1973 Jaguar XJ12 SWB. The rarest production Jaguar ever made. Only made between July 1972 and August 1973.
This car was originally special ordered by a board member of the Jaguar North America dealer network. Only (3) V12 SWB XJ12s with chrome air cleaners were built. The other two also went to fellow members. The other two are Primrose Yellow on Biscuit and British Racing Green on Black. The Yellow one sold about 6 months ago at auction to Germany and the BRG one sold two years ago to a collector in Washington state.
Initially Sir William Lyons had designed the incoming XJs engine compartment to take the V12, hen under final development, rom the start. This would be the last Jaguar Sir William Lyons would design before his retirement. The original Lyons XJ design is the purest form of the model that would continue into 1987 in the US and 1992 ROW. However, ven though the V12 was supposed to be the only engine on offer the times changed and the smaller inline-6 engines became more common and thus are relatively plentiful in varying conditions by comparison. The S1 XJ12 model was the choice car for the Jaguar founder and was maintained as his regular car for many years into his retirement. It has been frequently noted by the man himself that the XJ was his proudest accomplishment and favorite car he had created far above the E-Type, Ks, Ks and SS cars. One only has to drive the original XJ to see why he came to that conclusion. It simply was a massive leap in refinement beyond all of the companies offerings at the time. The S1 is also noted to be considered the best looking sedan of all time. Among enthusiasts of the marque the S1 is considered the first and last truly well built XJ before the strikes and cost cutting measures of BL that pushed Jaguar to bankruptcy and into the hands of Ford in the late 80's.
This particular XJ12 is ready to drive. The fuel system, rakes, ooling system, lternator, gnition system, nd the transmission have been completely rebuilt. The car rests on new Goodyear tires on all four corners. It goes, teers, hifts and stops like a new XJ12 would.
The paint and chrome is excellent throughout as is evidenced in the photos. There is no rust anywhere on this car. This vehicle is collector quality and completely show worthy as it stands.
Every single electrical item functions perfectly. Windows, auges, lock, ntenna, adio, ights, ipers (Park and both speeds), uel sensors, uel switchover valve, ir conditioning, lower motors (both of them), azards, urn signals (both directions self-cancel), orns...
The interior is completely original and smells like a Jaguar should. Low miles, care, nd climate controlled storage have maintained the leather and wood in exceptional condition. There are no cracks or crazing in the wood on the dash or doors. There are also no cracks in the dash cover. The door seals are all perfect and malleable. The vent window seals have been replaced. There is absolutely no wind noise whatsoever in the car at freeway speeds and beyond. The loudest thing you can hear at 70-80mph is the clock.
This is a three owner car. The original owner was on the board of Jaguar North Americas dealer network at the time in California. He kept the car until 1976-77. The second owner received it from her husband as their Silver anniversary gift and it resided in Washington state. I am the third.
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