1967 JAGUAR 420

Nice clean, olid, nmolested car. Minimal rust on lower front fender rail, tandard place for it. Easy fix. Car has newly rebuilt carbs and new battery. Paint looks to be at least 20 years old but a great foundation for a true British enthusiast.StylingThe starting point for design of the 420/Sovereign was the Jaguar S-Type, hich had been in production since 1963 but whose styling had never met with universal acceptance.In styling terms, he 420/Sovereign was essentially an S-Type with that car's curvaceous nose made much more linear, he better to match its rear styling (which was not altered). Contouring around its four lamps was relatively subtle, ith small peaks over each, nd its flat frontage sloped forward slightly. The square grille with central divider matched that of the 420G, which was the new name given to the Mark X at the time of the 420/Sovereign's release). The low-set fog lamps of the Mark 2 and S-Type were replaced by a pair of inner headlamps at the same level as the main headlamps. The inner lamps were lit on main beam only. Dummy horn grilles were added below each inner headlamp to break up what would otherwise have been a large expanse of flat metal on either side of the radiator grille. The tops of the front wheel arches were flattened to match the squarer lines of the nose. The slimline bumpers dispensed with the centre dip which had characterised the bumpers of the Mark 2 and S-Type. All this was done to improve the car's aesthetic balance compared with the S-Type and to create a family resemblance to the Mark X/420G, hanges which Sir William could not afford (in either time or money) when the S-Type was designed. No attempt was made to give the 420/Sovereign the same front-hinged bonnet as the Mark X/420G and it retained a rear-hinged bonnet of similar dimensions to those of the S-Type and Mark 2.InteriorChanges to the S-Type's interior to create the 420/Sovereign were driven mainly by safety considerations, ith the wood cappings on the doors and dashboard replaced with padded Rexine and a wooden garnish rail on the tops of the door linings. The clock was relocated from the tachometer to the centre of the dashboard top rail, here it was powered by its own battery. The S-Type's pull out map tray below the central instrument panel was not carried over although the 420 retained the same central console and under-dash parcel tray. The seats of the 420 were of slightly different proportions from the S-Type, lthough they appeared very similar.EngineThe 4.2-litre XK engine of the 420/Sovereign was fitted with the straight port cylinder head and 3/8-inch lift cams. Compression ratios of 7:1, :1 and 9:1 could be specified according to local fuel quality, he difference being obtained by varying the crown design of the pistons. The engine was fed by just two carburettors and developed a claimed 245 bhp (183 kW; 248 PS) gross at 5,500 rpm, hich was 20 bhp (15 kW; 20 PS) less than the triple-carburettor version in the 420G and E-Type. The maximum torque of the engine at 283 lb·ft (384 N·m) was virtually the same as that of the triple-carburettor version yet was achieved at 3,750 rpm rather than 4,000 rpm.The factory-quoted horsepower rating of 245 bhp (183 kW; 248 PS) was measured using the SAE (gross) system current in the USA at the time the 420/Sovereign was sold there. The SAE (gross) system excluded many accessory drives and often used non-standard induction and exhaust systems and so was replaced by the more accurate SAE (net) system in 1972, ong after the 420/Sovereign had gone out of production. Reference states that the DIN horsepower rating of the 1977 USA specification 4.2-litre Series II XJ6 was equivalent to 180 bhp. The DIN system yields horsepower ratings which, or most technical purposes, re the same as those that would be obtained using the SAE (net) system. However, he 1977 test would have included power-sapping emissions equipment not present on the 420/Sovereign. Therefore, he SAE (net) power rating of the 420/Sovereign must have lain somewhere between 180 bhp and 245 bhp.MechanicalA novel mechanical feature that the 420/Sovereign shared with the 420G was Marles Varamatic power steering, hich was offered as an option on the 420 but was standard on the Sovereign. Built by Adwest Engineering Co Ltd of Reading, ngland, t was a "cam and roller" system in which the non-constant pitch of the cam resulted in a variable steering ratio, ith the lowest gearing being at the straight ahead, ising rapidly to either lock. The rise in gearing (equivalent to a drop in ratio from 21.6:1 to 13:1) occurred almost entirely within the first half turn of the steering wheel from the straight-ahead position. The effect was to give very light and relaxed steering at the straight ahead, ith quick reaction when cornering. There was no adjustment in the behaviour of the steering in reaction to road speed. A very few of the last S-Types were similarly equipped.Other mechanical refinements the 420/Sovereign had over the S-Type included:• replacement of the Borg Warner Type 35 automatic transmission with the stronger Model 8• a more efficient cross-flow radiator in place of the S-Type's smaller vertical flow type• a dual-line hydraulic braking system replacing the S-Type's single line system• twin 2-inch HD8 SU carburettors (cf. the S-Type's twin 1.75-inch HD6 SUs)• brake discs featuring a peripheral cast-iron anti-squeal ring• a Holset "Torquatrol" viscous coupled engine cooling fan• negative earthing, he S-Type was positive earth• a pre-engaged starter instead of a Bendix pinion• an alternator rather than the S-Type's dynamoPerformanceContemporary road tests indicate that the performance of the 420 and Sovereign was very highly thought of.A Motor (UK) road test in May 1967 reported:It seems somehow insolent to apply medium [price] standards to a saloon that for a combination of speed, omfort and safety is as good as any in the world, egardless of cost.A North American perspective was provided by Road & Track, hose December 1967 report concluded:Jaguar's big seller in the U.S. remains the E-type sports cars, ut the 420 sedan offers just as unique a combination of qualities in its own field. For a reasonable basic price of $5900, aguar offers brisk performance, utstanding braking, xcellent handling and ride, uality finish, nd luxury in abundance, ll in an automobile that's easy to maneuver in today's maddening traffic.A road test by Wheels (Australia) in August 1967 enthused:While they can continue to build and sell cars as good as this, here is hope for the man who cares about his motoring.In terms of performance measured under test conditions, –60 mph in under 10 seconds and a top speed of more than 125 mph (201 km/h) were typical. Such performance figures were superior to those of many of the 4.2-litre XJ6 models that followed. Among the few exceptions the testers took was to its 15–16mpg average fuel consumption, hich even for the late 1960s was rather high. Combined with the modest size of its two 7 Imperial gallon (31.75 litre) fuel tanks, uch fuel consumption gave the model a touring range of only around 250 miles (403 km).