Jaguar XJ series

Jaguar does not build many cars like the Jaguar XJ series: a 4-door saloon with 2.8&nbsp, built from 1968 to 2019 in the decade that gave the world the pony car and the mid-engined supercar. Its designer of record is William Heynes, William Lyons.

The background

The Jaguar XJ is a series of full-size luxury cars produced from 1968 to 2019 by British automobile manufacturer Jaguar Cars (becoming Jaguar Land Rover in 2013). It was produced across four basic platform generations (debuting in 1968, 1986, 2003, and 2009) with various updated derivatives of each.

From 1970, it was Jaguar's flagship four-door model. A two-door Coupé was also available. The original model was the last Jaguar saloon to have been designed under the leadership of Sir William Lyons, the company's founder, and the model has been featured in a myriad of media and high-profile appearances.

The engineering

Under the skin sits 2.8  other versions carried different engines, listed in the specification table below. The gearbox is a 3-speed Borg-Warner 35 transmission / Borg-Warner Model 8 automatic transmission / automatic (1968–1970) / 3-speed Borg-Warner Model 12 automatic (1970 onwards)Manual 4 speed +OD a. The layout matters: a front engine drives the rear wheels, the classic proportion — long bonnet, cabin set back — that most people picture when they picture a sports saloon or a grand tourer. The wheelbase is 108.75 in / LWB (sold from 1972): 112.75 in. These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.

Where it sits

Where it sits in Jaguar's history is not in doubt: the Jaguar Mark 2 / Jaguar 240, Jaguar 340 / Daimler 250 / Jaguar S-Type (1963) / Jaguar S-Type / Jaguar 420 and Daimler Sovereign (1966–69) / Jaguar 420 and Daimler Sovereign / Jaguar came before it; it was built at Coventry, England, United Kingdom. On a showroom list of its day it stood against the Toyota Hilux, the Peugeot 504, the Range Rover Range Rover. Its Jaguar stablemates include the F-Type and the Vanden Plas.

The money

EPA combined economy is 21 mpg, about $4,450 a year in fuel at the EPA's assumptions. Condition, mileage and specification move any single car a long way from a headline figure.