IS Mk2 REALLY THE BEST JAGUAR?
Everyone wants a Mk2, but others, such as the S-type, are actually better to drive – and much cheaper
‘You’ll pay a third less for an S-type’
While it’s easy to be seduced by the Mk2, Jaguar’s 1960s saloon offerings extended way beyond that model, as the XJ6’s 50th anniversary highlighted.
The Mk2’s charms have been well documented down the years, but it’s only more recently that other models – the S-type, 420, MkX/420G and the XJ6 – have been enjoying the same amount of attention.
Yet breaking away from the Mk2 can yield a better car, at less cost. More people now realise that, just as when it was new, an S-type was a better car than the Mk2, especially regarding handling, although others feel its looks aren’t quite as captivating as the Mk2’s.
Appreciably rarer than the S-type is the 420, which took the S-type’s bodyshell and added a front aping that of the MkX/420G, but a short production run means that they are few and far between.
Completely unmissable is the MkX/420G, Jaguar’s attempt to take on the American market but with not entirely successful results. The X’s bulk, plus the fact that UK buyers didn’t quite understand what was a thoroughly accomplished car, meant sluggish sales, although it was available for a short time alongside the recentlylaunched XJ6.
So what price to take the non-Mk2 route? As with the Mk2, prices vary wildly with conditions, but bargains or sensibly-priced cars are available.
October’s sales reveal a very good, part-complete 420G project at Barons, which sold for £7150 – by comparison, the day before SWVA’s needing-everything 1963 3.8 project cost £4644.
SWVA also sold a good, ex- South African S-type 3.4 for £10,908 while for those wanting something a tad later, a one-owner 1970 XJ6 4.2 was excellent value at £5940.
Barons delivered the goods in September with a pair of MkXs. A reasonable-order project car was bought for £10,890 while a very smart, on-the-button 1963 model
was £10,560. And, according to Barons’ Peter Gascoigne, those non-Mk2 models make great sense. He says: ‘Can’t afford a Jaguar Mk2? Don’t worry – there are alternatives. The S-type and the 420 are actually better cars. Both of these cars come with independent rear suspension, so handle and ride far better. The heating system is better, ( just), and the levels of trim are just as nice as the Mk2’s.
‘Like for like, you’ll pay a third less for an S-type, and half as much for a 420. Best of the bunch? A manual overdrive 420.’