The Jaguar Mark X is a Forgotten Big Cat
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- čas přidán 7. 04. 2023
- In Jaguar's glory days of Mk2s, E-Types, and XJs lay their flagship performance luxury saloon - the Mk10 and later 420G - a car that despite its failure set the template for both the style and engineering of Jaguar cars for the next fifty years.
This car is to be auctioned by Manor Park Classics: manorparkclassics.com/
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Saw one of these quite randomly in Finland some two years ago, and not just any, but the rarest of the Mark Xs, the 4.2. It was museum registered, painted dark blue and looking immaculate (this was a LHD one, too). Gorgeous car.
One of Jaguar's silliest mistakes was to build the fabulous Mk10 and NOT use the Daimler 4.5ltr V8 in it, at least for the American LHD models. I got a Corgi Mk10 when they first came out and I loved it. Another great video Ed.
Hi from Sydney, Australia. David it was so very close to occurring, the fact that it did not occur was not the Jaguar guys fault, but "bmc bozos". It really was so close to occurring.
Mark 10's are my favorite car of all cars made in the past 120 + years. I own one and drive it all the time. Like you, I bought the first Corgi color a weird green then I bought 10 more in every color Corgi ever made. Then 2 Dinky toy ones, 4 Norev ones. 2 larger Spot On ones pale blue & bronze/copper one. Plus, British owned Hong Kong made plastic ones. 2 different ones in 1/24th scale, then 4 colors in big spectacular 1/20th scale, finally a huge 1/12th scale pulling a Ferrari F1 GP car on a trailer also in 4 colors, I bought a blue one & was given a red one as a xmas gift when new in 1962. Mint boxed now in 2023 a 1,000 euro toy set !!
WHY : in november 1961, my mum collected her special order brand new black mk10 from the factory in Coventry. While temporary rego of BXE106 was sorted & plates attached to car. Norman Dewis showed a young me around the factory where mk10's were finally completed BY HAND & in the parts of the factory where they were on a very basic production line. Mum bought a second new 420G in late 1971.
Move ahead 14 years to mid 1975 and Norman Dewis & R.E( lofty) England came to Sydney to present the two new coupes XJC & XJS to the Australian Jaguar concessionaire, Bryson Motors and also to members of the NSW Jag Drivers Club at Bryson Motors beautiful art deco headquarters at Woolloomooloo, (between Hyde Park & Kings Cross in Sydney) Norman Dewis had remembered my mother so Norman and Lofty sat at our table. You could see this was much to Jack Bryson's disgust, after a while Lofty sat with the Bryson's guys, but Norman Dewis stayed at our table the whole time. Mum bought a second one a new 1971 420G.
I got to ask Norman Dewis all the bits of trivia I wanted to know, forced by BMC to rename all the Jaguars, there would have been multiple 420's as a numerised version of engine size was to be applied and the new S-type would be a 420, the Daimler version would be a 420, the new Limousine that was in the works would be 420 and the MK10 would be the 420, the BMC people said that there must be something in part bins you could use, so an aluminium G letter off a Guy truck was used. I found that they in mid 1975 were still building special order MK10's, here in Sydney, the Malaysian Embassy received 2 new odd color special order green ones in January 1975. My dad was a specialist US diplomat for this part of the world based in Sydney in the same building in 37 Pitt St, City. One of their drivers flipped the bonnet so I could see it had the Aust Gov't Federal compliance plate fitted and it had stamped 01 75.so new jan 1975. Dewis confirmed still being made to order in mid 1975. Since then, I have seen several more later '70's-built versions and 2 were dressed as 4.2litre mk10's, NOT 420G's and with government compliance plates fitted too and going by the vin sequencing numbers they are well after ones listed in books. Norman Dewis said some were even "zenith sentinels" bullet proof ones for governments.
PUNCH line.
ALL the different pieces on a 420G were for the still-born Daimler 4.5 litre v8 version, Norman told me so. The Daimler square pressed grill bars or slats, the chrome brass belt line strips, the front mudguard mounted turn signal repeaters, the new dashboard top rail with black plastic padded pieces, the dash top clock, different leather faced seats, different hub caps, the plain black plastic squishy knee protectors on the dash parcel tray (as mk10 in the same color leather as the seats) all were to be the different and defining pieces for the Daimlerized version, Marquis. Norman Dewis confirmed this, however randomly one day unannounced a fleet of trucks turned up, all completed 4.5 litre v8's, all the tooling, replacement spare parts from inventory were all SEIZED by order from BMC Board of Directors, Norman stated that to that day in 1975 NOBODY knew where they were taken to, were they dumped or smelted down, no one knows. So, from September 1966 when that occurred Jaguar for some months were building new 420G's & new 4.2 Mk10's at the same time and were sold for the same price to the penny. Norman said that the mk10's sold first, that both dealers and clients thought 420G sounded stupid and in Norman's word looked "tizzy" with the sparkling chrome strip. Maybe Daimler buyers were wankers and thought extra bling on an identical and badge engineered / named car made it better, who knows. However Norman said that the 4.5 hemi V8 after the overheating troubles that they inherited from BSA buyout were fixed by fitting the superb GM Harrison radiator division crossflow system like all the 4.2 litre mk10's, then Daimler V8 cars ran cool and did not overheat. Norman said with tweaking & in his words "some yanky carby" 4.5-liter hemi V8's delivered 400bhp in "granny" tune that they'd been sending several out to MIRA test track & they could hammer stress free around banked track at approaching 200 mph effortlessly. Also, Jaguar cars had ordered the best 8A Borg Warner tranny like in the 4.2 mk10's beefed up version with a dual range switch pitch lock up torque converter and stall kit, as the transmission in the Majestic Major v8 cars was apparently purely awful. 8A's are identical to what a US Ford person would call a "full house" C4 Cruiseomatic, they're "badge engineered " gearboxes, fitted to the 430 ci, 7 litre Lincoln Continental & the 390 ci, 6.4 litre "green block side oiler police enforcer" fitted to Ford Galaxies which was then the most powerful engine from any company in the USA and for 1965 won Ford 48 out of 52 Nascar races, then for 1966, 35 out of 52 events one after the next with the big Galaxie and NONE when they switched to the new wide body Mustangs late in 1966. With this new Mustang body every race was lost (identical to Steve McQueen's Mustang in the movie Bullett) due to a weak flexing body with cheap "tear out" rear end suspension, low end Yanky junk.
