23
Victor Naumann recommends Publication #S-58, XJ-S Engine Performance. “It has photos and diagrams of ignition
and fuel systems, all the controls and switches and a good section on maintenance procedures, setting throttle plates and
linkage and checking the potentiometer etc.”
Jaguar XJS Gold Portfolio 1975-1988, compiled by R. M. Clarke, is a collection of road tests, specifications,
comparisons, and reports on racing and other modifications. It is published by Brooklands Book Distribution Ltd.,
“Holmerise”, Seven Hills Road, Cobham, Surrey, UK.
John T. Horner suggests “There is a brochure type booklet written by Jaguar when the V12 was introduced and which
is sometimes still available: Genesis of the Jaguar V12. It has a good official summary of the history and
specifications as well as beautiful color overlay drawings of an engine cutaway. I think Bookspeed in the UK may still
offer it.” This author has acquired a copy of this book; it isn’t much from a maintenance standpoint, but it cannot be
beat for instilling an appreciation of one of the finest automotive engines ever designed, providing a concise history and
background of the engine’s development. From an XJ-S owner’s standpoint, the worst thing about the book is that it
truly applies to the original Jaguar V12 introduced in the Series III E-type; many of the details changed by the time
most XJ-S’s were built. The engine shown in the book has carburetors, a canister-type oil filter mounted under the
front end of the sump, an oil-to-coolant oil cooler, an oil pan that is no wider than the bottom of the block, an alternator
mounted backwards so it sticks out the front of the engine, etc.
Bookspeed’s address is on page 720. Genesis of the Jaguar V12 is also available from Classic Motorbooks, page 720.
Lawrence Buja recommends Jaguar Driver Technical Tips by Bob Bate, ©1990, R.G. Bate Publishing, 501 Cleveland
St., Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. “Technical Tips is a huge collection of tech articles published in the Jaguar
Driver Club magazine by a professional Jaguar mechanic. It is about 500 pages long and covers an immense range of
topics all related to the real-world operation, diagnosis and repair of Jaguar automobiles.” Makoto Honjo adds, “Bob
does advertise on the JDC, whose flier I sought for a lead. Well, turns out that Jaguar Driver Technical Tips is his
private and is available through him at GBP40 (hey, you've got to pay for quality). You can call him at phone +44-151-
653-6765 for a copy.”
TECHNICAL PAPERS: In the US the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) maintains a collection of technical
papers. Paper #720163, by Walter T. F. Hassan of Jaguar Cars Ltd., Div., British Leyland Motor Corp., is a quite
detailed engineering study of the development of the Jaguar V12. Of course, the paper predates such later
developments as the H.E. Bob Weisickle points out that SAE papers can be ordered from:
http://www.sae.org/
but note that they only offer recent papers online; older papers don’t even show up in a search! You’ll have to call SAE
at +1 (724) 776-4970 Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Eastern time to get older publications.
In the UK there is a similar paper titled “Jaguar V12 Engine - Its Design and Background”, also by Hassan, from the
Technical, Administrative and Supervisory Section of the Amalgamated Union of Engineering Workers
(AUEW-TASS), Onslow Hall, Little Green, Richmond, Surrey.
Roger Bywater says “there is also a similar Institute of Mechanical Engineers paper by Harry Mundy from about the
same time (1972).”
SERVICE RECORDS: Chad Bolles: “...just go to any dealer’s service dept., give them the serial no. of your car; they
can pull it up on the computer and give you the available history.”
FUEL ECONOMY: Keeping an eye on fuel consumption is an excellent way to monitor your car’s condition. Since
EPA ratings are generally unreliable in the real world, it is helpful to know what kind of fuel consumption the XJ-S
should have: