I’ve always liked the profile of the Jaguar XJ-S. It’s reputation as a temperamental Brit aside, the car’s style just looks sexy to me. It’s got the long hood/short deck down pat, but also has that old charm of leather and wood and chrome…and oil leaks. The XJ-S might be pretty, but they have a reputation for a reason. A gentleman who was friends with my grandfather drove his car for five months after he bought it in late 1988, and then moved it along for a Lincoln LSC. His reasoning: the car stained his driveway like the Exxon Valdez.

We all know that Chevrolet V8 swaps have been common in these cars for decades. They are proven, they are reasonable in cost, there’s a solid aftermarket and they can move an old Jag much faster than anybody in Coventry would’ve expected. But, what’s that sound? Oh, right on cue…the anti-Chevrolet league. Ok, fine…for once, we have something to placate you:

Somewhere in time, a first-gen Viper was separated from it’s 8.0L V-10 engine…probably after a cocky driver remembered what no ABS does in panic mode. The engine survived, got a boost in power to a claimed 500 or so, and got dropped into the Jag, connected up to the only appropriate transmission, a six-speed manual. It won’t sound V8 swapped. It won’t behave like a sporting wardrobe. It will look like a refined Jaguar, the car yuppies salivated over in the 1980s, and it will run like a redneck on speed thanks to the Mopar-sourced mill. Grand tourer? In every sense of the word.

Proxibid Link: 1989 Jaguar XJS Cabriolet

(Courtesy: Bring A Trailer)