I own a 1967 420G, bought in december 2012 from the estate of the first owner, a special order bronze head ultra high output car with the said same tricked up Borg Warner type 8A automatics that were destined for the Daimler version, I also own a 1965 Super Duty Galaxie with the green engine and that same gear box , and I also own a 1965 Lincoln 4 door sedan also with that said same gearbox, I could swap them from car to car and they will fit & work flawlessly. In 1975 I bought a 1965 4.2 litre mk10 & it had the 8A gearbox and later in 1979 I bought rare long wheelbase 1974 series 1 XJ6 special order car also with a high output bronze head, triple HD8 SU's from Jaguar as it had been specially ordered by Jaguar cars Paris as a RHD car to be shipped to Australia when completed, also fitted with the BW 8A tranny, I owned it 32 years the fact that it had been virtually a handbuilt car showed everywhere, flawless, and in an owner chosen deep claret, painted at the VanDen Plas works in London, I can only imagine this with a V8 Daimler engine in it. Because it was it was extremely powerful with the hand built bronze head XK engine & Mk10 carbies. Fitted out as a 6 cylinder Vanden Plas dressed as a Jaguar with NO vinyl roof, & full Vanden Plas interior I sold it to a friend in 2012 when I bought the fantastic low mileage '67 420G.
Finally , that day in mid 1975 I asked Norman Dewis what happened to the mk10 test cars with the 4.5 litre Daimler V8's in them, at that time they were still being used for "hack" work by the factory so maybe hiding out there in some former employees' garage, barn or shed one will turn up one day you can only but hope. I have seen 4 unusual mk10's. a Jaguar v12 powered one, a Buick 454ci, 7.5 litre v8 version with a late series2 xj , or series 3 xj GM thm400 automatic attached as with a specially cast for Jaguar case it fitted easily into the mk10 body, a 4 litre Cummins diesel, this was a manual 3.8 litre mk10 and finally a Daimler 4.5 litre V8 one where decades ago from J & D spares at Blacktown NSW, there had been a pretty nasty rear end accident damaged Daimler Majestic Major which was the donor car, the guy with the Cummins diesel car was a motor engineer tech college teacher & he made some kind of adaptor plate to fit the BW 8A automatic onto the 4.5 V8. All of the above mk10's had open heart surgery as original engines had suffered terminal unrepairable engine failures & their ordinary working-class owners loved them and wanted to see them back on the road again and since they could not afford to buy an really good working XK 4.2 engine, this was a way back on the road again. None are in the club now their then owners would by now be in their 90's, but all 4 were both well and tastefully done. So probably hiding somewhere in this huge country.
I have one. And I LOVE IT. A beautiful car, epitomising the description; Space, pace, and grace.
@@gregharvie3896 Mate, you could have easily condensed this and articulated your ideas with much greater clarity.
Not at alll the v8 ws a far inferior in pureperformnce and too big too heavy
This is the best Jag engine ever.
@@gregharvie3896
I'm sure I still have a Matchbox one with an opening bonnet
My brother-in-law had one around 1978 soon after he sold it he died in a head-on driving a Mazda RX3
I've always said if he'd been driving the Jag he would have gone straight through the thing he hit
And I remember the showroom down the street from the Cross
I was in the Jaguar owners club and running a 3.4 Mk2 in 1972 ,which wasn"t a bad car but was not exactly reliable and never really lost some faults with early Jags that were never put "right" like the crappy small Dunlop brakes and the problems with head gaskets - a small problem with the water /heating system usually meant a blown head gasket ,not long after .My mates and family thought I was mad running old Jags in my 20s ,but a couple of family members had them and they were so different than anything else at the time . I eventually bought a 420 G off my brother in laws ,business partner who the Tax man was chasing, for £400 and less than 4 years old , a maroon colour with low mileage ,it seemed a bargain ,but when the bills started coming in and around 12 m.p.g . I wasn"t too sure . The carbs seemed to need synchronizing every other week and water was forever finding it"s way into the twin tanks through the hopeless seals in the filler caps atop the tanks . I had owned a fair few large cars and the Jag. never seemed to be that powerful and never seemed nice to drive - although very smooth & comfy .A Merc. Estate and a Citroen Ds Safari Estate were nicer to drive ,slightly better on fuel and had a bigger road presence . I sold the car to a disabled Lady who lost a leg in a motorcycle crash and bought the car after a long test drive aided with the compo from her accident and she loved the car .Lots of cars later I still love Jags . but now own a Rover P6 2200 which is just the job for old retired blokes who just like old cars ,that are fairly easy to fix and at around 25 - 30 m.p.g. easy to live with ?. Nice video review and happy [classic] motoring .
You’ve just put me off Jag’s for the rest of my life,,,I’m 76 🤣🤣🤣 A car I’d love to have again is the ‘64 PB Cresta I owned in ‘68, gorgeous big cruiser ( as far as I can remember ) 😀
@@tomsurrey2252 40 + from a V6 Jag !!! 😱 My neighbour had a Mondeo V6 24V, same engine as the Jag? He sold it because of the running costs. All I can afford to run now is my wee 2007 1.2 Corsa 😢
My Brother owned a second-hand 420G once. Absolutely beautiful, in a gorgeous royal blue, with matching blue leather interior, with walnut eveywhere. This one had a compact phone in the back, in a specially made walnut box. One day, having carefully parked her, a chap came up to my brother and said. Isn't she a beauty, I'm glad to see she's well looked after, I used to wear a uniform and Chauffer Dunlop's boss all over Europe in this.
I remember those cars when I was a kid and now that I've nearly retired I appreciate how beautiful they are
I've always loved the look of the Mk10. I had a Dinky toy one, as a kid. I loved the forward rake of the front, twin headlights and air vents.
Me too!
