The Packard thread had a lot of good info but in an attempt to not hijack it further I figured it would make sense to start a thread for the affordable Jaguar V12. And for sh*ts and giggles, a Jag V12 Miata. http://www.autofiends.com/2008/12/v12-miata/
I Dont know why alot more people havent done this. Ive seen complete running jags on craigslist for 3000 and under.
a little search would have spared us seeing that damn Miata again... http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=447299 http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=359073 http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=320252
I was just looking for a V12 pic, I did not want the conversation to focus on it. A lot of good info about Jag V12s is in the Packard thread so those wanting more info on it may have a hard time finding it in a search.
Jag V12s are bulletproof, narrow and easy to work on. The plugs are in the middle of the vee, solving packaging issues. Guidelines: If you want a carbureted motor, look for a pre-HE motor. These motors had flat cylinder heads and dished pistons. These are the oldest Jag V12s and are not as easy to find in the US. If you are OK with an injected motor, get yourself an HE. These have lean-burn, high velocity combustion chambers (GM copied this design with their Vortec motors) and flat pistons. CR is up north of 11:1, IIRC, depending on which model. The early HE 12s with the Lucas ignition are the easiest to work with, injection and all. The Lucas ignition module, for example, has a plain old GM HEI module hidden inside a fancy $125 case. The next round of HE V12 motors, with the Marelli ignition, are junk simply because of the Marelli ignition. Unless you like starting things on fire - like your car. Plenty of information on the care and feeding of a Marelli ignition abound on the web. Note: this is the first Jag V12 with a crank sensor. The last round of V12 motors came with a Nippondenso ignition; I believe these were distributor-less. Also from memory, and I might be mistaken, the pre-HE and Lucas HE motors were 5.3 liters, or a good old 'murrican 326 cu in. The Marelli and Nippondenso motors were 6 liters. These are over-square motors with a big bore and a short stroke. You can regrind the crank for more stroke if your crankshaft guy can grind through the nitriding (these are the hardest stock cranks you will ever find). You can also get crazy large with the bore by installing oversize liners - the steel liners are a hand press fit in the block, sealed with RTV, and clamped in place by the heads. Even with all of the good there are some strange things about these engines - like stock oil coolers that only cool the oil when the motor is cold - (US models) - I kid you not - so check the XJ-S book available at many places on the Internet, including the Jag-Lovers site.
i have a jag-v-12 with 6 webbers to go in my 1934 reo boattail i wiil post pics of the boattail in afew days i lovecars that are different
Here are some pictures of the twin-Whipple supercharged Jag V12 my friend built some years back. His car - an XJ-S - received much well-deserved notoriety. Unfortunately, he passed and I am not sure what happened to the car. It was rumored to have been on eBay at one point. A lot of money was spent on this engine and car. I am one of the few people lucky enough to have driven it and it was awesome.
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