This car has rusted floors, some body rust and needs too much body work for me to do. It was my first Jag.

Engine is a custom made 383 by local reputable shop with dyno papers, 700R by Jet Performance. Both have less than 15K and the exhaust was
done completely a few years back. Interior is good and car is drivable with CA non op registration.

Asking $3000.00 as the motor cost 4K and the trans 2K and the exhaust 1K, let alone all the other stuff...parts are there to convert your Jaguar.

Check out the pictures at: http://tinyurl.com/bknsmvw

 

This is not my car, I can't buy yours and fix this one. The owner needs cash, I don't need another project, and my wife wants it gone! Even If I did an engine swap, I would do a Tuned-Port and a 700R4 or an LS/4L60E. Thanks for your response. Looks like this one is destined for the scrapper. Anybody need any specific parts?

 

Mark,

I am late to this party, but I will give you my $0.02 anyway, if you hope to sell it (or nearly any car, really):

1.) Clean it up as much as possible.
2.) Make it run off of at least one of the original tanks
3.) Some time, a small wire brush, and some dielectric grease will resolve nearly all of your electrical issues.
4.) The more you do, the less the buyer has to do, the more people potentially interested, and the more money you can potentially get.
5.) Contact a local club to see if anyone is interested.

Tom

 

Thank you for your post. I could do all of that, but I don't think that it will help. From what I have gathered here and looking around, these cars are practically worthless unless they are already fixed up and somebody else takes the hit. There is nobody that buys these in the shape mine is in and fixes them to make a profit. I thought being a '74 might help because of no emissions. I thought the XJ6 was considered a "better" car than a XJ12. I thought that this one having virtually no rust and never wrecked would be worth SOMETHING more than scrap. As I have said before, I know American cars. Jaguars are new to me. You can't buy any complete running driving no rust never hit '74 American car or truck for $900. I started all this just trying to be sure I didn't cut up a valuable "survivor" car. I have since learned there is no such thing. I have dealt with empty promises, sob stories, scammers, and outright liars in my quest to find this car a home and help out a friend. It is a shame, but next weekend I will start the process of breaking it down for scrap. I will save the fuel pumps, transmission, hood, and rear IRS, but the rest as far as I can tell-and nodody has corrected me-is worthless as parts. From what is left, I will mine for copper, brass, and aluminum. Are engine parts worth anything? Carburetors? Bumpers? Trim? Wheels?

Thank you for your advice.

 

my previous offer still stands.

 

$425 is an insult. From what I can tell, it weighs around #3900 lbs. Shredder scrap values at the local crusher are around $12/100 this week so if I just take it in and do nothing I can get $468. If I pull the radiator, heater core, condensor, and evaporator I can probably get another $100 or more in brass/copper scrap without much work or affecting the weight. If I pulled the rear suspension first, I will reduce the weight some-say 350 lbs. That puts me at $426 +$100 + $400 for the rear (also a Chevy TH400 transmission core is at least $75 and I'll bet a nice hood will sell at some point, fuel pumps, exhaust tips, and dash cluster too). If I crush it now and keep the suspension, trans, hood, etc. I make more than you are offering and I have parts for later to sell. I can't see selling it for any less than $900. I know there is value of a whole car and that it is often less than sum of parts, and I know that people sell for less than easy raw scrap value, but I can't. I work within 2 miles of a crusher so that part is easy. Next weekend it is coming apart unless some white knight steps in to save it. I will never deal with one of these again.

 

Mark: Don't think of the $425 as an insult. Of course parting it out and scrapping the rest will bring more money, but sometimes people prefer not to do that, hence the offer. Do keep in mind that the car does not have a TH400 in it, and even if it did, it would have a Jaguar-specific case that only fits the later Jag V12s. That won't affect your math much, but hopefully you can avoid that little surprise.

Also, don't swear off XJ6s, just swear off the ones that need lots of work. Find one that has been loved and cared for and you'll have a nice car for little cash. The downside of low values comes when selling (as you are doing), but don't forget that it's a bonus when buying! Heck, there's a nice-looking 1972 on your local Craigslist (1972 jaguar xj6) for $2,000. If it's half as nice as it looks, that's one hell of a lot of style for VERY little cash. If I didn't have my own, I would be speaking with the seller already!

Tom

 

bump

 

Mark Scotton: For the good of the Jaguar community, please refrain from that sort of Vitriol. That last post was out of line and gives a bad name to the community as a whole.