Matchbox #28 for me. LUSTED after the Mk-10. Still.
My younger brother had a Corgi model of the Mk10. It had an opening bonnet with an "engine" and opening boot with two "suitcases". Even they could be opened.
@Richard Hemingway - Yeah, but one look at the back half from the the side and I knew why it failed. That thing was dragging a huge back end. Looked like it was wearing a bustle.
@@wickedcabinboy Not why it failed at all. Plus that's it's sexiest angle.
Good video Ed. A few things to note
As an American, I can tell you that a big piece of the story too resides in the "Made in the USA is better" complex. Jaguar was competing with not just the cheaper domestic car market here in the US, but also the domestic mindset of 2 generations. ALL foreign cars were viewed as expensive and problem prone. Expensive to not only purchase, but to maintain. Also (and allegedly) parts were not stocked commonly and had to be imported, which meant your car would be sitting for a considerably longer time than anything domestic. The "Big 3", and to a lesser extent AMC (which ironically would be bought by Renault, but that's for another day) helped to fuel this point of view through rigorous advertising. Need proof? The success of the VW Beetle prompted General Motors to respond by introducing the Chevrolet Corvair, a rear engined car with more interior space and a more powerful 6 cylinder. GM assumed that appealing to the "bigger is better" and "No replacement for displacement" crowd, Corvairs would fly off dealer lots. Ralph Nader's book "Unsafe At Any Speed" put that brakes on that, and the Corvair was deemed a failure, even though they were actually quite good by the end. The Japanese were the ones who truly cracked that mindset, with cheap, fuel efficient cars that outlasted their domestic counterparts by a considerable margin.
I remember as a kid in the 80's, Jaguars were hugely popular and were quite the status symbol. As an adult, I now own 2 antique Jaguars (76 XJ12c and XJ40 Vanden Plas) and FYI, I don't need to compensate for anything at all. ;-)
Keep up the great work!!
@dark phoenix Now , now Phoenix tell us the size of your member and we will judge if there is a need to compensate !
@@bengunn3698 😊
XJ12C is a really great one to own !
Sir, you have good taste.
BTW, my favourite American car is the 1971 Buick Riviera. Kind of mid-range as I understand it , but styled to perfection.
@@Hertog_von_Berkshire The Boattail Riviera is one of my favourites.
My dad had a mk10 for many years, I remember going to school in it and then learning to drive in it. Such an awesome car, I took my girlfriend at the time for a drive around the Port Hills in Christchurch. I remember dad had to put commercial tyres all round because the weight of the car meant normal car tyres got chopped out very quickly. One time we were out for a drive dad was sitting on 100mph and he buried the boot, the old girl kicked down to first gear, and the rev counter shot around to max revs, about 7grand from memory, held there for a bit then changed up. Dad was a self confessed petrol head and we would go for drives on the Canterbury plains and Port Hills because he loved driving the mk10. He also owned a mk2 and a mk7 Jaguar .
My Dad bought a metallic/silver/grey with red interior one of these in 1961. The official running cost was £12.00 a week while at the same time, that of the RR Silver Shadow was only £10.00. At the time, we frequently travelled from London to the south coast for weekends away, and we needed another comfortable car. Our Wolseley 6/99 was getting a bit tired.
I’ll always remember the first time we went out in it one evening to visit friends in Hampstead. When going back to the car in order to drive home, the nearside, rear quarter-light (13:37) had been skilfully forced open to gain access to the nearside rear door interior handle, the front passenger seat had been laid flat (using the chrome lever to the right of the seat) and a screwdriver had been used to force out the walnut surround that held the radio in place. Whoever did this, knew the exact location of the two securing points holding the walnut in place and didn’t cause much damage to the car. The car radio and its surround had gone.
The next day we visited Henlys to buy replacements. We were told there was one radio in stock, but there was an 18-month waiting list for the walnut surround. There had been a run on radio thefts from these new Jaguars and this was the way they were stolen.
Another memorable journey was one to Birmingham. The M1 had no speed limit at that time and the Jaguar could go very fast. So could the double-deck buses that went from London to the north, (Companies Standerwick, Ribble and Scout) which had rear engines that could take them to 100mph. Dad overtook one at 120mph but as we reached alongside the front of the bus, the car was sucked in towards the side of it. Fortunately we never collided, but the near 2 tons of car felt like a piece of paper in the wind.
There was a problem with the height from the road, or lack of it. I think it was about 6” when loaded. The car wouldn’t like to be driven over any of today’s speed bumps.
Dad used to hire this car to the studios who used it in programmes like The Avengers.
Really fascinating stuff Ed, I’m old enough to remember these giants driving around, in fact as you suggested the 420G often appeared so enormous on our little U.K. roads. (I have always loved all of the smaller Jags, but this was more like a boat in comparison). I can’t say it ever had the visual appeal of much more stunning cars of the time - like the Rover 3.5 coupe for instance..Great episode! 👍👍
Is that You Phillip? I was just watching this and saw your name? I almost bought a MK 10 in Vancouver ten years ago, a white one with a sun roof. I always loved the look of the MK 10 big though they are and have always fancied one but me and the seller couldn't agree on a price- $11000 which is nothing these days and it was mint. They're big for sure but still much smaller then the Cadillac Fleetwood I was driving at that time and I always thought them the prettiest of the Jags.
@@frankkemble2103 hi Frank! No, sorry that’s not me, I’m from the U.K. kind regards to you though. 🙏
@@philtucker1224 It's me Phillip, your cousin, David and Mary-Grace first born child. or have a got the wrong Phil Tucker? The one I know lives in Newton Abbot UK
@@frankkemble2103 Hi Frank! Not me buddy but all the very best to you and your family. 🙏
@@philtucker1224 And to yours- apologies for the mix up. My cousin is a Jag nut hence the conviction that you were him.
Seriously mate, you need to dump the BMW & buy a mkX jag! 😎
I hope Manor Park Auctions are giving this lad a percentage of their sales,because I reckon he doubles the price overnight! He could get an Arab to invest in a sandbank! Eskimos would stand in line for his ice cubes! Salesmen would employ him as a ghost writer. Amazing enthusiasm!
