I finished my LS-Swapped Jaguar. Here's what I think. 

I think those who swap the V12 for the Chevy V8 by and large are making the right choice. What you get with the Chevy V8: Reliability, Better Power, Better MPG, Less Expensive Maintenance, Lighter Engine and Lower Center Of Gravity. You 100% made the right decision.

As a Brit, i think you did the right thing. You gave that car a whole new lease of life. It has more power, better torque, better MPG. And modern reliability. Geez whats not to like. It even sounds better too !.

Man, I am blown away.Way to go.12 cylinders are over rated. That car makes a lot of jag heads jealous as hell. Keep on trucking.

I'm fairly confident that anything electrical in a Jaguar "only working sometimes" is factory stock. Never forget, Lucas didn't actually invent darkness, but they did perfect it!

I COMPLETELY agree with you! Any person with any sort of intelligence would say you did the best thing for that car! Parts availability, fuel economy and not to mention reliability will be waaayyyy better!!! Great job man!

Thank you Aidan for making this finale to a lengthy and sometimes grueling project. I hope you enjoy this accomplishment for a long time.

The original prototype of the V-12 was literally a V version of the XK6 4 litre straight 6 twin cam engine. Why they went single cam after that and didn't keep the twin cam 8 litre is beyond me. As far as I'm concerned you did the right thing.

I did a swap on my XJS as well, but mine was a Cadillac 500 engine instead. I had to do a lot of mods in order to get it in there. In hindsight, I should have done the LS swap with 4l60 like this guy did. I didn't use the 'kit', I built my own mod kit instead and used that. I should go with the 4l60e for cruising on mine to make it better. I get a lot of compliments on it too.

I was impressed with amp fixin' - but now you've got my respect...nice work man

Total respect to you. You have taken a really good classic car that was destined for the scrap heap because of the cost to fix its original engine. And made it a reliable ride.I did a similar thing to a classic british car. I put a Toyota motor and 5 speed into a Triumph Herald. Transformed it. And a fun daily driver. With a beautiful gearbox.

I live in the UK. I love what you've done to the XJS. It's a credit to you. The parts and knowledge is more available for the straight 6 and v12 over here and are great when you get a good one or have the finances and patience to rebuild them. And at the end of the day you will still have the inherit problems they always had ( oil leaks from the rear oil seal and so on). A newer better engine is a logical solution. I myself have put a Rover v8 engine in my series 1 xj6. A temporary conversion I did 12 years ago that has proved so good I won't be bothering to convert back. If you keep the bonnet ( hood) closed who would know. I've been to Jaguar shows here and they really aren't as stuck up as I was expecting. You get the odd one or two who have nether owned or worked on one give their opinion. Once I point out that point they leave muttering. The point is you've kept the car on the road and most people prefer a car that is converted and cared for rather than original and not. Great job. I'm very impressed. Thank you for sharing your experience with us.

Great Job and you helped save your sanity by removing that Jag V12 🙂

Any gearhead worth his/her salt would appreciate the engineering challenge and benefits of LS swapping anything. If anyone ever gets huffy about it you can be rest assured you are living a happier life than they are.

Nice! Awesome LS swap and pretty car. There are lots of nice cars (like that one), that need the LS treatment, or the Crown Vic treatment otherwise they would be off to the scrapyard before their time. You saved that car from the junkyard.

Lucas Electronics: The inadvertent inventor of the intermittent wiper. Excellent work on this project!

As a Jag fan, my impression is that you just gave the car a second life. It just feels like it fits in all just really well. Awesome work,.bro.

These have always been my favorite Jag. The LS swap makes sense if you want to drive the heck out of it. I'll take mine in black.

Great conversation 👌 the xjs has lovely lines ,a great gt car😊

Great mod & lovely Jag. Don’t diss all of us British petrolheads, come over and see the restomod scene in England

Great effort. Smart move. Thanks for sharing

My father had a 1978 V12 XJS in British Racing Green, as it was almost new it was amazing but boy it was a total nightmare once that V12 needed work. He soon got rid of it.