Last I checked, caring about your own financial well being over the well-being of an old automobile, especially one that is anything but rare, is not evil, selfish, greedy, or money-grubbing. Sure, we'd all like to the the car restored and back on the road, but if the seller decides to part it out, it's his car, and it's still a free country, so stop vilifying him for being smart with his own money.

As for the "crappy American made junk" comment, I'm tempted to just ignore it given what an obviously ill-informed opinion it is, but given British Leyland's reputation for (lack of) build quality and reliability, perhaps you wish to reconsider?

Personally, I think an apology is in order.

Tom

 

Tom, I deleted my post. But I was only sharing how I truly feel. Series II cars are next to impossible to find now. And this one has no rust. So, its my opinion that crushing this is a crime. But then again I have a passion for these cars that few share. I am a TRUE Jag lover! Anyway, at least put it on Ebay first. That way a bigger audience then the local one can try and buy the car.

 

I understand, Mark, it is indeed a shame that this car cannot be preserved. However, getting angry at another enthusiast because they got stuck with the short end of the financial stick is not cool.

eBay is a good idea, but the fact remains that Jag buyers are thin on the ground in TN, and transportation costs will make it difficult for buyers to pony up more than has already been offered for the car.

 

I agree with you Tom. Thats why I got upset at what I feel is greed. It would not hurt him to do the right thing and let the car go for a fair price. But all he seems to care about is making alot of money on the deal. He has no care for the car. Or how few of those there are. And I find that selfish. He is used to dealing with american cars. Of which there are thousands. So, to lose one would not be a big deal. I dont feel from his posts that this is a case of I cant feed my family so I must get ever dime out of this. Its more like I want money. And I dont care how I get it.

 

Mark: it's pretty easy to spend other people's money, isn't it? How do you know it wouldn't hurt him to do "the right thing"?

 

With the car not running and in "a bit worn" condition, $425 is about right. Cosmetics are worth a ton on these cars. I recently bought a rusty non running 1986 for its mint interior and paid $600 for it. I got $375 for the rest of it at the junkyard. I've passed on running cars with beaten interiors and rough bodies for $500.

That all said, selling locally for $500 shouldn't be to much trouble. Just takes the right person. Yup, its less that you'd get if you parted and scrapped it but at least the car stays whole and someone can get it back on the road.

As a side note, that 1972 looks fantastic. If that was within 500 miles of me that would be in my driveway. Also, I wouldn't be elbows deep in project right now. Another bonus (I think).

 

I would like to point out that I feel that I have tried as hard as I know how to do the right thing for this car. I have held this car trying to find a legit buyer since September. I have been scammed, lied to, strung along, and made my wife unhappy, and for what? I did run it on Ebay and someone bid on it and pulled the bid the last day. I ran it again and it sold to a guy in S. Florida who thought he could move it there for free so he backed out after a week of dodged calls and lies. So I am out $100 on Ebay. Then I found a local guy who seemed to truly care about the car. He promised to buy it if I would only hold it until February when he had money coming in. We talked and exchanged emails. He would answer right away. Checked again in December-yes all is good. Now when it's time-NOTHING! Won't return calls or emails. So I put it on Craigslist, I figure a national audience on Ebay is not the right thing. First day I get not 1 but 2 scammers with, when you boil it all down, "send me your PayPal address and I'll send someone for the car. I don't have time to call you or come see it". Yea, right. Does anybody really fall for that? Had a local guy that was interested a little, but his mother who he was looking for a car for did not like this one. And then nothing. So here I am with a car that I have tried to save with an owner who needs money. I am out over $100 in real money and a lot of time and energy. That is the bottom line. You can call me greedy or whatever you want, but I just want to get this thing out of my yard. If you can buy comperable cars for $400-500, then I guess you can. I personally cannot see how you will find anything from the 60s or 70s with no rust, and never hit, that runs for that-but maybe so. My point of reference on this car was I sold his other Jaguar-the '76 XJ12 with "Fred Finstone" floor, not running, lost key, lots of rust for $600. All my life I have been told that the XJ12s had issues, stay away-but the XJ6 was a much better car, they are worth something. But today, I do not think that is true. The last $475 that nobody wants to pay would be overriden with the first body panel and paint or first floorpan repair of a rusty car or wreck. You can call me greedy and selfish if you want, you can say that I don't care about saving this one, but that is NOT the way I see it. If I held out for $2000 that would be greedy. All I want is fast scrap value. All I want is to help my friend. I don't think $900 is a "lot of money". And by the way I am not getting much of it-my needy friend is. Do you think it is greedy and selfish to make maybe $200 when the smoke clears for all the legwork I have done and all the grief I have taken from my wife? I am not hitting a home-run here guys. I don't think that $900 is an unfair price. I might point out that someone could buy it and take what they want and still come out ahead on scrapping it. I am backed into a corner and I have to get out soon. The car cannot go back where it was and it can't stay where it is now. Something has to give. Thank you for letting me clarify.

 

This one is an XJ6, not an XJ12. I thought that the XJ6 in this era had GM TH400 transmission with a Chevy bolt pattern? I thought that is why it was so popular to put Chevy small blocks in there. I will admit, I have not looked that closely at it, but thought that was true. What kind of transmission is it? Is it worth saving? Thank you for your insight.

 

The trans in your car is a Borg Warner Model 66. Jag specific case and probably not worth the effort of pulling.

 

OK, thank you. Big chunk of aluminum scrap though.

 

Well, I sure am glad it is on the other side of the country and as such not a temptation to me. The prescence of the garden hose seems to indicate the photo's are of a wet car. they all look better that way. Don't take offence, merely an observation.

It doesn't seem that a polish job will do much to restore that finish, ie paint job needed. And, interior restoration isn't cheap.

Oh, for safety, four hundred bucks minimum for a set of tires.

So, how much labor and money will it take to make a $1500 driver out of this neglected jewel?

And, in your scraping calculations, do you work for free in pulling what you hope will sell?

When, I lumped my car, I had a lot of stuff left over. Guess what, I still do!!
No one wanted the engine and trans. The engine was a mere core at best, but the trands was a good one. No takers. I gave them away to keep peace in the homestead.

And, a stripped carcass, even if a roller isn't gonna attract much in scrap. Mebbe a free haul.

Perhaps lister David Boger might take it off your hands? I know he can evaluate it as a parts car.

Restoration to driver level or better is a labor of love. Bucks don't count. Been there, oh so many times!!!

 

Johnny is right: the transmission is a three-speed Borg-warner, similar to those used in many foreign cars of the era, and derived from transmissions originally equipped to Studebakers, IIRC. I am far from a Jaguar expert, so I do not know when the Model 12 that was fitted to Series I cars was supplanted by the 66. Perhaps with the series II cars? Either way, it isn't very relevant to your situation.

For future reference, the THM400 did not appear in Jaguars until the later '70s (according to Wikipedia, that bastion of accuracy), and when they did they were only fitted to the V-12s. In addition, they had Jaguar-specific cases that will neither bolt to a Chevy engine nor an earlier Jaguar V-12.

Now, as to why the Chevy transplants are so popular with these cars, you've got me stumped. The most frequent reason given is "to improve reliability", which sounds good, given Jaguar's reputation, but since the XK engine is probably the MOST reliable part in the entire car, it rings hollow to me. Personally, I liken it to three things:

1. Familiarity: Just as people fit Weber carbs to MGBs because dual-SUs seem exotic and complicated compared to what they know, most Americans know and love the SBC and are somewhat perplexed by the XK engine and its dual carbs and/or injection-system. When something breaks on an XK they will need to learn something new, and they expect hard-to-find and expensive parts. Conversely, if something breaks on the SBC, they already know what to do, and when they need parts, they are cheap and plentiful, and if the parts store is closed, they can just take what they need off of their pickup for the time being.
2. The "Cobra Effect": Ever since the Cobra hit the streets, dropping an American V8 into a British car has a certain "cool-factor" to it. I know lots of people that wouldn't bat an eye at an XJ6 until you told them that it has a Chevy V8 in it, but once you did they'd be begging to inspect every last inch of it, oohing and aahing.
3. Performance. The SBC can provide a lot of oomph that the XK cannot, especially the modern injected versions.

In the end, it's a matter of taste, and at least as long as XK-engined Jaguars remain cheap and plentiful (they made somewhere near 300,000 of them, after all!), the Chevy conversions will remain popular. In the end, I think it's safe to say that many of the "lumped" XJ6s out on the road today would have been scrapped long-ago if not for the fact that someone fell in love with the idea of an SBC swap.

To get back on-topic, the transmission is unlikely to be of any value to you, or anyone else for that matter.

Tom