Jaguar XJS

Jaguar XJ-S at a glance

Built on a shortened XJ floorpan

The XJ-S used the floorpan of the Jaguar XJ saloon, shortened by about 25 cm. Aerodynamicist Malcolm Sayer drew the early shape; after his death in 1970 Doug Thorpe's in-house team finished it. The flying buttresses behind the side windows came from a shelved mid-engined project derived from the XJ13. Jaguar designed the car only as a closed coupé because it expected new US safety rules to restrict open cars.

The car was shown at the Frankfurt motor show in September 1975, priced at GBP 8,900 in Britain. Jaguar Heritage notes that the price nearly doubled within four years. The 5,343 cc V12 came from the Series 3 E-Type with Lucas fuel injection and was rated at 211 kW (287 PS), or 213 kW (285 bhp) in British figures. A four-speed manual was offered alongside the three-speed Borg Warner automatic, but only 352 manual cars were built before it was dropped around 1978 or 1979, depending on the source. Wikipedia DE gives 0-100 km/h in 6.8 s with the manual.

The XJ-S replaced the open E-Type with a closed four-seater, and early sales were slow. Output fell to just over 1,000 cars in 1980, and production stopped for half of 1981 to clear unsold stock.

HE V12, the AJ6 six and the first open cars

The turnaround began in July 1981 with the V12 HE. Its "Fireball" cylinder heads used a split-level combustion chamber, high compression and a lean mixture, lifting output to 220 kW (295 PS) and cutting fuel consumption by 10-20 percent according to Practical Classics. North American cars were rated at 196 kW (263 hp).

In 1983 Jaguar added the new 3.6-litre AJ6 straight-six with 163 kW (222 PS) and a five-speed Getrag manual gearbox; a ZF automatic followed in 1987. Jaguar Heritage records a 3.6 coupé at GBP 19,248 and 227 km/h (141 mph). The same year brought the XJ-SC, a two-seat targa cabriolet with removable roof panels and a folding rear section. It was built from 1983 with the six and from 1985 with the V12, and 5,013 were made before production ended in January 1988.

American coachbuilder Hess & Eisenhardt converted coupés into full convertibles from 1986, and Jaguar's own convertible was presented at the 1988 Geneva show. Sales peaked at more than 10,000 cars a year in 1988 and 1989.

TWR, the XJR-S and the 1984 ETCC

Tom Walkinshaw Racing turned the XJ-S into a touring car winner. Its first win came at Brno, and in 1984 Walkinshaw took the European Touring Car Championship drivers' title and the team won the Spa 24 Hours. In 1988 Jaguar and TWR formed JaguarSport as a 50:50 company. Its XJR-S started with the 5.3 V12 and from September 1989 used a 6.0-litre V12 with 243 kW (330 PS) and 495 Nm. Wikipedia DE counts about 124 XJR-S 6.0 coupés and 50 convertibles of the post-1991 shape.

The 1991 facelift: XJS under Ford

Ford had bought Jaguar, and in May 1991 it launched a facelift designed by Geoff Lawson. The name lost its hyphen and became XJS. The six grew to 4.0 litres with 163 kW (222 PS), and a 2+2 convertible joined the range. The 6.0-litre V12 followed in 1992 or 1993, depending on the source, with 222 kW (302 PS) and a four-speed automatic. Outboard rear brakes arrived in May 1993 and plastic bumpers replaced the chrome items for the 1993 model year. In 1994 the six became the AJ16 with 171 kW (233 PS).

Wikipedia EN gives 227 kW (304 hp) for the production 6.0 V12, while Wikipedia DE and Secret Classics give 222 kW. The last XJS 6.0 coupé and 4.0 convertible left the line on 4 April 1996. Its successor, the XK8, used a modified version of the XJS platform. Rivals over two decades included the Mercedes-Benz SL and the Porsche 928.

Jaguar XJ-S today: what to check when buying

Practical Classics lists the rust spots: rear wheel arches and the rear buttresses, the radius arms and their mountings, behind the bumpers, floorpan and sills, the front crossmembers, the inner wing below the damper mount and blocked sunroof drains. Auto Express adds the screen surrounds and says pre-1994 cars need the closest look, with repairs that can cost thousands.

On the V12 the rearmost spark plugs are hidden under plumbing and are often left until they are damaged; look for oil changes at least every 3,000 miles. Six-cylinder engines need fresh coolant every two years, or the rear of the block sludges, the engine overheats and the head gasket fails. Inboard rear brakes on cars built before May 1993 are often neglected, and steering rack mounting bushes wear. Auto Express rates the electrics of Ford-era 4.0-litre cars as more reliable.

Auction results logged by britishclassiccars.co.uk are the basis for the XJ-S figures below, with sterling turned into euros at roughly 1.15 to the pound (autumn 2026). In August 2026 the median XJ-S sold for about EUR 10,300 (GBP 8,930), with typical results between EUR 6,300 and EUR 15,600. Convertibles had a median of about EUR 11,500 (GBP 10,006) in the same August 2026 data. Auto Express put 4.0 and V12 convertibles at about EUR 11,500-28,800 (GBP 10,000-25,000) in June 2026, with rare 6.0-litre cars up to EUR 46,000 (GBP 40,000). Jaguar's other models are listed in the Jaguar catalogue, and more grand tourers of the era are in our classic cars section.