Jaguar E-Type Series 3 (1971-1975): the V12 E-Type

The Jaguar E-Type Series 3 is the version that traded sharpness for silk. Built from 1971 to 1974, it abandoned the XK straight-six that had powered every previous Jaguar sports car and replaced it with a brand-new 5.3-litre V12, one of the smoothest engines of its era. The result is the most relaxed and grand of all the E-Types, and the cheapest way into the family.

This page covers the Series 3 in detail. For the full story and how it compares with the six-cylinder cars, see the main Jaguar E-Type guide.

A new engine and a new character

The headline of the Series 3 is the V12. Jaguar’s 5.3-litre single-overhead-cam engine was a statement of ambition, a smooth and quiet powerplant that gave the E-Type effortless, flowing performance and a character quite unlike the muscular six. Standard power steering and uprated brakes came with it, along with a wider track and broader wheels and tyres to put the extra weight and torque to the road.

The bodywork changed to suit. The Series 3 came only as a roadster or a 2+2 coupe, both built on the longer 2+2 wheelbase, so even the open car is a little bigger than the earlier roadsters. A large cross-slatted grille filled the now-bigger mouth, and the wheelarches were subtly flared. It is unmistakably an E-Type, but a softer, more imposing one.

The performance truth

It is tempting to assume the twelve-cylinder car was the fastest E-Type, and it was not. The V12 made more power than the six, but it added weight, and independent testing put its top speed at around 146 mph, much the same as the original 3.8. Where the V12 excelled was in the manner of its performance: smooth, quiet and torquey, pulling cleanly from low revs with no drama. The Series 3 is a grand tourer in a way the earlier cars never were, and judged on that basis rather than on outright pace it is a wonderful thing.

That character comes through on the road. The V12 pulls cleanly and quietly from almost nothing, with none of the effort of the older six, and it suits the longer, wider Series 3 body and its standard power steering. This is a car for covering long distances at a relaxed, rapid pace rather than for chasing apexes, and an owner who buys one expecting the raw edge of an early roadster has missed the point. Taken on its own terms, as the most refined and effortless E-Type of all, the Series 3 makes complete sense, which is part of why the best examples have climbed steadily in value.

The run-out cars

E-Type production ended in 1974. To mark it, the last fifty right-hand-drive roadsters were finished as commemorative cars, in black with cinnamon interiors and a commemorative dash plaque, with one famously painted green. These final E-Types are sought-after for what they represent, the very end of a fourteen-year run that began with the Geneva sensation of 1961.

Buying a Series 3

The structural checks are the same as for any E-Type: sills, floors, rear wheelarches and, most of all, the front bulkhead and engine-frame mountings. The V12, though, adds its own priorities. The cooling system is critical, because a silted radiator and poor coolant lead to overheating and warped or cracked heads, an expensive failure. The early electronic ignition is prone to underbonnet heat and is often relocated or upgraded. None of this is a reason to avoid a V12, but it is a strong reason to buy a well-maintained car with evidence of regular care rather than a cheap, neglected one.

Because the Series 3 is the most affordable E-Type, the temptation is to buy on price. Resist it. A sound, properly sorted V12 is a joy; a rough one is a money pit, and the difference between the two is far larger than the difference in their asking prices.

What it is worth

The Series 3 sits at the accessible end of the E-Type market. The V12 roadster is worth more than the 2+2, and the 2+2 coupe is the cheapest route into E-Type ownership of any series. The roadsters reach into the higher tens of thousands for the best cars, while usable 2+2s start around the level of a good six-cylinder family classic. The commemorative cars and the most original roadsters command premiums. Auction data and the price guides confirm the ordering, with condition and the state of the V12’s maintenance making a large difference to any individual car.

Related

The Series 3 is the final chapter of the Jaguar E-Type story and one of the British classic cars of the 1970s. It belongs to the wider classic Jaguar range, followed the Series 2, and when the E-Type ended its place was taken by the XJS grand tourer.

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