i know i have a 97 xk but one day i will want a change, i'm 20 years young, and my cousin has a turbo wrx. we go out driving and his wrx is so much more fun to drive around curvy roads. this is what i want my xk to do, i know it has prestiege and passion behind the name but then they also have a race bread backround. you guys talk about how it would ruin the car but i dont see it as ruining it, i see a unique race bread xk. so down to my question has anyone ever put a new v8 vantage transmission in it. watch this video they have the same engine. go to around 2:40 but the whole thing is good. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dvWXJkMCUJ4

 

I can't answer your specific question, sorry, but I'll bet you're not the first one wondering about a manual trans conversion. Besides actual installation you'd have to consider the eletrical architecture of the car and how the transmission is integrated....which would probably be as much of a challenge as the installation itself. Others will chime in, no doubt.

You might find that an XKR comes closer to what you want but not even it will have the feel of of a WRX. I've driven a slew of WRXs and they're a gas, for sure, but feel like a little tin box compared to a Jag.No surprise....two entirely different concepts. I'dwouldn't mindowning one (WRX) as a little weekend warrior.

I enjoyed the video. I sorta got a kick about the part where the AM with a 0-60 time of less than 5 seconds is considered a slowpoke. Times sure have changed. A few years ago that was rocketship territory !

Cheers
DD

 

The money it would cost you to turn your XK into a true sports car (it would take more than a manual tranny) would greatly exceed the cost of an STi, which is a whole lot more fun than a WRX. If money were no object, I'd say go for it anyways, it'd be cool to see.