Offered here is a 1963 Jaguar Mark II on Craigslist near Portland, Oregon that looks ready to cruise down the road tomorrow, as long as you’re not too much of a stickler for originality. The owner wants $10,999 or best offer. Thanks for the submission, Curvette!
The car came with Jaguar’s famous 220-horsepower twin-cam XK engine. Now it’s got a Chevrolet-sourced inline six—not exactly a barn burner, as I recall from my bitchin’ red ’62 Chevy Nova convertible with the same motor. This power plant looks snazzy with a chromed valve cover, but the owner is stingy with details. We are told only, “All necessary lights work, recent brake and engine work make this a fun car to cruise around.”
The other main departure from stock on this car is the cloth seats (on the original frames, I think). I believe leather or vinyl (on the budget 2.4-liter version) was the default on these cars. Still, the old armchairs look nice. The Jaguar otherwise looks very together, with shiny black paint (albeit orange peeled), polished wire wheels with wide whites, and a nicely refinished dashboard—which must have been expensive to do.
Chevrolet engine transplants were common in Jaguars, both the Mark II and the E-Type, back in the day. I remember a neighbor with a moldering GM-powered yellow E-Type coupe in the shade of an old oak. I probably could have bought it for pennies. A V-8 swap is more common, but these sixes are plentiful.
The Mark II was built from 1959 to 1967, and was the company’s most successful car up to that point. Production was 83,701. There were 27,848 3-8-liter versions, capable of 125 mph and zero to 50 mph in 6.4 seconds. In addition, there were 2.4- and 3.4-liter iterations. Wire wheels and a four-speed with overdrive were optional on the Mark II.
The Mark II was visually similar to the earlier Mark I, but much improved, with a wider rear track, re-engineered front suspension geometry, four-wheel disc brakes, and a limited-slip differential in 3.8-liter form. If I’m reading the tail badge correctly, this was a 3.8-liter automatic car. It’s still an automatic, the ad says, with a floor shifter. In 1967, the Mark II became the 240 or the 340, with mild styling differences (slimmer bumpers, for example). Leather was now an option; Ambla was standard. The XJ6 was just around the corner.
All that aside, we have a beautiful Mark II in front of us, from the height of production. These cars are notoriously expensive to restore, largely because of the interior refurbishment. This car doesn’t need any immediate work, as far as can be told from the terse writeup. Classic.com puts the 1963 Mark II at $36,302, but you have to dock this car for the incorrect engine and upholstery—even if it works just fine in this configuration. I’d say it’s something of a bargain, even as the values of ‘60s cars point downward.
It would be a lot more fun with a stick….. the Chevy motor certainly is more reliable as a driver!