The S-Type was a 4-door sedan (aka “saloon”) built by Jaguar Cars in England between 1963 and 1968. An extension of the earlier Mark 2, it had more amenities than its predecessor. Initially available with a 3.4-liter inline-6, the seller’s car has the 3.8-liter which was sold in all U.S. models. From Mountlake Terrace, Washington, this Jaguar has been parked for more than 10 years and is being sold out of an estate. It’s available here on craigslist for $7,250. Hats off to T.J. for this hideaway tip!
Jaguar was pleased with the public’s response to the S-Type, producing just shy of 25,000 of them in six years. The 1964 model year was the car’s second-best outing with the seller’s unit being one of 7,000 or so to leave the factory. The S-Type was replaced in 1968 by the larger XJ6. We don’t know how long this car has been in the family, but it hasn’t moved in a decade, possibly due to a bad sending unit in one of the fuel tanks.
In recent years, this S-Type has been used as a storage container with items inside, on top of, and all around the car. The body looks good enough, but the dark green paint (British Racing Green?) looks to have seen better days. We’re told the interior is in pieces, but the seller has a whole new interior to go with the car to help with its restoration. If you’re a fan of British automobiles but don’t want a sports car, is this a project you’d like to entertain?
It’s either this or a used Mini Cooper S – wonder what my wife will say?
Yeah, I know…
Strangely, these get no love comparatively to the Mark II yet they offered many enhancements over the MkII. This one looks like all the parts are still intact. Likely a very easy restoratiin. The big question is the new interior. If it is leather its worth $5K by itself. If they cheaped out and bought vinyl, $0.
The rear end styling was a compromise to differentiate it from the much sexier Mk II. The S never got the largest 4.2 engine. Most were automatics. It weighed a good 500lbs more than the Mk II. Finally, the Mk II was a successful saloon racer, the S was not. Where the S was sedate, the Mk II was sporty.
It is interesting how the differences in design redound to the price today.
Yes, styling wise this was always a slightly uncomfortable mish-mash between the old-school snub-nosed front end style of the Mk II and the more stretched out rear end of the X-type…either style was worthy enough on its own, but they never looked quite right combined on one car? Personally, I always thought the later 1966-69 Jaguar 420 and its badge-engineered Daimler Sovereign clone got the front/rear styling much more harmoniously balanced.
What is not mentioned in the write-up above – and is the most significant point about the development of the S-type over the Mk II – was that it had the Jaguar independent rear suspension as introduced in the E-type and X-type back in 1961 (albeit a scaled down version to fit the slightly smaller car). That IRS was the way forward for Jaguar and appeared in pretty much all their cars, right on into the 1990s.
So, while the S-type might appear like a slightly oddly styled Mk II, and was not a particularly popular or long-loved model, it was a significant evolutionary step along the way to the extremely successful XJ6 in 1968.
This is the best bad idea I’ve seen in a long time.
If I was closer…
I have the Matchbox version and that will have to do. Not my cup of tea but this one appears rather promising. I hope it finds a British lover to bring it back.
A friend fo mine had one of these in the 60’s and I always like the way it looked and drove. I would have liked it better if it had a manual trans. It would have been much more fun. Does anyone know if they offered a manual trans back then in the US? I never saw one. Very classic lines. By the picture, I can never understand why people don’t take better copy and post. Who wants to see garbage and old boxes in the picture. This is America and everything is about looks. I’ve sold many cars and you get much more when the car is at least clean and not cluttered. I guess people just can’t be bothered!!
Yes, they offered a manual but it was a very rare choice.
vintage lawn chair sold separately…lol
Yes they offered a 4 spd manual or a 4 spd manual with overdrive.
So…Not driven in ten years because of an in-op fuel guage?
I would have been amazed if it DID work. Hopefully someone will sort thsi nice classic and enjoy diriving with or without a working fuel guage. Good luck
The problem is either the switch or selector valve. I ve seen more perfectly good Jaguars junked because of this problem then you would believe. While it is straight forward to sort out. It does require use of a shop manual and a test instrument.
Most “mechanics” are parts changers at best and unable to do basic diagnostic work.
Lovely cars and quick. Personally I like the looks but even more I like the IRS.
Rust is the killer, and expensive to restore but this looks promising. BRG is unusual on an S-type.
It is fortunate this is all the way across the country from me and a presale inspection is impossible. That, and it’s probably an automatic; I don’t see a hydraulic system for a clutch.
Yes, on the Craigslist Ad they marked it as “automatic” (though people sometimes get things wrong when filling out those criteria on CL). I’d guess the odds are that it is an automatic, even in the mid-sixties, Jaguar’s cars were moving very much that way in marketing terms, selling a lot more Auto than manual trans cars, especially in US market?
Easy to fall down a rabbit hole on a this “easy” project. I dare say not a car for a beginner to bring back on the road. The person who buys this may already have one and a garage full of parts….
Is this of Morse vintage?
This would be an absolute money pit. Spend the money and get a good example. You will save heaps in the long run.
Bargains aren’t found all clean and shiny. You are correct in that cars like this aren’t for people who hire others to do their work.
But for those of us with some mechanical skill and a decent set of American wrenches ( the British taught us 3 barley corns end to end equals I inch, 12 of those equal a foot and 3 of those equals a yard). This is a simple 6 cylinder engine with basic lawn mower simple carbs. Plus a set of points to gap.
The reliable SU fuel pump needs periodic points cleaning annually to last well over 40 years.
American wrenches?
This vintage British car may require Whitworth wrenches – which correspond to no metric or standard wrench – lol.
The 3.8 S Type IS a 4 door sports car. From under the hood to the rear wheels hitting the ground its all early E Type. It has the bigger XJ6 style sway bar on the front that tightens it up like a true cat. If you want to go further, as marginal as the XJS rear sway bar is install one and you’ve got a mean handling sports car with 4 doors. My Dad had a 3.4 4spd w/OD and a 3.8 automatic. Dang that 3.4 was a blast to drive. The 3.8 is like driving a MkX thats more nimble and not as big. I wasn’t a happy camper when he sold the 3.4 without telling me…
Same seller as the two for one beautiful Lincoln Zephyrs recently featured here. The one stripped bare can be seen next to this and the Jag could be seen next to it in the Lincoln ad. The owner had great taste. There are some other cars in the driveway covered, I wonder if we’ll be seeing them as well.