From across the pond, Thank you. I was on the car show circuit for 20 years, only came across one Mark Ten. It arrived from Portugal with LHD, in BRG with Cream upholstery and green piping. A gorgeous big car. I saw my first E-type, at age 15, when an RN officer drove one to a local car wash. A drop head(?) in BRG and camel interior and top. It emerged from the car wash glistening, five seconds before its exhaust system! Narragansett Bay
I agree with what you say. Like other contributors, I too remember these Jags well. The appropriately lamented late Ronnie Barker's mum lived in the next village to mine, and I still remember the sight of him driving through our village in a Mk 10 (later, XJs of various types). The then cross-ply tyres scrubbed audibly as he heaved the 2 ton behemoth round the bends. Even our village undertaker - most villages in our neck of the woods had their own back then! - had a derelict Mk 10, with visible canvas showing on the front tyres. Ahh, the days before 1 mm minimum tread. This was also the time just before annual MOTs arrived on the scene, and most people didn't have easy access to a tyre pressure check/pump. Most people hardly knew what tyre pressure was! As long as tyres LOOKED alright, there WERE alright! Cross-plies didn't look 'flatter' on the bottom as they were, to all intents and purposes, rigid. Until the pressure was really low, hence scrubbed shoulders, and even side-walls, really. Cars didn't 'handle' in those days so much as slide in a vaguely controlled way. Sorry dude, rambling, me, about the 60s...
Father of a school friend had a Mk X. HUGE! Already a rust heap by the early 1970s. Maybe unsurprisingly, the only one I've ever seen.
The MK X has never really figured on my radar. Always loved the MK II, S Type and XJ. Always fascinating to learn a car's history though.
I worked for a used car dealer who tended to deal in this type of motor. Two things I remember about driving the Mark 10. The suspension felt like riding on a pile of interior sprung mattresses. The steering also felt a bit vague. My favourite Jag to drive. The 420. ( Not the 420G )
Sounds like the car needed new rear dampers and a power steering overhaul.
The 1970 Cadillac Eldorado was 18 1/2 feet long was fitted with a 500 cubic inch motor ( 8.2 liters) and 400 hp, It would do 0 to 60 in 7.6 seconds and topped out at 125 mph- big but faster than a MK 10 or even a MK2. Caddy was a foot and half longer too. I've owned a Cadillac Fleetwood ( 21 feet and huge ) but the Lincoln continental and Chrysler Imperial were bigger. Having said all this, I would take that MK 10 anyday over American iron as it is just so beautiful. Wish I could find a nice one here in Canada. I always understood that the XK 3.4 litre was a development from the original SXK 3.5 motor from the SS100 and so it's provenance extends further back than 1948.
It still lives in that shape, and that forward knife-edge for Jaguar sedans was still the design cues from this car forward. This model may be forgotten, but not its design.
This car gives good Rear View Mirror intimidating stats. I'd even say it's Gru's Daily IRL, seeing that the Kray twins liked it also.
IMO It's the UK "Pimpala".
I remember these as a petrolhead kid and I thought them too big and brash. The bulbousness isn't helped by the wheels being tucked well inside the wheelarches, giving these a clumsy overhang. But yes, it looks like a Jaguar.
In 1979 I stayed at a farm house at the back of Teignmouth Devon. The owner of the farm had a X10 parked on the green out the front. I admired it every day I went down to the beach.
You know you are petrolhead seeing a great car when you remember it from long ago with such clarity. I have the same feeling about seeing and hearing my first Jensen Interceptor up close in 1974. I was 9 years old and it was idling outside Paddington station. It’s seared into my mind.
I love the mk10. It was the first jaaaaag I ever got a ride in when I was about 8 years old. It was my mates dad and we were running late for a train to Portsmouth to go to a camp on the isle of wight. 70 mph along Chelsea embankment with five excited school boys whooping with joy. It was a joyful car to br driven in.
A grand uncle of mine had a Mk 10 in the 60s and 70s. I remember it as a heaving hulk that drank petrol. I liked it but something was always not working on it. I didnt know it was a Mk10 until last year! Granduncle was a weird eccentric.
1977, night shift, gaffer used to park his beautiful mkX right in the middle aisle of river end workshop (quiet on nights). I absolutely adored it, leopard skin seat covers and all, haha. Thanks for posting.
Back in the late 60's I never owned a MK10. However, my best friend did. My group of friends at the time would choose to ride in his car rather than the other cars we owned. It was a delight to be a passenger in and to drive. At the time I owned a two tone, (Blue on blue) Vauxhall PABX Cresta, which was a very American looking car, rear wing tail fins etc. I even had a USA sticker on the back rather than the usual GB sticker, oh and a passable mid west American accent. Occasionally we would swap cars for the week-end. He reckond my PABX was a better bird puller and being equipped with a huge front bench seat, instead of the separate front seats, with a consul in the middle, it was a better entertaining environment, if you know what I mean.
The interiors of these cars are fantastic - so much wood! Far more than even a Rolls. The later XJs had a lot less. It's a pity recent Jaguars didn't take more inspiration from this one instead of the drab offerings which I'm sure is one of the reasons sales dwindled to next to nothing.
When I was a kid someone in my neighbourhood had a 420G. The interior was beautiful. I shudder to think about its fuel consumption.
As a kid my oldest Brother had one, And being in her, Driving down the old A45 at 110 MHP. With over taking was just a middle lane, So cool and her size , As a kid the power of that car was out of this world,
Thanks Ed, another great review and what a superb car. That dash and all those gauges is more like a plane cockpit. The woodwork is amazing the way only Jaguar could do with their classic interiors 😊
There is something about a Jaguar that no other car manufacturer has.
I can't remember ever seeing a Mark X in real life but now I definitely want to!
Another quality video Ed. I really enjoyed it. 🙂
Alfa Romeo.
I could have had a nice MKX, but its wonderful complexity worried me about maintenance. I got a '59 MKIX and just love its more solid, simpler, and totally stately build. It's fast, too.
When I was a kid in the UK in the 60s the Jag Mark X was a head turner and the name alone simply oozed coolness.
