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So, last October or so my beautiful 2001 XK8 had a heart attack ...and it was still young at only 38-1/2 (thousand miles). Not exactly sure what happened but it definitely developed a bad rod knock. I loved the car and just lowered it and had the convertible lines replaced and all new suspension and etc. etc.... so I had to do something. Now I always figured when my transmission died from the dreaded A-drum failure I would then consider an LS swap (for a lot of reasons). Well, rather than fix the motor and then wait for the A-drum to fail, I figured I would bite the bullet and do the LS swap now.
I talked to Andrew at Jaguar Specialties and bought his conversion kit and he gave me a local contact who did the LS swap a few years ago. So I met with him and saw his car ( a beautiful red 1997 XK8 with an LS3 under the hood) and was sold. So I ended up buying a complete engine from him and then found a local guy in Pompano Beach to do the work. I found them on Yelp, believe it or not, but it was a great choice . The owner of Jackson Performance is Chris Jackson and he is BIG into drifting and LS swaps... he founded the US Drift Association and is at the track almost every weekend. And he is putting LS engines in everything from a Datsun 260z to a BMW 3-series to a 1986 Cutlass and anything else you can imagine. He was reasonable at $90/hr (after a 10% discount) and its estimated to be a 70 hour job.
So, long story short, I ended up with a 408 stroker motor (forged everything) with LS6 heads and a nice cam. The heads, cam, intake, fuel injection and ALL accessories came from the motor I bought from Keith (with the 97 jag) and then I bought a brand new 408 short block and a rebuilt 4L65E transmission (automatic, for now). Exhaust was finished this week and Wednesday it is going to the Dyno... so I am fairly STOKED.
The jaguar purists may not like it (not that I care) but I see it as I gave the old jag a whole new life. I will post more in the next week or two after I get the car back.
The 408 is in!! Looking almost ready! New exhaust with Magnaflow mufflers. The car is a sleeper...
The jaguar purists may not like it (not that I care) but I see it as I gave the old jag a whole new life.
I will post more in the next week or two after I get the car back.
blindside, it's your car, you should feel absolutely free to do with it whatever you want without having to justify it to anyone.
What I hate seeing are all those beautiful but neglected XK8s that get discarded to be crushed in the salvage yards by uncaring owners.
You obviously care, you've saved a broken Jag from an ignoble end, and you've sustained a thing of grace.
I look forward with great interest to seeing your progress (and adventures) with YOUR Jaguar.
Last edited by sanchius; Jul 17, 2020 at 08:49 AM.
Im guessing roughly between labor+engine+exhaust,everything you spent $14-15k?
Im in Wellington, love to take a look at it one day ..
All told I am still not sure what it is costing... I think it is like $20k-25k. I was hoping it was $15k-20k but the first motor I bought from my friend had some issues so I had to buy a new 408 short block and that was $5,000. But, even if it is $25k that is fine... it's a beautiful perfect car and I will have it forever. If I didn't have the Jag and wanted a classic beauty it would be $50k+ so I'll be very happy with the Jag. The little things add up in the build... the exhaust was $900, the custom wiring harness (and computer) was a grand, the new driveshaft was like $300, I replaced the three center gauges with Water Temp, Oil Pressure and a Wideband and they were like $300, the transmission was $2,000 and the kit from Jaguar Specialties and a few other items was like $2,500 or $3,000 and so on...
Definitely DM me as you aren't that far away (my best friend lives in Wellington) so we should definitely meet up.
Last edited by blindside; Jul 17, 2020 at 05:00 PM.
Great news.
Glad she's nearly back together after the near-death experience. Just too much car to throw away.
Agree with mhminnich, tho' about losing the hot-air intake.
I'm a purist at heart, but I applaud what you've done for exactly the reasons sanchius stated.
Definitely DM me as you aren't that far away (my best friend lives in Wellington) so we should definitely meet up.
Will do,,
I know not a lot going on with the covid stuff but are there any weekend car meets out here?
I used to live in Loxahatchee 20 years ago before i moved to Texas,
my GF lives in wellington, we usually travel a lot back and forth but ever since this started
I have been out of work so been staying here full time till my work starts up again,,
besides Palm beach raceway really dont know much of the car scene here.
Well normally there are regular car shows going on all the time... you could probably find a couple every week year round without driving too far. Now, not so much, unfortunately...
Get rid of that dumb heat - sucking air filter, or put it in a box vented to the fender like it should be, and you'll have an exceptional ride!
Yes, that's a good idea. I will have to do something for sure... would like to box it in with direct front access through the mesh grill perhaps or at least use the oem air input..
