, power windows, etc, etc. Another problem is that they're ridiculously heavy. I know that the cooling system must be kept tip-top as well.

I'd like to own another, but only as a gutted track car, so I wouldn't have to deal with any of the ancillaries. I don't have the info handy, but there is a company that sells a bellhousing for around $500 that lets you adapt a Mustang T-5 to the V-12. As far as a Chevy conversion, why bother, if you want a chevy get a Camaro.

In reply to Jaynen:

Wow! Good info. When, not if, I get an xjs I will be hitting you up. Now I just need to ditch some current toys.

Damn you all for bringing this up. I open CL and what is the first thing to appear?

http://austin.craigslist.org/cto/3481476340.html

singleslammer wrote: In reply to Jaynen: Wow! Good info. When, not if, I get an xjs I will be hitting you up. Now I just need to ditch some current toys.

Can't take credit that info was in email thread with Mguar I believe