Looking at it now I'm amazed how "old-style / gentleman's club" it looks. Still, that front end is definitely a proto-XJ6.
The 4.2 litre engine sounded enormous to us but, as you say, a 258 cube was a bit pathetic in American terms in the 1960s.
Fantastic looking cars these, proper nightclub bouncer in a tuxedo looks. It also laid the groundwork for the phenomenally successful XJ so it deserves a proud place in Jaguar history.
The 420G were bought mostly by government departments for top officials use.
9:44 12:48 That door pull and slam noise are just ✨
This is weird, it’s been years since I saw a Mk10 and then saw one yesterday on the motorway and now Ed’s excellent video. Seeing one up close they are huge but with a elegant look and they sound glorious!
Yeah, they sound good?
After the E-type, and only by a tiny bit at that, this is the prettiest car Jaguar ever made IMO.
The MK10 my father had one, the first car I ever saw with electric windows.
I had one of those in the late 80's, cost me £5k, a rare manual version. About 12MPG! It was a money pit, sold it for £2k after a couple of years.
My friend has a 2 tone blue Mk 10 with the V12 in it he fitted it well over 30 years ago 4 speed manual with overdrive bloody great car!!
I remember these well I always thought it looked more like a squashed frog, but my family at some point owned every other jag in this period.
I can see that, now you mention it.
My dad had one of these when I was a kid… I loved it… he got it a month or so before the fuel crisis in 1973… it was pale blue… sad to see it sold…
I cut one of these up in 1976, it was a rust bucket, and used the rear axle and engine in a "Special" that I still have to this day.
What made the suspension on these cars so unique was that it had double wish bone rear suspension using a lower wish bone and the drive shaft as the upper wish bone all mounted in a rubber mounted subframe. Hence lots of hot rod builders used Jag rear ends for the suspension set up
One of Jaguars best looking contemporary classic sedans, beautifully proportioned......not too sure about that two-tone paint job though that breaks up the otherwise clean smooth lines? Great video with lots of interesting insight on this 'almost forgotten' Jaguar. Thanks for posting!
You're right- the two-toned side panels looked great on the swoopy-lined fenders of earlier Jag saloons, but the rather straight-sided MKX needed a solid paint color. Not mentioned was that the MKX had well-rounded side panels with no protective trim which invited door dings and scrapes.
I had a 63 3.8 Mk10, nice, big and comfy, but a real rust bucket after only 13 years, the exhaust was non existant and the steering well very vague, but 17 mpg not too bad if you remembered to fill both tanks, I sold it on and bought a Truimph 2.5PI, but I did like the Jag, 32VTN
A family friend had a Mark X when I was growing up. I went in it a few times, and it was very quiet and comfortable - but even he said it was vulgar.Which it was.
My Older brother had a Jigsaw (back in the 70's) which featured a painting of what I now know was a bright yellow Mk10 or possibly a 420G.
It was driving through the rain and was a 'Fine Picture'.
At the same time I had an 'E type' (roadster with le mans headlights) tri-ang pedal car.
I wish I'd kept it but 'as is life' I had a crash into my mum's Ford Anglia which smashed it's wrap around windscreen.
Later on my dad repainted it luminous yellow (including the wire wheels).
"Oh happy days !"
As a child, I drove in one. My father was a driver for a company's pool of cars for the CEO's. I found it better than a Rolls Royce Silver Shadow. Sadly "our" two tone silver/black 420 was not the best one. Many problems, and after three years, the bonnet hit the battery poles and the car went up in flames. That was it.
I agree about the bulbous view. The front wings had so much air in them it felt like papier mache over a balloon in design
My college roommate's grandfather had a then new early 70s one in Denver. Beautiful car and had a more classy air than Caddy, Lincoln and Imperial US competitors. It definitely stood out in a country club parking lot and was a great road car. (He once drove us from Boulder to Lincoln Ne for a football game). Unfortunately it needed more service than US or German luxury competitors of the time and Jag's dealer network was generally speaking just not up to snuff.
The Daimler hearse and limousine was based on this car, black ones usually used as funeral transport, white ones for weddings, and other colours as a mayor's car.
I first saw electric windows in a MK10 - I thought it was black magic! Lovely example you have there, apart from the colour scheme
found a 420G in a breakers yard back in the early 1983. from a distance I thought it was a customised XJ because I hadn't seen one before. getting closer it became apparent just how huge the thing was. the car was complete and undamaged sitting next to the site cabin with a price of £150 in the window (about the price of a long-MOT banger at the time). I had dreams of buying it and bringing it back to life but the owner of the garage I was an apprentice at soon killed that idea. for an 18 year old at the time it would have been the coolest car in town.
regarding the interior space, American cars of that era had long bonnet/hoods and even longer boot/trunks, with the bit in the middle being a cramped after-thought. we had a Chevrolet Impala SS in from time to time that was so long we couldn't close the garage doors behind it! the original Mini actually felt more spacious inside. its like these cars were sold to people who were trying to make up for something 😉
US cars of that era were built to impress onlookers rather than be comfortable or practical.
Not forgotten at all! Personal story - my father as a University student during the late 60s in Sofia/Bulgaria (socialist then) saw the Mark X (420G) belonging to the British Embassy and was smitten. To him it was one of the most beautiful things (nevermind a car) that he had ever seen and always kept talking about it. And many years on I too got bitten by the Jaguar bug :)
I had the rare 420G with a glass division, back in the late 70’s lovely car to drive, still remember the reg number BPE209H. Last I heard it had been off the road for many years.
My Grandad;s all white 420 G PVA27F . He had it in the early 70s. 4spd man with elec overdrive.
these jags and their daimler brethren I think nowadays find maximum use as stately wedding transport. i recently saw a couple of them in Australia, all decked up for someone’s wedding. beautiful cars indeed! and Ed I loved that descriptor you used - it is absolutely apt. In Black this car would have been the choice of a cigar smoking velvet jacketed Cad Supreme. OR the automobile of choice, of a tuxedo-ed villain with a shady establishment behind the respectable frontage of a West-End Mansion in London. I would even think of Terry Thomas in a Tux and smoking a cigar.