Yesterday was Dyno-Monday for my car and it put out some very impressive numbers! They tuned it first and then it went on the dyno and it put out 390HP and 443 ft/lbs of torque! If I use an 18% estimated loss through the automatic trans drivetrain that would give me an estimated 460HP and 523 Torque at the crank! It has been almost 11 months since my since my engine failed and I am anxious to get back this new and improved version, the "408 xk8" (or maybe the "408 JAG"... still working on that one). I posted a few videos below from the tuning and one of the earlier dyno runs.
What a beauty these cars are... from any angle. This was the final pass on the dyno (after a set of new plugs). You can hear in the videos a little popping from fouled plugs...
Yesterday was Dyno-Monday for my car and it put out some very impressive numbers! They tuned it first and then it went on the dyno and it put out 390HP and 443 ft/lbs of torque! If I use an 18% estimated loss through the automatic trans drivetrain that would give me an estimated 460HP and 523 Torque at the crank! It has been almost 11 months since my since my engine failed and I am anxious to get back this new and improved version, the "408 xk8" (or maybe the "408 JAG"... still working on that one). I posted a few videos below from the tuning and one of the earlier dyno runs.
390HP and 443 ft/lbs through an open diff should be entertaining! I picked up a somewhat ratty 2000 XK8 that I plan to do an LS swap on. Every thread I read on a completed install is an inspiration to me.
Yesterday was Dyno-Monday for my car and it put out some very impressive numbers! They tuned it first and then it went on the dyno and it put out 390HP and 443 ft/lbs of torque! If I use an 18% estimated loss through the automatic trans drivetrain that would give me an estimated 460HP and 523 Torque at the crank! It has been almost 11 months since my since my engine failed and I am anxious to get back this new and improved version, the "408 xk8" (or maybe the "408 JAG"... still working on that one).
Surely it is now a Jaguar XK408 or an XK6.7 depending whether you are being metric or imperial?
Any problems with computer controls/indications? One conversion I had seen said to expect "CEL" or other computer generated warning lights on constantly.
Clarifying XK8 LS Conversion- Warning lights and messages.....
Hello all, this is Andrew from Jaguar Specialties. I wanted to ad some comments to the thread above purely for technical content, and not to convince anyone to do anything. In our business, in general, there is often misinformation floating around regarding the procedures, capabilities, and other technical aspects of these conversions. I always try to make sure the correct info is out there for readers to avoid them coming to the wrong conclusions....
To clarify on the key topic of clean electronic integration of the LS into the XK8/XKR (and also similarly into 98-03 XJ8's), a critical part of our conversion kit is the XJ/XK CAN interface module. This is a specially made electronic box with special software that essentially translates GM LS engine information (rpm, water temp, CEL/check engine light status on and off, and more) for the car. This keeps the chassis happy and as a result there are not extraneous warning lights or messages on the dash, at any time. All other key functions on the car remain operative as before- speed sensitive steering, full HVAC function, ABS and more. (Note- we are not fooling the original Jag ECM and TCM- they are removed from the car. Our interface unit speaks directly to the Jag chassis CAN network). Nothing on the car itself is altered- the dash cluster, for example, remains completely stock and untouched. The only time a CEL is on is when the GM LS computer turns it on. Years ago some fellows from LS1Tech asked me to post videos of our prototype XK8 LS conversion car and specifically the CAN function/dash interaction. It's not a great video (I should really do an update), but you can easily see how it all works:
The development and success of this module was a major achievement for us for these cars. The Jaguar CAN language/messaging is proprietary so getting access into it was an (expensive) exercise in backwards engineering, done with an automotive communications consultant. And it works beautifully- the car functions just as it did originally. Except for the substantial additional power.......
Just a final word on power- due to the way we handle the driveline in these installations, it is possible to switch the differential to a larger, higher capacity unit, with options for limited slip, and more aggressive ratios (3.27, 3.58 etc.,.), So for some of the higher HP applications, a good option to put down that power is easily accessible. And the cost for this sort of upgrade, even using a rebuilt differential, is less than half that of the Quaife option that floated around for years (are they still in business???)
Any problems with computer controls/indications? One conversion I had seen said to expect "CEL" or other computer generated warning lights on constantly.
Although it something of a boutique product, there is also a 6-speed manual trans version of the XK8-LS conversion. We utilize the very same CAN interface here to communicate with the car and all functions work just as they do in the automatic version. The car itself doesn't seem to care what trans is in it. Had I not used such flashy brake and clutch pedal pads, the install could probably pass for a factory setup...
My LS Swap Journey is almost over!!!
...and it was still young at only 38-1/2 (thousand miles). Not exactly sure what happened but it definitely developed a bad rod knock. I loved the car and just lowered it and had the convertible lines replaced and all new suspension and etc. etc.... so I had to do something. Now I always figured when my transmission died from the dreaded A-drum failure I would then consider an LS swap (for a lot of reasons). Well, rather than fix the motor and then wait for the A-drum to fail, I figured I would bite the bullet and do the LS swap now.