Good on you - I've a Jaguar Daimler and after cooking two 4 litre engines after Mild sporty driving you are dead right. Forget the armchair experts - my neighbour has a V12 XJS same as yours and he can and has rebuilt it no problems - but any time he's taken it to a Jag place they have baulked at the scale of work they are and declined the job. In closing, the Jag Daimler is sitting in a friend's paddock because it had a fire under the dash. If you have a front opening bonnet Jag, Stop whatever you are doing and physically check the bundle of cables which rub against the pair of bonnet cables through the firewall...

I love it! I currently have an 86 XJS that I'm stripping down to make into an EV ... So if an LS swap was sacrilege....oh my. Nice work, sounds fantastic and if you used the trans kit I think you did, with the Corvette servo, those 4L60E gremlins should be gone, too.

Very cool and spot on with your efforts, its yours and makes you happy with the satisfaction of doing the work yourself! AH-FIXED IT! btw, great roads around there, I go through there frequently, perhaps i'll see you and if you see a crazed man in a ridgeline beeping and waving hello, don't worry, its just a fan. Have a good one AH.

I like it. I’ve got an XJ-S too and the v12 is fine. Agree not as much power but it is a beautiful engine. Don’t have a problem with someone swapping a V8 though. It does sound nice.

Nice job! I always hated Jaguars V12. Now you can bring it to car shows. Only thing different I would do is flip those tires around and get rid of the raised white letters. Just doesn't seem right on that style of car.

For $15 grand you now have something fairly unique and full of character, as well as having experienced the joy that comes with the self-satisfaction of having done the work yourself, and to a successful end. Those of us who follow your channel know you're a real 'do-er' where I've known others with similar challenging projects to have simply given up mid-way. So now enjoy the fruits of your labor and drive the heck out of it.

At the end of the day, it’s your car, your time and your money. Congratulations

I was looking forward to this cruising reveal! I am not the least surprised you took so much flak from the jaguar purists, nearly all of them do not have the where with all to find their butts with both hands and a schematic. What you did is a terrible smite to their psyche. 😁 Love the car, enjoy the fruits of your labor!

It looks awesome! I bet you get lots of looks and thumbs up while driving. Not the most practical car but, sure is a beauty!

i have a '94 xjs convertible with only 80k miles on it--i am 6'2' and it is tight--the rear seat was put there to declassify it as a sports car--your insurance would be much higher if two seats--my little nieces fit good back there --mine is metallic red and i get compliments constantly--the car drives great-

I had a 1990 and a 1991 xjs. Both v12. They were very nice cars and I was able to work on them just fine. That said, I would have absolutely no problem sticking an aluminum ls under the hood just because they weight less, are more powerful and get waaaay better gas mileage than the 5.3 v12. Especially when you add a 5 speed auto instead of the 3 speed it came with.

Awesome! Hope you never have to put a heater core in it. Ask me how I know 😂

Don't worry about "all those" jag purity guys, there's really not many of them anymore. Where did they all go? To more reliable places, the ones left are like your grandpa that still thinks we are fighting Japan. They may never drop the low compression v12 era

I need your help please!!!! I have some really cool vintage Marantz stuff and just need a little help. Can you help me?. There’s no one around me that knows anything about them. I have nobody interested to help me. I don’t have any family to help. I am a welder and have been welding for 15+ years. But me and my wife now are self-employed. We are a Christian family of four. I have no ill will towards you and I hope that you don’t think I’m trying to scam you. I just need someone to talk to. Is that something you might be willing to do?

really amazing how you accomplished that. great job

massive respect 😲👍🏻

It's great. I own a Jag now as well and have owned several. I have no issue with the ls swap. It isn't hurting anything but the puckered butts of the haters. Love it

That muffler resonator combo sounds great on my tv. From that grin you are wearing it pull’s pretty hard! Nice job 👍

15 gran for a reliable car that brakes good and is basically new drivetrainwise, no brainer money well spent. Plus you still have power and 25 mpg if you keep your foot out of it. Great job man. I have a 2000 SS Camaro with the ls1 so I know how much fun you are having. Let me ask though.....your friend sold you the Yukon with the engine/trans basically because it wouldn't pass inspection. Was it due to emissions? Or was the Yukon dangerous to drive mechanically?

