The Carlex Design Jaguar XJ-C Resto-Mod

In the 1960s and early 1970s, the Jaguar Mark 2 was the car of choice for our police force (you might remember the odd juxtaposition between rough and ready sixties’ London and Regan and Carter in The Sweeney and the use of classy Jaguars). In the main, the police simply needed something capable of keeping up with the criminals and their getaway cars – which were often also Jaguars. Seeing this Carlex Design Resto Mod Jaguar XJ-C looking mean, fast and furious even while stationary, it’s hard not to be reminded of Jaguar’s brief spell as being favoured by both the good and the bad.

Carlex Design are a Polish tuning company who create and retrofit styling packs for various automobiles and manufacturers as well as planes and boats. In many ways, the process reminds me of how NISMO operates within Nissan. Among the many Carlex claims to fame, the company supplies interior products for the Fiat 500 Abarth and is classed as a ‘second level manufacturer’ for Daimler.

Carlex Jewel are a subsidiary division of Carlex Design and it is they, specifically, who are responsible for this fine-looking automobile. Last week Carlex Design teased us with some exciting images of the Carlex Jaguar XJ-C, the sort of car which would have had both the police and their counterparts drooling in the 1960s. Not only does the Jaguar look the business on the outside, with ridiculously wide wheels all round, Carlex has completely retrimmed the interior as well with some exceptionally beautiful hand-aged leather seats. While it’s not entirely clear how Carlex Jewel relates to its parent company, one might draw the conclusion from seeing this Jaguar that Carlex Jewel will be giving us more exciting Rest-Mods in the near future.

Naturally, it’s the exterior of this British Racing Green resto-Jag that is getting all the attention. The car is powered by a V8 400hp engine with stiffened, uprated suspension (which probably helps to any reduce wheel rub when your wheels are this wide) and has been given the classic Beetle Cal-Look of having the signature bumpers removed revealing a chromed, angled saw-tooth grille up front. It leaves the car looking incredibly aggressive and dare I say it – maybe more modern.

Inside, the aged leather offers a contract to the modern muscle car look and reminds us that Jaguar is a luxury British car; you can almost hear and smell the whisky being poured from a decanter in an ancient library fitted out with exactly the same aged-leather finish to the executive chairs. It’s a complete contrast, but it works and adds a little extra warmth to the feel of the car.

The original Jaguar XJ-Coupé ran from 1975 until 1978 with a production run of less than 10,000, and while it’s not clear where or how Carlex will be sourcing donor cars, this might go part-way to explaining why there will only be a limited run of Carlex Design Jaguar XJ-C models each year. We look forward to more details emerging in the future.

Images: Carlex Design