1975 Jaguar XJ6 - XJ6 4.2 Litre

Early Series 2 model with the larger engine

Highly attractive colour combination

With the consignor for 25 years

Delivered new in Vienna

When Jaguar introduced the XJ6 in 1968, William Lyons first set about having a thorough clear-out of his own model range. The Mark 2, S-Type, 420 and eventually the enormous 420G – from now on, a single saloon was expected to do almost everything. It had to be sporting, luxurious and spacious, naturally look like a Jaguar and yet not cost the earth. Modest requirements, then.

Lyons pulled it off. Beneath the long bonnet sat the well-proven XK straight-six, with either 2.8 or 4.2 litres. The latter suited the XJ6 particularly well: refined, powerful and with ample reserves for speeds to which British motorways raised remarkably few objections in those days. Even more impressive was the chassis. Independent suspension all round, four disc brakes and a sophisticated rear axle allowed the big Jaguar to float over poor roads while still getting around corners with surprising enthusiasm. Other manufacturers still tended to regard comfort and sporting ability as two separate boxes on the order form.

The Series 2 followed in 1973. New safety regulations required higher bumpers, which meant a shallower radiator grille and a new face for the XJ. The interior was revised as well, while the proven mechanical recipe remained largely untouched.

By then, the XJ had long since become the backbone of Jaguar. It could be had with six or twelve cylinders, as a Daimler and even as a particularly handsome coupé. There was something for almost every taste. The British motor industry of the 1970s, meanwhile, was going through a phase in which quality control was occasionally treated as more of a philosophical concept. The name of parent company British Leyland even lent itself rather neatly to a mocking pun in German-speaking countries. That did the XJ6 a considerable injustice. Few other saloons offered so much elegance, comfort and speed for the money. Leather and wood came in abundance, and so did presence. Only boredom remained refreshingly difficult to order from Jaguar.

This XJ6 dates from 1975 and was therefore still equipped with the larger carburettors before American emissions regulations forced Jaguar to adopt smaller ones. Its grey paintwork and black vinyl roof, complete with sunroof, give it a particularly elegant appearance. “Understatement at its best,” as the English might say.

In the spring of 1975, the XJ6 was delivered new to a company in central Vienna. After two further owners in Vienna, it came to the consignor at the end of 2001. He registered his Jaguar the following January and moved back to his native Salzburg with it in 2005. Although no longer registered there, the sporting saloon continued to be driven and maintained regularly. While the paintwork has already been renewed, the wonderfully British interior remains charmingly original, with exactly the right amount of patina. For fifty years now, this XJ6 has been proving that elegance and eccentricity make very good companions indeed.