This brings back memories. My rich stockbroker uncle had one of these back in the 60s. It put our family's Vauxhall Victor in the shade.
The closest I ever got to owning a Jaguar was a Bedford camper van which had Jag seats. They were, needless to say, leather, and very comfy.
This is a proper luxury car it ticks all the boxes real wood and leather every were front and rear quarter windows and picnic tables and a small slide out shelf in the front it absolutely oozes class
They built a Daimler prototype with the big Damiler V8, apparently blew away the XJ engined which caused an issue as Jaguar as that was the sporty brand so they never took a Damiler version forward. The Mk X was a real villain car, real 60s London car, not the lads who Rob the bank, but the lads who run the firm.
I learned to drive in our Mark 10 at sixteen. I utterly loved that car.
I owned a Jaguar 420 G which was the 4.2 Liter and was absolutely luxurious. What a beast.
Regards from South Africa
Thanks for your review Ed. Love your work.
Excellent video TC, and what a car. You just have to love a Jaguar!!
I have really enjoyed the Jaguars you've featured lately. I had a beloved garnet red Mark X toy as a boy, but never saw one on the road in the middle America, much to my disappointment. Excellent video, as always!
I like Ed's sense of humour, for instance when he converts metric to imperial and says "if you're watching in black and white". I feel somewhat envious that he has the chance to sit at the wheel of everything from a Mini to a Bentley!
Re: 'underworld links', Angus Sibbet, he of the infamous, Landa/Stafford 'One Armed Bandit' gangland killing, (elements of which inspired part of the screenplay for the film Get Carter), was found murdered on the rear seat of his very own Mk X, (MUP 11D), one winter morning in 1967.
I'm sure that the 420G had a couple of, (very minor), upgrades.
In a way, I think it kind of adds to the image of these cars that they are, indeed, a bit 'under the radar', so to speak.
Another great vid!
Another excellent video! It's worth mentioning a couple of things. For 1961 Ford's Lincoln introduced a quite shrunken Continental, Smaller than the Cadillacs, possibly a smidge less in size than the Mark X, yet packing the 7L M-E-L V8 packing 315-345 BHP (gross). Additionally it came as a 4-door convertible. It was a sales hit and demonstrated that not all US buyers wanted block long luxury cars (Cadillac even introduced a short deck Series 62 Park Avenue to compete). I think a fairer comparison would be Mk X v Continental. The last thing is, Europe a couple years later caught up (and likely passed) with the Mk X with the vast and tech filled Mercedes-Benz 6.3 V8 Grosser. Granted it was more costly and known as a car for tycoons, dictators, and potentates. but there can be a valid comparison with Mk X and the X derived Daimler limousine. I would like your reactions if you get to drive a Mk X!
Your mention of Daimler reminded me that Jag of course acquired with Daimler the 2.5 and 4.5 V8s. The story goes that a MkX was trial fitted with the 4.5 V8 which blew the doors off the XK 3.8. Nevertheless they killed off the Daimler V8s. One wonders whether the V8 might have been a better idea for US sales, and indeed, whether it may have made the future V12 unnecessary?
I just wrote the same message to Ed then scrolled down to read yours. It would have been a shame if the V8 had stopped Jag from making the V12, remember all the Le Mans winners it powered, but it should have gone in the 420G if not the Mk10.
@@piccalillipit9211 Nah, watch Harry's Garage's latest video about his. The V12 is a thoroughbred engine right up there with Ferrari and Lambo offerings.
I remember back in the 80's at my local banger track, a completely fearless guy called Roy Bramley (track name Retard), as he had a reputation for going the wrong way around the circuit against all the other cars) One evening he brought out a jag Mk10 and started right at the front, Normally the cars lined up in two's, but it was so wide there was only enough room for the Jag ! Warm up lap behind the control car and they were off, 30 odd screaming Granada Mk 2's pushing the Jag at a frightening speed ! First corner there was no way it was going to get around the corner and went straight on and taking a thick iron post clean out of the concrete, ripping the wheel right off the Jag, He managed to repair it and got out for the next race.
The Daimler version of the XJ6 was actually called the Daimler Sovereign, the Daimler double six as its name suggests was the V12 version of the Jaguar XJ12. badge engineering at its finest the only difference besides the badges obviously was the Daimlers always sported the classic Daimler fluted grill - and no leaping Jaguar on the bonnet of course which from the front made it very noticable.
I grew up in the era that spawned these great Jags. The Mk 10/420G was one of my favourite cars of all time growing up. Wish they made cars like this today. I'd have one in a trice.
I love the fact we are talking about a MK10 while leaning on a 420 G. Having owned a 420 G and a MK10, great cars Another fun fact this was the biggest car jaguar made at the time with the smallest wheels
I fell in love with a used MK X in the late 60s at a local garage. I was first attracted by the reg number BBB 1B! Soon realised I was dreaming as I couldn’t afford to buy or run it! Seeing two fuel fillers either side at the rear for the two fuel tanks only confirmed it.
Absolutely fantastic review mate. A lot of stuff I didn't know and very well researched. So refreshing and relaxing to see a review video on YT (or almost any video on YT) with no silly and unnecessary music added in. Even the title screen is a respectful silence. I'm just so sick of stupid music being added in to videos in every second where there is no narration and even many where there IS speaking. A constant distacting undercurrent of sound or music while the person is speaking! So this video and your others are just great in that respect. Also great are the subtle relaxing breaks between paragraphs of vocals. Where the horrible norm these days is to cut these natural pauses out completely, rendering the video an unnatural and stressful hurried mess to watch with all sound and visuals hard cut to pieces and just horrendous to endure.
The script is well written and delivered and I agree completely with your analysis and opinion. I grew up around these and the 420G and even as a keen young teenager, mad on cars, I always felt they were too bulbous and heavy looking; looked good from some angles but essentially "not quite there". I wasn't overly keen on the column auto either - I always felt that a floor shift with proper console should have been fitted. But as you say, they were desgined with the Yanks in mind, and that's the setup they preferred in luxury cruisers. No doubt those large wide seats were designed to accommodate the American's signature large wide aah-rses also!
