Vintage 1968 Jaguar XKE Road Test

Watch this amazing vintage video of the 1968 Jaguar XKE Road Test by Bud Lindemann.

Posted on YouTube By:john doe

Video Transcript

The 1968 Jaguar XKE 6 Cylinder 265Hp

“It’s a fine touring car with a true racing personality.“

Bud Lindemann: The English have been building and racing fine machinery for a long time now and we feel it with the Jaguar XKE they reached a peak. It’s a fine touring car with a true racing personality. When you climb in, you suddenly feel as though you’re surrounded by a Swiss watch with Jaguar precision and perfection. Well, it’s the name of the game. It’s an under promoted car by American standards and we were more than eager to unleash it on the track.

 

 

“A 4.2-liter coupe with a wallop of a Missouri mule“

This is the slinky silken cat known as the XKE. A 4.2-liter coupe with a wallop of a Missouri mule and snob appeal that far exceeds its price tag. And, if performance sold for $10 a pound this car would cost a fortune. The Jaguar manufacturing company has been building good cars for many years, with this one they’ve reached a pinnacle.

 

 

“Know we didn’t run into a bulldozer“

Know we didn’t run into a bulldozer that’s just the way you get to the goody department. And, this is the mill that makes things happen a twin overhead cam six-cylinder in-line engine, with 258 cubic inch displacement and 265 horsepower. The engine is dynamically and statically balanced and is fed by these three side draft carburetors.

 

“This car was built for more than a Sunday Drive”

Hey, that instrument panel was the greatest thing since Bromo discovered Seltzer. All those perfectly calibrated gauges told us that this car was built for more than a Sunday Drive and it had everything but an altimeter. Those bucket seats are real, honest engine leather. They give you the kind of support that makes you feel as though you were built into the car, they’re adjustable as is the steering wheel.

 

 

Through the pylon course we found that those people really know how to build handling into a car. We closed the
spacing between the pylons to 45 feet and still ran them at 55 miles an hour. In the front our XKE had independent
suspension with Traverse wishbones and torsion bars side roll hardly perceptible.

 

 

“Made running through the gears as smooth as whipped cream“

My cat came off the line like Mr. Clean looking for dirt. 0 to 40 in 3.1, 0 to 60 run in 6.2 seconds with quite a bit of wheelspin. The shift linkage was a positive delight. It had a very short precise throw, made running through the gears as smooth as whipped cream. Our 0 to 80 run took 10.9 seconds. We tried for a top-end run, but at 130 Mph the front end felt awfully light and we were losing feel of the roads, so we backed off.

 

 

“Nosedive is hardly noticeable”

In the stop department, she shut down beautifully. We had Dunlop disc brakes all the way around. At 30 mph it stopped in 33 feet. These discs had the quick-change pad and twin master cylinders. At 45 mph it took 58 feet. Nosedive is hardly noticeable, has was brake fade. At 70 mph we stopped in 169 feet, as you can see in our braking test the Jag make good straight line stops. Those four-wheel disc brakes give a lot of driver confidence, especially at high speed through the corners.

 

 

“Our kitty was quick thru the turns”

Our kitty was quick thru the turns and those claws dug in. The rear suspension employed a fully independent self-contained unit, mounted in a pressed steel cross member attached to the body by pairs of rubber blocks on each side. Through the S turn, we noticed rebound and recovery were excellent. Pairs of coil spring each inclosing a telescopic shock at each wheel. Steering was about neutral. Our driver found it quite easy to throw our little red bomb into a four-wheel drift and control it all the way through the corner with the throttle.

 

“Too heavy to race”

Our test Jag with a driver on board weighed over 2600 pounds, which for its class makes it too heavy to race. On the other hand, it has too much speed for the public roads, but it does make for a whale of a touring car. It’s as docile as a kitten in traffic and yet gives out with a wild roar on the track. With that great suspension system, it floats over bumpy roads like a limousine and anything up to a 120Mph is a smooth and easy as a velvet hammer.

 

 

Truly, it is a different breed of cat.

 

 

You May Also Like: