Jaguar’s XJ6 was a phenomenon at launch, and this 4.2 is still glorious today.
The title above is not our own take on this 1971 Jaguar XJ6 4.2 Automatic, but is a quote from Car magazine at the model's launch. However, we must admit that we couldn't have put it better.
This beautiful Jaguar is a prime example of a classic car which is now so familiar that its impact when new is frequently taken for granted. However, back in 1969 Sir William Lyons stated that the XJ6 was ‘a car which it is the ambition of every keen motorist to own,’ and he was fully justified in this assessment. The reality now is that Jaguar's XJ6 ranks alongside the Morris Minor, the Mini and the E-Type as one for the few British cars to truly merit the term ‘iconic.’
The XJ6 made its bow on the 26th September 1968 at the Royal Lancaster Hotel on London's Bayswater Road. ‘ Ladies and Gentlemen, I should like to introduce to you my new car,’ Lyons proclaimed to the gathered journalists and dealers, all of whom greeted the latest Jaguar with acclaim. It further mesmerised visitors to the Earls Court Motor Show, and when looking at the Pathé News footage, it is easy to assume that the XJ6 was declared European Car of the Year in 1969. In fact, that honour went to the far more prosaic Peugeot 504, with the BMW E3 2500/ 2800 in second place and the Alfa Romeo 1750 Berlina in third.
However, when the British motoring press finally obtained test cars, they positively rhapsodised. Motor thought:
‘ As it stands at the moment, dynamically, it has no equal regardless of price, which explains those 12-months delivery quotes from dealers and black-market prices £1000 over list.' Autocar stated: ‘ If Jaguar were to double the price of the XJ6 and bill it as the best car in the world, we would be right behind them.' By 1970 Road & Track informed readers in the all-important US export market that the XJ6 was: ‘ Uncannily silent, gloriously swift and as safe as houses.'
The XJ6 can trace its origins to the 1950 MkVII, the Jaguar that redefined the British luxury saloon. By the end of the decade, Riley had lost all vestiges of independence, Armstrong-Siddeley was on the verge of ending its car production while Daimler was soon to be acquired by Jaguar.
In 1961 Jaguar introduced the utterly magnificent MkX with its vast unitary body and all-independent suspension, yet sales never quite achieved expectations. Keith Adams notes of the MkX in the indispensable www.aronline.co.uk that: ‘ Production peaked at 6572 in 1963, but collapsed dramatically to 2458 in 1964. The introduction of the 4.2-litre engine boosted production to 3296 in 1965, but declined again to 2023 in 1966.' By that time Jaguar faced an additional problem in that the Mk2, which had made its bow in 1959, was competing against the more up-to-the-minute Rover P6 and Triumph 2000. The Jaguar S-Type debuted in 1963 as an offering to bridge the gulf between the Mk2 and the MkX, but as the story goes, Lyons discerned a lack of interest in the new model at that year’s Motor Show.
He decided that Jaguar must do something quickly, and the immediate solution was the stop- gap 420, essentially the S-Type with a MkX-style nose and the 4235cc engine, which debuted in 1966. However, Jaguar’s main concern was Project XJ4, the model that would reinvigorate its saloon range. The bodywork, reminiscent of a smaller MkX, combined tradition with modernity, while power was from the 4.2-litre XK unit and a new 2.8-litre version for European customers. Jaguar also evaluated a V12 as early as 1964, but this engine would not be ready for the new car’s launch.
In July 1966 Jaguar merged with the British Motor Corporation to form British Motor Holdings, a move that ensured financial backing for the XJ4 and body supplies from Pressed Steel. By that time, Jaguar dealers faced the problem of an overly complicated saloon line-up. For the managing director there was the 420G (a facelifted MkX), the exquisite Daimler Majestic Major and the Daimler DR450. Entry level cars were the Mk2 in 2.4-litre, 3.4-litre and 3.8-litre forms plus the Daimler 2.5 V8, while the mid-range offerings consisted of the 3.4S and 3.8S, plus the new 420 and its more expensive Daimler Sovereign counterpart.
All were splendid motor cars, but aside from the 420G, they also bore design tropes that harked back to the 1955 2.4 Mk1 saloon. By contrast, the Mercedes- Benz W108-Series S- Class which debuted in 1965 was proving a significant competitor in Jaguar’s export territories. A further issue was the standard of quality at Browns Lane. In 2001 Donald Stokes, the former chairman of British Leyland, reflected: ‘ Bill Lyons was a marvellous chap, but the quality of Jaguars was so awful it was unbelievable.' Given the standards experienced by many a BL customer of the 1970s, this was an ironic remark. Yet Browns Lane’s quality control was a genuine issue,
Sir William Lyons said the XJ6 was ‘a car which it is the ambition of every keen motorist to own,’ and he was fully justified
especially when combined with the age of its model line-up.
When Car evaluated the Sovereign opposite the Rover P5B 3.5-litre Coupé in January 1968, they pulled no punches. ‘ We think that buyers of either car will feel they are getting value for money providing they continue to judge their purchases by British standards and British conditions,' they wrote. However, by world standards the writer discerned serious shortcomings and said: ‘ Our advice to both companies is to cut the gimmicks (and the prices) and get on with bringing these potential world-beaters up to date.' This, of course, was precisely what was underway at Browns Lane, and indeed at Rover HQ too, although their P9 project sadly never made it through to production.
Few 1960s British automotive titles were as outspoken as Car, but their test did highlight Jaguar’s urgent need for a new four- door model. When it arrived, the XJ6 allowed Jaguar to simplify its saloon car range significantly. Production of the 340, S-Type and 420 ceased, while the 240 and Daimlers 250 V8 and 420 Sovereign remained available until 1969. The 420G remained listed until 1970, and arguably would not be replaced until the 1972 debut of the long-wheelbase XJ12.