The only small criticism I have is that you only keep mentioning the Cadillac as a comparison competitor - but what about the equally impressive and equally luxurious Ford Lincoln Continentals and the Chysler Imperials? The latter, arguably were some of the most well engineered and amazing luxury cars ever made in the USA. And although you mentioned the small displacement engine, you neglected to mention that compared to the V8 loving Americans - the Jag was only a 6 cylinder. No wonder they didn't sell many in the States. If they had had the venerable V12 in it, I'm sure it would have sold a great many more units over there.
Thanks for reading.
As ever, great description and analysis of one of the UK's historically significant cars.
No one used seatbelts back then. As a small child I used to be flung from one side to the other across the enormous back seat of my dads 420G. Great fun. Also my sister and I often sat side by side quite comfortably in the front passenger seat.
Thankyou for your obsessive enthusiasm for motoring. Love to hear your drooling lust for Jaguar. I have an X type, probably the worst of them all but they have a huge following online, owners seem to love them. The Jaguar that had to be made to save Jaguar and made them reliable and attainable. I do love that Mark 2 you keep showing, possibly the best of them.
With cars like the Mk X, among many others - 3 electric SUV:s are not enough to continue Jaguar’s story … Thanks for this fantastic enthusiastic revue by this young man 🤙🏻
I remember well when I first set eyes on one of these in the early 1960s and fell in love with it, but no way could I afford to buy or even run one! Years later I purchased a used 'K' reg (1992) XJ6 - a lovely vehicle. It had the 2.9 engine but unfortunately it was plagued with electronic problems - so sad since when it was behaving itself it was motoring joy par excellence!
As your title states, I'd forgotten about the Jaguar Mark X. Thank you, Ed, for a highly informative and entertaining video.
There was also the Mark X long wheelbase (which my father had) and that was really spacious in the back.
1961? Get outa here! What a gorgeous setta wheels
Remember seeing one on a ferry i Denmark in the late ninetees....did'nt know what it was, because I only knew XJ6 , and it looked more like some sort of daimler....But yes, it was a huge car , and vere impressive
Thanks for this! As a Yank, I'd vaguely heard of the Mk10 once or twice but didn't know anything about them. And now having watched this video, and being a big fan of the odd, the underdogs, the forgotten, etc., I'm now finding myself in love with the Mk10 and wanting one! :D
Interior scaling reminds me of my 1994 Infiniti Q45 - its 1989 spring Nissan debut as a new Infiniti Division featured Nissan production body styling sans grill, a fond copy of the XJ sport sedan roofline, with shiny "jewel-like" oval door trim around its handles, and adding a fantastic drivetrain and powerful 32 valve V8 but having a drivetrain tunnel and less interior room than the 1986 debut Acura Legend fwd with its 24 valve overhead cam 2.5L sedan, despite a length of 197". Yet Jaguar styling has been, and continues to be memorable. Off topic: flashback Jaguar gorgeous, beautiful & jaw dropping supercar XJ220 debut on US TV as the Fast Masters series that featured Racing IROC style with USAC, SCCA, NASCAR & Indy 500 Champions of at least 50 years of age, e.g, Al Unser, Bobby Unser, David Hobbs, Parnelli Jones, too bad they couldn't stretch their legs in the temporary bull ring size speedways with tight turns that allowed experienced veterans to use bump and run tactics to enter a corner...sill they were way fast and competed for sales in high six figures with Ferrari F40's and McLaren's exotic supercars.
Had two of these. Great cars. Interestingly, the 420G in the clip is sporting the earlier Mk 10 hubcaps. By the time the 10 morphed into the G, the hubcaps were of the same style as the early XJ cars. My two cars were both 3.8’s…with quite a few detail differences to the car shown. Interesting also that this car is minus the chrome swage trims, but, if my memory serves me correctly, two-tone cars were delivered minus these trims. Brought back some good memories…I even wore Doc Marten shoes and boots back in the very early 1990’s too when I had the cars. Interesting to watch this.
Hi from Sydney, Australia. Re the hub caps , I bet I know why. In March 1975 I bought a left-hand drive '65 Mk10 4.2 litre. as a 19 yr old I could only afford it as it was a "lepper" with 15months to go before in Aust' 1st July 1976 ALL LHD cars would have their registration cancelled by national law and never be allowed to drive on the road again until; they were RHD, I found a late '68 that elderly Brits' had brought out to Australia from the UK, however they had lived in Tasmania first & then relocated to Sydney where it failed its roadworthy to obtain NSW rego'. I bought it for next to nothing, in May uni break myself & my retired engineer grand-dad did the RHD swap as all the holes and firewall blanking plates are there, just a giant "meccano set " of a swap.
NOW, the caps the "genuine" 3.8 & 4.2 mk10 caps , unlike the other Jags of the period are made of thick brass and are very heavy. I put the more modern 420G caps on my '65 mk10 to "freshen" it up and sold it with them on. However, at time of sale the 420G caps had rust spec's on them.
In December 2012, I bought a 1967 420G it was a one owner car that had led a careful pampered life. But the only scrappy thing on the whole car was the pitting/rust spots on the hubcaps. I still had wrapped in a thick plastic wool sample bag all the '65 MK10 caps , it had started life in Geneva, Switzerland owned by the Aussie chief of mission to the World Health Organization, where roads are salted in winter, decades on the thick heavy brass mk10 caps are like new. I have fitted those to my 420G as well, I bet you this owner has done the same thing. As the premium car mk10's got brass hub caps when new and other Jags got steel ones that rust.
@@gregharvie3896 …interesting story Greg, I’m also in Australia and bought my first Mk 10 at 19 y.o. That car was a 1964 3.8 litre-Old English White with red interior trim. I still remember the engine number…ZB2011-8…and the registration plate was (WA) USA-794. It had the heavier hubcaps on, and, as these were on a 14” road wheel, they had interesting chrome rim embellishers that had a screw clip that locked the embellishers onto the rim. It had the Kelsey-Hayes square rubberised brake bellows and the power steering driven off the rear of the generator. I loved the triple S.U. 2 inch carburettors and the commonality of that engine to the Series 1 E-Type. I had some real adventures in that car, and I will say the 3.8 solid deck block was more robust than any 4.2 litre…a far better motor in my opinion. My car didn’t have the old DG auto box, that was swapped for a later model 12. Enjoy your 420G…they’re wonderful cars!!
