1971 Jaguar XJ6 4.2

First registered in September 1971 by Halls of Finchley to a Mr Marris, this Jaguar XJ6 (SWB) is powered by the 4.2-litre engine mated to a 3-speed Borg-Warner automatic transmission and with power-assisted steering as was standard on the 4.2.

The car appears to have spent its entire life with four different registered keepers in north London - more specifically around Barnet - the third of whom owned it for over 3 decades, although the car was off the road for the latter dozen or so years of that period.

Coming from a dealer, the only other nugget of interest is that its last owner dug the channel tunnel! We assume he had some mechanical help but a claim to fame nonetheless.

The exterior of this car is painted in what has to be the best colour for a Jaguar - even a relatively unsporting model - British Racing Green. This classic dark green always evokes the spirit of British racing from the Bentley Boys of the ‘20s through to the BRMs, Vanwalls and of course Jaguars of the fifties and sixties. A gold pinstripe coach-line adds a touch of class to the look.

The paint is old but it is strong and of good quality. Inevitably there are a few minor imperfections across the body and paintwork such as what look like shrinkage cracks in the paint on some panels but nothing worse. Amazingly too for a fifty year old car, there are no signs of rust.

The chrome bumpers look good but the other trims and fittings around the car show their age a little with light pitting here and there, and the windscreen wipers blades seem to come to a rest on the scuttle rather than staying on the glass.

The car sits on what appear to be its original 15-inch steel wheels, with chromed hubcaps. The wheels and caps are in a fair to good condition with just a light surface rust here and there. The wheels are fitted with a mix of Dunlop SP and Avon Turbospeed tyres, although some are looking rather cracked in places.

Specified new with what was referred to by the dealer as “Suede Green Trim”, the interior is most likely the original - although it looks as good as if it had been retrimmed just a few years back.

The interior has something of the feel of a private gentlemen’s club - which it was to a large extent. Pretty much all the upholstery and soft surfaces are swathed in the sage green hide and there is no damage or undue wear that we can see aside from a slight nick in the rear cloth cover of the driver’s seat.

The hard surfaces up front are a blend of black vinyl and wood veneer across the dash panel and door tops - which may be starting to dry out a little, especially when compared to the inner surface of the glove box door. The car has its original large diameter steering wheel complete with horn bar.

The ribbed aluminium around the centre console and gear shift provides a welcome change of surface. A (slightly) more modern stereo has been fitted - a Hitachi radio cassette player from the early ‘80s - for which, sadly, speakers have been semi-flush mounted into the door cards, inevitably cutting holes in the trim but done well.

As far as we’ve been able to test, most of the electrics and interior equipment is working with the exception of the driver’s electric window. A curly cord adaptor has been connected from behind the dash for auxiliary power for charging devices etc.

The carpets appear clean and intact throughout and there are colour-matching fitted floor mats front and back.

Under the front-hinged bonnet, everything looks a little tired, but could be recovered with renewal of worn or ageing parts and a little care and fettling. The surface rust across some of the fixings and ancillaries doesn’t appear to be anything more than an aesthetic issue. There’s also quite a lot of paint overspray around the engine bay from an earlier respray that obviously focused more on the exterior from a masking point of view.

The underside of the car appears tidy and undamaged, with underseal across most surfaces. There is the usual grime and surface rust on some of the structures and suspension and steering components but nothing that gave cause for concern at the last MOT. The brand new exhaust looks amazing and sounds good too.

In the large boot, what looks like the original linings and carpet are present and although undamaged could do with a good clean. The underside of the boot lid has some of its sound-deadening lining panels but one is missing and another is coming detached. Under the floorboard is a full size spare wheel fitted with a Dunlop tyre. Around it are the fuel pumps and cut off valves for the dual fuel tanks.

The XJ6 has a current MOT valid until August 2021, which it passed with no advisories. As well as the most recent MOT reports from when the car returned to the road in 2015 there are paper copies of pretty much every MOT which track the mileage from 23,736 in 1981 up to 42,311 in 2000. These were all from the same testing station in Whetstone North London and validate that the car’s current mileage of 42,844 is genuine.

The car has its original handbooks including he service passport which includes entries for the following service inspections:

Sep 1971 - PDI - Halls Finchley

Nov 1971 - 1,859 - Halls Finchley

Oct 1973 - 13,217 - unknown

The history file includes the original bill of sale from Halls of North Finchley to first owner Mr Marris, specifying the finish, optional extras and the original chassis, engine and key numbers. There are also numerous invoices dating from the mid-80s onwards.

The most recent invoice from Dec 2020 indicates the fitting of a new stainless exhaust and battery and work on the front left suspension top mount. The vendor also reports that the car was given a full service at the same time.

The S1 XJ6 was the beginning of a long line of Jaguar’s executive luxury cruisers that changed little in terms of their overall outline for nearly 40 years. Ownership was the sign of statesmanship or business success and quietly but confidently told the world that you’d made it.

It’s not easy to find an S1 XJ6 with only four previous owners and such low mileage in a largely original and unmolested, solid condition as this example. So we think it will sell for between £8,500 and £12,000 - which we think is still extremely affordable for what you’re getting.

The car starts on the turn of the key (don’t apply any throttle or you’ll flood the carbs) and drives very well so, with maybe an eye on the tyres, a new owner can get on with driving it whilst they think about what improvements they want to make to the Jag without losing its originality - and therefore value.

Viewing is always encouraged, within Govt. guidelines of course, and this particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; to arrange an appointment please use the ‘Contact Seller’ button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.