The DRIVETRIBE Jaguar XKR Now has a Stick

By John Coyle - December 9, 2022

In this update, we get answers to a couple of big questions about DRIVETRIBE’s bargain-priced Jaguar XKR.

Normally, I like to spread out updates on the YouTube project videos. But the first update on the DRIVETRIBE Jaguar XKR is just too cool not to share. If you’re not a goldfish, you might remember that the Mike Fernie and company bought the cheapest XKR they could find, with the intention of swapping in a manual gearbox. Well, the supercharged Jaguar now sports three pedals, and we got some answers to a couple of questions the first installment left dangling.

As you’ll recall, this car was purchased from Japan, with the goal of scoring a rust-free body. And while the time in the Land of the Rising Sun did leave Jaguar with an encouraging lack of oxidation, there was something curious about its setup. Specifically, this example was a left-hand drive model, not a right-hand drive like you’d expect from a Japanese version. Given all the hoops and expense involved in getting a car across the ocean, that’s more than a little intriguing.

Well, thanks to VIN-tracking service CarVertical, Fernie now has a good theory on what happened here. As it turns out, the Jaguar was originally shipped to America, and then, it made the trip to Japan. Since U.S. service members can ship their personal cars to their duty station, it’s more than likely this machine was owned by a soldier or sailor. It also means that over the course of its life, this baby has pulled a Magellan and circumnavigated the globe. How cool is that?

Another question that got answered, which I found even more interesting, was exactly which manual gearbox the lads were planning on using for the conversion. Because Coventry never offered the XKR with a proper stick.

As it turns out, the unit they’ve tapped is the six-speed ZF S6-53 out of a S-Type diesel. It’s not exactly a direct bolt-in deal, and requires a custom pedal box from Swallows Racing, but it looks to be a fairly straightforward deal. Better still, the old box robbed the engine of around 70 horsepower, so the difference in performance should be dramatic. Watch the video below to see the whole process happen!

Photos: Jaguar