@@OrnumCR H i do drive my mk10/420G all the time both mine have been Cream with Ox-blood a very dark maroon leather trim. All mine have had high output bronze heads I would not touch any Jag aluminium one as you know that you'll get head gasket fails as the two metals cool and warm at different temperatures. My mum had a brand new black November 1961 mk10, they had the power boost set up used by Chrysler for their premium "letter series" cars which had Imperial front end clips with a Chrysler Coupe centre & Imperial rear guards boot lid, light units. These beasts had a strange Mopar "disc" brake system that was half of a real disc brake kind of mixed with a drum brake in a weird cage unit and the identical Kelsey Hayes rubber bladder covered booster, Chev Corvettes with fuel injection in late '50's & early '60's also used the rubber bladder booster and also their own weird "disc" brakes that were similar to Mopar ones in a cage. The 3.8 mk10's have special wheels made to work with the strange Kelsey Hayes system and they flexed hence the screw clips. Jaguar were unhappy with client complaints with early bladder skin fails and with the wheels so went to Dunlop with all the disc brake work Jaguar themselves had done to convert this new WW2 aeroplane braking system to fit a big heavy car. 4.2 wheels and 3.8 car wheels will not interchange unless you pull off the alien brake systems as the wheels foul on the calipers, so jointly Dunlop-Jaguar designed the wheels, brakes & the Sports SP41 Aquajet tyres all to suit the late 1964 introduction of the 4.2 MK10 plus the wheels have the deepest safety ditch for the tyre bead to drop into. Recently I was swapping wheel rims and putting the nicest almost new looking wheel back in as the spare & swapping the tryes. I told the young guy in the tyre place to not use the thin steel shaft to try and break the bead, you will need the big lever arm unit with 2 "legs" attached both with the curved "feet" attached to force stretch the tyre in 2 places over the safety bead drop down. Didn't listen to me as moments later I heard the noise as thin steel tool snapped and the big broken piece became airborne and tore a huge hole in the color bond shed, the almost 18" long missing bit hit something outside as we heard it, but could not see what it hit, he had the wobbles from shock.
This came BEFORE the American muscle car era, and while no drag racer, it would've nearly held its own.
My late father had two Jaguar 420 "G"'s consecutively( the only visible difference to the "Mk 10" apart from the model designation on the boot(trunk in the "U.S") was the addition of a chrome strip highlighting the bodywork crease, in Africa during the 1970's.. Whilst I remember and drove, both cars fondly, the first in British Racing Green with Bottle Green Leather interior, I recall with special fondness. However I must also admit that being just over six foot, I had to "slouch" whilst in the rear seat, the rear headroom being too low to sit upright. There was also a disconcerting tendency for this model of the "Jag"
to "wallow"(like the American "land yachts" of times past) on corners when travelling at above average speeds. I only realised this when my father subsequently had a Mercedes Benz "350SE"(the first with the wrap around headlights) which I have to confess, was a far better engineered vehicle and which outperformed, the "Jag" on every level..
i own 2 420G's (Later Mk 10 4.2) One is my daily drive. They are an amazing car, they still keep up in modern traffic with all round disc brakes and handle like a smaller car. Economy is not great but not as bad as some people claim. As the XK4.2 engine was used in every so many models up the series 3 XJ6, its pretty easy to get parts
The first car I ever went in, being brought home from the hospital in my dad's one when I was born!! Probably only a few days old... I vaguely remember touring in it to Beaulieu with the family, I'll never forget the smell of the leather and the acres of wood, including the little fold down picnic tables in the back of the front seats. I then spent the next 14 or so years looking at it, and another one parked next to it, rotting away on the front lawn until someone came along to save them and convinced my dad to let them go. One was a '68 (F or G-plate, can't quite remember) in dark blue and the other a '70 on a H-plate in 2-tone blue. Shame I don't have any photos, but I do remember the H-plate car had a 5 digit registration, i.e., ABC 1H... I would love to have restored one myself, especially the one I came home in. I wonder where they are now??
Thank you for this great video!
Another Brilliant video Ed, really enjoyed learning about the history of this gorgeous looking Jag.
Thanks as always mate 🙂
My absolute favorite Jaguar.
These MkX and 420's were really loved for banger racing, it's a wonder any are left really.
One of my top 5 Jags, awesome.
Front interior is a mixture of luxury and muscle!
Enjoyed your presentation and enthusiasm... lovely car - it's a shame it wasn't more successful. The interior is stunning.
one of the best jags - love the story of the v12 MkX when they were testing the v12s ,
For a youngster, you have the same enthusiasm that I had at your age. I still love 50's-60's-70's British cars. I did my apprenticeship in the late 70's-early 80's on cars and HGV's. My finances are good enough to buy a great British classic....It's a bit of a shame that recent health issues dictate otherwise.... Also, your presentation is excellent, and you now have another subscriber!
Brilliant video.
One of my all time favorites. Fabulous ❤
As an Aussie, I’ve always adored American cars from the 40’s to the 70’s. The 50’s cars being my favourite as they are just works of rolling art that seem to be very well proportioned aesthetically while being successfully audacious in said aesthetics. America absolutely built the best looking cars.
Here in Australia, our cars of the day benefited from that beautiful American styling but have slightly smaller/sensible European dimensions and were fantastically reliable and very easy to work on.
Despite my personal dislike of European cars,,, that mark 10 jag and the e type I have to agree,,, are spectacular looking cars. Interior/ dashboard is very boring and bland like most European cars but I’d look past that purely for the aesthetics of it the rest of the car.
I’d love a turquoise metallic mark 10 with a white interior, low, with whitewall tyres and powered by a healthy small block chev v8. That would make a fantastic cruiser man.