This 1963 Jaguar Mk II was initially delivered to the Tokyo, Japan-based distributor, and it was later brought into the US. It was purchased approximately sixty years ago by the seller’s father, who later installed a replacement 3.8-liter XK inline-six in place of the factory 2.5-liter unit. Refinished years ago in white, the car is equipped with a four-speed Moss gearbox, a re-geared 3.54:1 rear end, steel wheels, Lucas H4 headlamps, LED tail lights, red leather upholstery, and wooden cabin trim. The car was offered on BaT in October 2020, and work since then has included converting the electrical system to negative ground, installing a Lucas voltmeter and a period-look alternator, and replacing the rear shocks, fuel pump, battery, ignition components, and clutch slave cylinder. This Mk II is now offered with a Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust Certificate, literature, a variety of spare parts, the removed 2.5-liter engine block, and a clean California title in the seller’s name that lists the model year as “0000.”
Finished from the factory in Black, the car was repainted in its current shade of white at least 45 years ago, per the seller, and signs of wear are noted in the paintwork. Recent work has included fitting Lucas H4 headlights up front, LED bulbs out back, and rewiring the fog lamps and horn. Black paint remains visible, including in the doorjambs.
Color-matched 15″ steel wheels with chrome hubcaps are wrapped in 185-series Vredestein Sprint Classic tires. The brake system was overhauled prior to October 2020, and the rear shocks have been replaced and the brake fluid has been flushed since then.
The cabin is trimmed in red leather and features a wooden dashboard and wood trim accents. The front seats were reupholstered in 2019 using replacement foam, and a tear in the headliner has been sewn closed. The seller tells us that the cabin lighting bulbs have been removed, as their circuits do not turn off when the doors are closed. The analog clock does not work, the manual crank for the radio antenna is inoperable, and the radio works but was proactively disconnected when the electrical system was converted to negative ground, per the seller. Replacement weather seals for the doors are included in the sale.
The two-spoke steering wheel fronts a burl wood dashboard with Smiths instrumentation that was rebuilt by XKs Unlimited. The five-digit odometer shows 16k miles, approximately 3k of which have been added by the seller over the past 25 years. A wood-rim Moto-Lita steering wheel accompanies the sale.
The seller’s father installed an XK-specification 3,781cc inline-six approximately 45 years ago in place of the factory 2,483cc inline-six. The engine features dual SU carburetors, a conversion to a period-look alternator, and a negative-ground electrical system. An overhaul circa 2010 by XKs Unlimited in San Luis Obispo, California, included bead-blasting, resurfacing the cylinder head, fitting a stainless-steel exhaust system, and rodding the radiator. Recent work following the previous BaT auction has included:
- replacing the fuel pump and voltmeter
- flushing the radiator
- replacing ignition components
Power is sent to the rear wheels via the factory Moss four-speed manual transmission with a re-geared 3.54:1 rear end. The clutch slave cylinder was replaced recently. Additional photographs of the underside are provided in the gallery below.
The Jaguar Heritage Trust certificate lists initial delivery to a Tokyo, Japan-based distributor following assembly on December 19, 1960. The certificate lists engine, body, and gearbox numbers and indicates that the car was originally finished in black.