Jaguar ... Why Not?

[G_Cam]

Hi All
I have ben looking around for a suitable project (once I finish my two ice Triumphs off)...
I was drawn to a Triumph Stag as I know Triumphs inside out.... HOWEVER

I have seen a few Jaguar convertibles (XKR, XK8) with Engine issues so I was wondering IF they would be an option for a full EV conversion?

I'm asking the question before I take the plunge as I can see lots of other convertibles being converted (Boxster, Miata/MX5 etc...) but NOTHING I can see on a modern(ish) Jaguar... Is there some reason Jaguars are ignored?

Also I would love a Land Rover Discovery 3 EV conversion project, however these are not straightforward from what I have gleaned so far...

Thanks All

PS - not 100% sure if this is the correct place for this post as its a 'Pre-Project' question..

[rstevens81]

Its always uptown you what choose and I do quite like the old xi's (I also like the s type, which probably puts me in a minority)

Well it mainly decided by weight, cost & range and they are inter-connected.

The traditional rule of thumb was for every 1000lbs [1000kg = 2200lbs) of weight it would need 100wh (0.1 kwhr) of battery would be needed, nowadays the motors/drivelines can be more efficient and Regen helps a bit however not by miracles.

For example an old leaf battery weighs about 200kg and is 23 kWh (but you can only really use about 80% of that and it will have degraded so say 16kw.

you also need to make sure you don't exceed the mow of the car also.

[arturk]

Just came across this rather old post and felt like I had to respond.

It is true that not many Jaguars are being converted there are couple of reasons I can think of but certainly not technical ones.
I am one of Jaguar lover and owned my 1998 XJR for nearly 20 years. I have been thinking about converting it for a while and waiting for the right moment. Last year I decided to pull the trigger. Project is going extremely well and I am almost to the point I can use car as daily driver.
I have posted some videos (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wB8TJpii-PA&t=8s) from early stages of my project (more to come soon as I am falling behind with posting videos).

Rstevens81, everything you said is true but and still make makes conversion of Jaguar doable. I found quite bit of space for batteries in the engine bay and in the trunk. Removing of the original powertrain reduced weight of the car by roughly 800 pounds. Currently with limited range of 50 miles is about 200 pounds lighter then original. Performance is phenomenal.

I was going to post my project on this forum but never got around it being so busy. I am thinking I may still do it if is going to inspire others.
Cheers!

[New Electric Ireland]

We have no shortage of converted Jags in The Netherlands

[arturk]

We have no shortage of converted Jags in The Netherlands

Nice, great to hear that!

[MrToad]

I have been considering converting my 2002 XK8, any advice would be appreciated.

[DavidG]

Hi All, thank you for this thread. Is the Jaguar S type automatic 2003 suitable for ev conversion? Any advice appreciated.

[rstevens81]

David,

I would ditch the auto as will be more pain than its worth.
Even if you manage to make it work with a motor it will just eat your range, Damian's first attempt at the panzer (840) tried to use an auto but it failed miserably, the net effect it cost him over a year.
However that being said a Lexus gs450h or is300h gearbox/motor (note 300h not actually been road used yet in an ev conversion but this is what I should have brought as us shows massive potential). or go down the traditional route something like a leaf motor plus a manual gearbox (get one out of a scrap diesel s type that way it should fit.
You are making me jealous with the s type

[New Electric Ireland]

Is the Jaguar S type automatic 2003 suitable for ev conversion? Any advice appreciated.

We've converted many vehicles with automatic gearboxes including Jags (see photos). We don't recommend it for DIY because you need considerable expertise and a dyno to tune the motor/gearbox for efficency.

[johu]

Can you do meaningful regen on an auto gearbox? Will it stay in one fixed gear or actually shift?

[New Electric Ireland]

Can you do meaningful regen on an auto gearbox?

Yes

Will it stay in one fixed gear or actually shift?

It shifts. We do a lot of work measuring ICE systems on the dyno and then use that as a model for our EV systems. Most commercial systems are automatic and this approach allows us to use multiple motors to emulate a large diesel without replacing the gearbox.