Engine swaps again!
I found such an example at the local --- believe it or not --- Toyota
dealership here in Wallingford. The VICTIM this time is a 1959 Jaguar
Mark VIII (actually it could be a Mark IX -- more later).
I noticed it on Thanksgiving Day actually. It was beautiful. It looked
like it had been completely restored. The leather and wood interior was
fabulous! There was something strange about the custom paint scheme though.
The car was basically cream coloured, but the bonnet, boot lid and rear wheel
arch covers (or skirts, if you like) were all painted maroon. It was
quite effective, but to my trained eye :-) not original. The wheels were not
original either. Instead of the painted steel ones that should match the
original two-tone paint scheme, someone had put on those wheels that
remind you of apple pie crusts found on E-Types and XJ12s from the 1970s.
Even with these "modifications" the car still looked nice.
Later checking my "Illustrated Jaguars Buying Guide" I discovered that
they had not replaced the old rub strip that separated the two colours
on the original two-tone scheme. The original scheme was to have the
car basically all one colour except for a second colour below a chrome
rub strip that curved from just above the front wheel arch across just
below the door windows down to the wheel well, then sharply down again
across the bottom of the wheel covers.
When I inspected the car (no salesslime on Thanksgiving Day!) there was
no sales ticket on it. For all I knew it was on display. At a Toyota
dealership though????
But later I found it in the local Bargain News photo section:
"1959 Jaguar. Completely reconditioned. Powered by Chevy 454 Big Block.
Must see. $14,995..."
Its not a Jaguar anymore, its a DAMN CHEVY!!!!! I don't think I'd be
interested in it at half the price now (even if I could have afforded it)!
Mark VIII or Mark IX? Well, apparently its very difficult to tell the
difference and according to my book can only be verified through research
of engine serial numbers. The Mark VIII had a 3442cc dohc in-line
6-cylinder XK engine. In 1959, Jaguar plopped in the 3781cc (3.8 Litre)
version previously fitted to XK 150s and XK 150Ss and called it a Mark IX.
Since its being advertised as a 1959 it probably is a Mark IX. But the
old XK 150 engine has gone. Now its a bloody Chevy!
I don't know what the market values of Mark VIIIs and Mark XIs are now,
but I wonder if this car is a bargain to an enthusiast who would like to
buy it and plop an original Jaguar engine back in place (and also restore
the original paint scheme and wheels!).
Morale to this story: BEWARE OF NON-ORIGINAL ENGINE SWAPS!!!!
A beautiful old British car ruined!
Bah Humbug! :-)
Garry Archer Esq. {yale, uunet}!hsi!archer -OR- archer@hsi.com
3M Health Information Systems, Wallingford, Connecticut, U.S.A.
"An Englishman never enjoys himself, except for a noble purpose." - A.P.Herbert
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