Automobile May Look Like a Sporty Jaguar, but in Its Heart It’s a Chevy
It’s heresy, pure and simple. But the demand is there.
Gary Mundorf, a Carson tinkerer and engineer, is yanking temperamental engines from older Jaguar sedans and replacing them with a somewhat more powerful and enormously more reliable Chevrolet 350-cubic-inch V-8 power plant. Purists flinch, but more than 700 Jaguar owners have gladly shelled out $6,000 each to keep the graceful car and be rid of the bothersome engine, drive train and electrical system.
“For the first time we can put one of the most classically designed and agile motor cars within reach of the buyer who is very concerned about reliability and maintenance costs,” Mundorf, 37, said. The Chevy-Jaguar is faster and more fuel-efficient than the original, he said. It’s also cheaper to maintain. A complete Jaguar tune-up, for example, can cost as much as $500. For the Chevy engine, the job costs about $100.
Mundorf has patented his conversion procedure and sells kits to licensed mechanics across the country. The conversion kit includes mounting gear, speedometer cable, drive shaft, radiator and all engine accessories and sells for $1,299. The engine, of course, is extra. A new Chevy 350 from General Motors Corp. costs about $2,500 but used or rebuilt engines can be had for far less.
The Nebraska native said he primarily works on 1970 through 1979 SJ-series Jags owned by people whose cars “have a lot of miles on them and need a fresh start.” He keeps a small stock of converted cars on hand for sale at between $10,000 and $20,000.
“If we went much higher, people would probably be looking at a new one.” Sticker price on the current Jaguar sedan--loaded--is $32,856.
Harvey Harper, a Burbank Jaguar dealer, acknowledged that “in the old Jaguars the reputation for reliability wasn’t too great” but that huge strides have been made since 1980.
The pre-1979 Jaguars have a reliability factor of 51%, Harper noted, meaning the car spent slightly more than half its life mechanically disabled or in the shop. A new Jaguar’s reliability is 93%, he said.
He said many older Jags have been converted but that a car loses value when you exchange original parts for American-made replacements. “You’ll never be able to sell it for what you paid out” for the conversion.
Incidentally, Harper pronounces Jaguar with three syllables: Jag-you-are.
Mundorf does admit one drawback to the Chevy-Jaguar hybrid--it lacks the distinctive Jaguar growl.
“The Jaguar has a low, guttural sound with a little snap to it, like a belt hitting cement. Some purists don’t convert their cars because the sound is actually part of the driving experience,” he said.
“If it’s really that important to them, I guess we could install a tape machine in the engine compartment playing the sound of a ‘real’ Jaguar engine.”