The suspension devised by chief engineer Bob Knight resulted in astounding road manners from the new XJ6, and Autocar thought its handling surpassed the E-Type. The first generation XJ6 was also one of the first large cars to debut under the auspices of the newly formed
British Leyland Motor Corporation. Even at the time of its launch, corporate in-fighting at BLMC anticipated a not entirely smooth future for one of the most important cars to bear the Jaguar badge, yet nothing could detract from the impact of the original XJ6.
Car stated: ‘ It is probably the best this nation can offer, and certainly among the best this nation has known in 75 years. years.' Meanwhile, the brochure urged customers to
‘ enter the private world of the Jaguar XJ6 XJ6’ where they would find an abundance of leather and timber plus an elaborate heating and ventilation system in place of the not very useful set-ups of earlier models. The fascia boasted the familiar layout of the MkX, but gone was the separate starter button. Some traditionalists mourned the lack of the leaping cat bonnet mascot, but it would not have complied with US safety regulations.
The range commenced with the 2.8 at £1797 and rose to
the 4.2-litre with Borg Warner Model 8 automatic transmission costing £2398. Autocar believed the XJ6 had no equal, regardless of price. Certainly in terms of British rivals, few potential XJ6 buyers would have looked at either the Ford Zodiac Executive MkIV or the Vauxhall Viscount, which were cars for spivs. Likewise, the Austin 3- Litre was unlikely to have found favour with the average Jaguar enthusiast – that was transport for the Town Clerk.
There was of course the Rover P5B, but that was a somewhat different form of vehicle – utterly sober and respectable rather than sporting, for all its Rostyle wheels. The saloon version piloted by Roger Moore in The Man Who Haunted Himself perfectly epitomised the Rover’s image. Meanwhile, for those considering a foreign marque, Volvo’s new 164 was tempting but more a car in the tradition of the recently demised Wolseley 6/110. As for the Citroën DS Pallas and the NSU Ro80, they both occupied their own quirky niches in the executive car market.
And so the Jaguar’s closest rivals, both at home and in the US export market, were the Mercedes- Benz S- Class and the latest BMW New Six. Both were almost impossibly exotic in Britain of the late 1960s. The BMW also cost £3245 in 2788cc form, while the equally splendid Mercedes 280SE required a very understanding bank manager at a list price of £3324.
By contrast, the XJ6 may have been expensive by 1968 standards, but it was far more attainable to the average solicitor or chartered accountant. The great L.J.K. Setright wrote in Car that the new Jaguar was ‘ not merely remarkable for what it is, but also because it renders superfluous all cars which cost more. I can think of no car of which this can be as truthfully said.' Motor simply titled their 1970 test of the 4.2 Automatic:
' Beat this, Europe.'
1969 saw the launches of the Daimler Sovereign 2.8 and 4.2, the cars for the discreet social climber. The Series II XJ, bearing raised bumpers to comply with American regulations, replaced the Series I in 1973.
Owner Vaughn High came by the Jaguar in our pictures in 1998. ‘It was ordered new from a Clacton- on-Sea outlet, and when I discovered it the XJ6 had been resting in a garage in that town for several years,' he said. Vaughn's initial foray into the world of classic cars had been with a Triumph TR6 followed by a Porsche 911, but he says: 'The moment I saw this XJ6, I became a Jaguar enthusiast.'
The XJ6 might have been residing in its lodgings for several years, but rather surprisingly it was not in a bad state of repair. ‘ The interior was in an original condition, although there were dents down one side from where the previous owner accessed his lawn mower,' recalled Vaughn. The Jaguar also sported an official factory vinyl roof, while Vaughn believes it was first painted in Sable. ‘I noticed that the XJ6 had undergone a very 1970s bare-metal re-spray,' he explained, 'but there was an inch of another colour visible at the bottom of the boot lid. My guess is that such was the demand at that time, the buyer took whatever he was given and had it repainted later.'
The XJ6 then underwent a rolling restoration that Vaughn describes as a labour of love. There were naturally challenges en route, such as the day the brake cylinder expired and deposited fluid over the driveway of a stately home... Over the years, the Jaguar has been treated to new brake discs all round and a dropped rear subframe. During the last-named modification, Vaughn took the opportunity to change the original tyres and rear suspension, also adding new shock absorbers fore and aft. The result is akin to driving a floating carpet – it must have been so different from virtually all other cars of its time. ‘I love the feel of the thin steering wheel and the fingertip control from the standard-fit power steering,' confides Vaughn. Possibly the only modification that he would like concerns the automatic gearbox as he reckons the Jaguar could do with another ratio to cope with modern traffic conditions. Otherwise, his Jaguar more than fulfils the brochure promise of being ‘ a saloon car setting new standards of comfort and luxury, road-holding and ride steering and braking, performance and safety.' Vaughn has noticed that the Series One has attracted more interest over recent years. ‘For shows, I have printed a board explaining its history which always attracts people, and yes, some of them do say “my dad had one of those”!' he laughs. 'The Jaguar has travelled all over Europe including to Le Mans, and it seems that people just have a joy in looking at the XJ6.'
Sir William himself could not have put it better. But perhaps the most apt summary for the XJ6 is that it was both the last Jaguar to bear Lyons’s stylistic influence, and the culmination of the company’s achievements to date. Today, Vaughn’s car truly embodies the famous slogan: ‘Grace. Space. Pace.'
Our thanks go to Vaughn High and JEC Essex Thameside (www.jecessexthameside.co.uk)
Vaughn had owned a Triumph TR6 followed by a Porsche 911, but says: 'The moment I saw this XJ6 I became a Jaguar enthusiast'