I have been following your rebuild from the start ,I would like to see the look on your Neighbors face now !

Think you have done a great job on the xj-s,the V12 was born in a different time and is just not worth the outlay or hassle to fix it up so the ls makes sense if you have a shot V12 motor.

Outstanding! I had a friend with a TR-8 and the first thing he did was remove the fuel injection and put a holley 4bl on it to make it more reliable

Arguably one of the most beautiful cars ever made, the Jaguar XJ-S. Sheer elegance. I'd proudly drive one with an engine swap; even a V6 would be fine by me.

Nice car but you cant use the V12 HE engines, they drop valve seats because the crappy heads are India made and the valves are also some import crap, the pre HE is much better! All english made by BL and much stronger. So convert al HE to pre HE V12 Engines or Lexus V8!

I like your story and decision-making process. The amount of money you put into the car isn't crazy to me, unlike folks that put 6/7 figures into renovating a vehicle.

It’s not a ‘ JAGWAR ‘ it’s pronounced’JAG-YOU-ARE ‘

Internet trolls will never not be a thing. The community you've created with your content agrees this is some nice work!

Nice work and you should definitely be proud. I like it. It's way cool. Screw the haters.

Yup!! Good choice.. I would prefer Ford engine of course lol. But either way out with the v12 turd!! I’m thinking about doing a engine swap with mine… after I finish cutting in half and converting it into a 2 door fast back!

The V-12, for all its mystique and lore, has terrible heads. You could fiddle with it for a year, and throw considerable money at it. And then it would be pretty much as good as the stock LS. And zero room for improvement beyond that. The LS on the other hand could be a monster if you wanted to go there. As it stands right now, you have achieved perfect balance.

I've got a low mileage '94 with the 4.0 straight six. If were a high milage 12 however I'd do what you did. Time to work on cosmetics like a new wood veneer ski slope & fix up the leather seats. Thanks for getting it back on the road.

I don't even like V8 conversions. But I do like this one! There are plenty of 1980s Jaguar XJ-S out there. Not all of them have to be original. If you ever come to Minnesota, you are always welcome at our Jaguar and British car shows. We respect all car enthusiasts and do NOT have a thumb up our rear. 🙂

Congratulations on your build. A blend of classic styling with modern running gear. As an XK8 owner and old mechanic, I have no condemnation with your project. I hope you enjoy your car for years to come.

Man alive, anyone that denigrates what you did here needs their head examined. That’s an awesome accomplishment.

Fantastic job......sounds great - looks even better - 10/10.....

I'm looking at doing this swap on my 91 and I have a feeling you used the same guy I'm considering. I thought the price was a bit wild too, and I'm not really sold on the ls, I'm considering the old lt1. Did you look at any other kit providers? I know there's a few guys that do sbc kits but I think he's the only one doing ls kits

You have every right to be extremely proud of this car!!!!

Great job! At the end of the day, it is your car. It was rotting away in your neighbor’s yard, and if you hadn’t save it, would not be on the road today being enjoyed by you and others. The days when you can bring a car back to life by swapping in another drivetrain, as well as someone like you to have the skills to do it, are ending…drivetrains are far too integrated on a modern car to do this.

Purists will be purists regardless of the brand. I also feel when resurrecting a car like this, build it to make it reliable if you plan on driving it regularly... if that means putting a domestic EFI V8 with a overdrive transmission in it....GREAT do it..... I always loved the XJ-S looks and it's great to see a nice runner out on the roads.... nice job on the project!

Well done! The Red Jags is running! The Red Jag is running! To paraphrase Paul Revere.

You did that car a huge favor by LS swapping it. Good you know how to rebuild the 4L60. I've smoked three of em

Impressive that you did most of it in the driveway without a lift.

