Merv Hagen's 1973 Jaguar Series III E-Type with Ford Windsor V8 (351cid)

Merv Hagen's 1973 Jaguar E-Type with Ford 351 Windsor

as published in BritishV8 Magazine, Volume XVIII Issue I, December 2010

Owner: Merv Hagen
BritishV8 UserID: Merv
City: Dundee, Illinois
Model: 1973 Jaguar Series III 2+2
Engine: Ford 351 Windsor V8
Conversion performed by: a previous owner.

Engine: Ford 351 Windsor V8 engine. Ford aluminum two barrel intake manifold with Holley carburetor. Ford Duraspark II breakerless (magnetically triggerred). 100 amp 1-wire Delco-style alternator.
Cooling: stock Jaguar.
Exhaust: cast iron Ford manifolds with custom pipes (& crossover) connecting to stock Jaguar V12 mufflers and resonator.
Transmission: Ford C4 automatic. Custom driveshaft.
Rear Axle: stock Jaguar (IRS) with 2.88:1 final drive ratio.
Front Suspension: completely rebuilt to stock specs, except for the addition of polyurethane bushings. (The Ford engine is about 150 pounds lighter then the Jaguar V12.)
Rear Suspension: stock Jaguar.
Wheels/Tires: Dayton wire spoke knock-off 15X6 wheels with Dunlop 205/70VR15 tires
Brakes: stock Jaguar (rebuilt).
Interior: stock.
Comments: I purchased this Jaguar in July 2009, from a gentleman who purchased it in 1985/86. In 1987 he removed the V12 and replaced with a Ford 351 Windsor V8 along with a Ford C4 automatic transmission. In 2002 he had body and paint redone. He had a new short block installed in the fall of 2008.

I've always wanted an E-Type. The fact that this one already had a Ford V8 made it even more desirable to me. I would have hated to have been the one to pull out the V12 drivetrain, but now that it's been done I'm free to do whatever I want to this car. The engine conversion was basically sound. However, when I got the car the front suspension was simply terrible. Brakes had all of the typical Jaguar problems. The electrical wiring was quite "unique"; it had a nasty habit of completely stopping the engine at the worst possible times. The more I work on this car, the more sorted it is. Almost all systems now work as they should.

I have only put about 1500 miles on this car as of July 2010 (most of it in the last 2 months) so as of now it is simply a matter of getting acquainted, with cars good and bad points. This car is a work in process and I have no idea where it is going to go (although 400+ HP and a 5 speed sound pretty good). I'm sure that I'll spend much more money than it's worth. I often wonder why we do this, but I guess that it all comes down to one thing: it sure is FUN!

Ford 351 Windsor V8 engine. Ford aluminum two barrel intake manifold with Holley carburetor.
Ford 351 Windsor V8 engine. Ford aluminum two barrel intake manifold with Holley carburetor.

Ford Duraspark II breakerless (magnetically triggered). 100 amp 1-wire Delco-style alternator.
Ford Duraspark II breakerless (magnetically triggered). 100 amp 1-wire Delco-style alternator.

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In 1987 the previous owner had swapped the original V12 for a Ford 351 Windsor V8.
Merv purchased his Jaguar E-Type in July 2009, from a gentleman who purchased it in 1985/86.
In 1987 the previous owner had swapped the original V12 for a Ford 351 Windsor V8.


The body was gone over and a new paint job was applied in 2002.
The body was gone over and a new paint job was applied in 2002.


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