3rd Oct 2004, 15:14

My brother in law has just put a Jaguar v12 in his Trans Am. It drives lovely and goes well; but sounds wrong. The engine should have stayed in a Jag.

29th Dec 2005, 19:30

I am truly heartbroken. The "mechanic" you went to was a sorry example. In my experience, only neglect will kill these engines. They are more durable than any other I can think of unless over-heated (due to cooling system neglect). Over-heat them (or any other aluminum engine) and you'll drop a valve seat or loose a head gasket, but certainly not the end of the world (sure, it's smack-you-up-side-the-head dumb...). These engines are completely conventional for the purpose of any engine work you would need done. I wish you had the benefit of more experience with this car before the failure. There is no "V-12 Boogyman". The XJS was designed around this great engine. The G.M. transmission is another story.

8th Nov 2011, 06:34

I love American V8 engines, but I would NEVER put one of them in a Jaguar XJS, or any other Jaguar for that matter. Usually those who lack knowledge or are cheap with their wallet get convinced that the problem is the V12, when in fact it is both mechanics and Jaguar owners that are the issue.

26th Mar 2013, 17:40

My 1984 Jag V12 is the coolest car I have ever owned. I love working on this car when needed. I do think there are only 368 that were made in the world. I wonder how many are left?

13th Sep 2013, 03:36

I just bought my 84 Jag XJS V12 5.3 HE, and love it. Sure it has some small quirks to work out, but nothing major. What gets me is the people who buy one, and then put the car down for some reason or another, but let's remember the time they were built. Think about it, some of the things that go wrong or go out, happen to other maker's cars.

4th Apr 2016, 09:37

How do you stop the engine leaks? I refurbished a '84 XJS HE at very high cost on 5 pages of detailed repairs. The engine never quit despite the previous owner's neglect. However, a suddenly exacerbated leak, and it seems to have thrown a rod. Undecided as to what to do with it, I've let it sit for more that 10 years, and the elements have eaten much of its remarkable, RARE BLACK head-spinning shine (actually, it seemed to have a deep layer of dark blue covered by a black that turned deep, dark blue the more you stared at it). The interior is like new. I've started restoring the paint, but I am undecided about what to do regarding the V12 ENGINE. Experienced suggestions? I don't enjoy being in cars or driving them. But I loved the suspended-above-the-pavement sensation and air (or space-like) speed of my XJS V12.

Thanks, Andrés.

6th Apr 2016, 22:18

In the USA the Chevrolet 350 is the perfect solution to any rear wheel drive European reliability nightmare, particularly Jaguars. Here in Thailand nearly all European car engines (front or rear wheel drive) are replaced by second-hand Toyota engines outsourced from Japan - not pleasant to drive like a torquey American V8, but they do work, which is of course the main thing.