In terms of how long the XJS was in production, you could argue all the way up to 2005 or even 2010, if you count the successor XK on X100 and X150 platforms - those were not ground up redesigns, they were based on the XJS, and under the hood and under the car these look almost identical to an X100 especially with that LS in there (vs the jag 4.0 or 4.2 V8 in the XK, which with the normally aspirated models intake manifold, even looks like an LS.) The X100 in 1996 was mostly an electronic and styling upgrade, the mechanical underpinnings apart from the engine and gearbox are almost the same. By going with an XJS, you save yourself a lot of money and electronic complexity, and get a more classic looking vehicle. Biggest difference between the jag 4.0 V8 and LS, aside from capacity, is pushrod vs cam driven timing, which makes the Jag v8 revvier. Which also makes the fact they only sold them in Automatic somewhat pointless. LS has the torque to not mind the 4 speed. Also if you think that back seat is bad, you should try the XK8 - its even worse, because there are more airbags in the same form factor and the front seats are about 2x as deep/thick.

Fifty years ago we used to call this engine swap a “California Jag.” In the 1970s we had a classic coupe combined with a solid GM V8 and El Torino transmission. Possibly the best merge of style, comfort, performance, and reliability I’ve ever seen to this day.

I’m European, and I love it and the V8!

You make many great points, and made a good decision. You've taken a plain-Jane Jag and turned it into reliable performance sleeper. Taking this to "crazy" would be to fix the v12, and swap it into the Yukon!

Way to go! So let other people get screwed over by this guy.

Be proud of your accomplishments, as I am sure you are, she is sharp, guy!

Is that a SuperDry jacket? I think I have the exact same one! Beautiful car!

SWEEEEETTTT!!!!! VERY NICE MAN!

Nice work! I had a 1984 XJS, lovely car, teal over tan, falling down headliner. That three speed automatic really let it down but once moving it was fast enough. You're right about the V12 being silky smooth, it complimented the smooth ride. The car would corner well also. Back when I had it the thing to do was to put a four speed automatic in them, what you have done though makes a lot of sense. I'm about to get back into Jaguars, a 2016 F-Type 3.0 S with 6-speed manual will arrive in 8-9 days. We never see them here in New Hampshire, I've never sat in one much less driven one, but this old man will have one soon.

I admire your incredible skill to do the conversion! Great job 👏.

Beautiful Car. Awesome swap

Love the swap. Lighter, more economical, better mpg, but dang i wish you put a real cam and did heads on your 5.3 while the engine was out. However, the lq4/lq9 bolts right up with everything you have already for whenever its time to upgrade. Acessories, intake, exhaust, all your mounts, everything.

Where is the everybody favorite background music? I miss it

i hope you didnt have a bad experience using JOHNS CARS SWAP because it would be not normal. i did the same swap and found their kits and help to be superb

The problem with Jaguar cars is not the fault of any of the engines, bodywork or such like. Its down to some bad company management and a lot is down to owner neglect, their lack of funds and poor dealership service.

You did the sensible thing with the LS V8. Here in Australia it was very common to put the Holden 5 L V8 into XJ6s, great ride, reliable and easy and cheap to fix in the rare case the engine actually needed work.

I have a XJS JAGUAR 1982 silver just had the canopy done as it was parachuting looks good now next the leather seats...We do use Jaguar but don ' t take it out when it rains😅 ... had 7 years of Jaguar pleasure....❤

Wow nice job man! LS in a jaguar what a great combination! I had no idea you were a gear head! I thought you only worked on the Marantz stereos! I am into both as well, although I don’t really work on Marantz stereos but I sure like listening to them lol! Love all the content keep it coming!

Your XJ-S is the same color as Gareth Hunt's Mike Gambit on the TV series THE NEW AVENGERS. Thanks for the warning about overpriced kits, but once those V12s start to go and yours sounded like it was in terrible shape, the budget to fix them would have been even more expensive no matter what those 'V12 purists' told you, especially if it has been an H.E. Mayhead engine, so you made the best choice and I look forward to your next upgrades.

Greetings from the UK 🇬🇧 I’ve have had a few v12’s XJS’s and straight 6 XJ’s ….. best thing you did is junk that V12 , the V12 is a good engine, but the electrics-ignition and fuel system is Junk and problematic, and obsolete now, the auto box is mismatched with high ratio’s, and would cost fortune to keep running …. Good job, enjoy the fruits of your labour ✌🏻😎

Everything started getting *extremely* expensive in late 2021. Fall is when I start looking for my winter flip project. In November 2021 (when classic car prices normally start to dip), I went looking for a gen 3 Camaro and got sticker shock. So I started looking for something random and couldn't believe the prices compared to the year before when I got a running, driving 86 Fiero notchback for $650. Drove it for a week, then tripled my money.🤑 Last fall, with everything so elevated, I decided to do something newer and with a wider market, so I bunped my budget up and found an 09 Sierra 1500 with a newer YL6 motor from a 1500 HD for $5k. It needed some body work and an oil change to fix the knock.

IMHO, as a Jag purist nutcase, it is totally acceptable what you have done. However, inspect your V12 thoroughly, if salvageable, seal it and save it for a time further down the road. Why? Because after you have blazed through 60k miles on the LS, then swapped that for an all electric powerplant, you may say what if...when that day comes and you add your touches to the V12...nothing on the planet will remove the smile from your face.

The thing about the XJS purists is that their own XJSs are typically steaming piles of crap held together with dodgey mods and rust. Experienced it first hand. The V12 was not ready for series production and the installation in the XJS was cobbled together till it worked. I say this as someone who has removed all the V12 equipment (including wiring) from an XJS. If the purists want to keep all the XJSs original- put your money where your mouths are and go buy them up. You won't, because it's not worth the effort and you can barely afford the XJS you currently own (or don't, and are envious of others). I built my XJS out of a shell with no drive train, I didn't ruin anything, but I still get the purist hate. They get even angrier when they come up, look at what appears to be a perfectly restored, original car, and see the V8. Yes, I love hater's tears!

I have enjoyed watching your videos of this Jaguar XJS and you have done a wonderful job of restoreing it to what you want V8 Straight 6 or V12 it a individuals choice I have a 95 40.litre 6 convertable I love it so don't take any notice of negitive peoples comments at the end of the day it's what we want and enjoy I wish many happy miles driving your XJS

Awesome freakin video. I love what you did with this beautiful motorcar. I’m in California, and had a 1974 XJ6 with an LS swap. I love the brand, but some of their stuff was shit. I’ve also owned 4 different full blooded Jags that I also loved.

I have owned 5 xjs three of them got small blocks and one got a 454 .Placng an LS fixes 90 percent of the cars problems bravo well done .When you sell it you will make your money back regardless es.The v12 was fun just not economical to rebuild and all the hoses are needing to be replaced on a constant bases .fuel lines are prone to fires and ECU issues are constant.LS fixes all .

LS is the tool for the Job

Impressive job. Shame it’s not a manual gearbox.

I own a 1988 XJS. I maintain the V12, but would prefer the simplicity/MPG of the LS.

Great build & well done on its completion. I agree, unless you're a V12 wizard & limitless budget (see Harry's Garage on how long it took him to sort his XJC V12 out with UK experts on-tap) you're LS makes perfect sense & you keep the best of the Jaguar bits.

I've always wanted one of these cars and I'd do the same thing, except I was thinking of a 5.7L or an LQ9. I'd prefer the LS1 as those are aluminum and I am already familiar with it having a Trans Am sitting in my driveway.

Beautiful car but the V12 is junk. And, the electronics are a nightmare. To enjoy this car an engine swap is the only way to go. Why do the English drink warm beer? Because their refrigerators are made by Lucas.

Rock on, dude! Excellent work, and good save.

Well….that’s a “rouge” version of the xjs - which happens to be relative rare and is getting among the highest prices on the market…but only with the V12.

Jag engines were terrible, you made the right chose.

I did think about swapping in a v8 if I ever got an XJS, I don't know just seems right. One day I'll do the same

Those jag purist either make their living killing jag owners or have never owned a jag.