May 22nd, 2018: Royal Wedding

Oh my, a Royal Wedding, just thinking about it makes me so giddy I could puke. :vomit:

The saving grace was the getaway car, a 1968 type E Jaguar which is one of the most beautiful cars ever built.
It’s LEFT hand drive as a civilized car should be, but probably powered by British coal, as the blue color isn’t the only thing electric.

Jaguar Classic reports that the electric conversion system is modular and completely reversible, and it’s designed to be a drop-in fit in any Jaguar from 1948 to 1992 that was originally equipped with the XK-series inline six. Original brakes, suspension, and chassis bits are retained, the goal being to “preserve the looks, handling and performance characteristics of the original vehicles—yet deliver zero emissions,” according to the company. Developed with an unnamed technical partner, the system offers a range of 168 miles and a charging interval of six to seven hours.

That means they can 6 or 7 hours of honeymoon every 168 miles... cooool. ;)

Under the classic tilting front bonnet is a liquid-cooled, lithium-ion battery package of unspecified capacity to support the 220kW propulsion system. The electric motor and gear-reduction unit are slipped in where the transmission once resided, while the inverter and electronic controls fill up the rear boot area—trunk to us colonials.
One eye-catching departure from the original Series 1 E-Type is the beautiful carbon-fiber instrument panel with a large TFT flat-panel display in the center. The shop people at Jaguar Classic report that the Concept Zero actually weighs 176 lbs less than a production E-Type, owing to the considerable weight of the original XK inline six.

No price has been announced for the conversion package or a complete Concept Zero vehicle, but if a couple of young British-American newlyweds just starting out can swing it, the cost must be fairly reasonable. Good luck, you kids.

Maybe Grandma kicked in a few shillings. ;)

link

Electric, bride and blue. ;)

A British electrical system?

Pass.

The electrics are from an unnamed technical partner so not necessarily British.
My objection is it will go zoom zoom, but not varoom varoom.
The auditory is a large part of the experience.

xoxoxoBruce;1008874 wrote:

The auditory is a large part of the experience.

Agreed. But, as I get older, I find that's mostly only true when it's my foot on the loud pedal.;)

Although there's something to be said for going fast really quietly. The Parentsdigr once had a 97 Le Sabre, that thing went like stink and barely made a sound.

Gravdigr;1008955 wrote:

The Parentsdigr once had a 97 Le Sabre, that thing went like stink and barely made a sound.

One like this?

[ATTACH]63824[/ATTACH]

That was my Avis rental car for the duration of my first visit to the US in 1999.
I'd booked something rather more modest, but when I arrived in Denver I was offered a deal whereby I paid a one grade increase for a two grades up car.
On reflection, I suppose that meant they didn't have a car in the size I'd booked so a carrot was dangled in the form of the big Buick.
Heavens knows how much more unnecessary expense I 'volunteered' for!
However, it was comfortable, roomy and so new that it still had a temporary plate in the form of a sheet of paper taped in the rear window.
Memory has faded somewhat, but I think that photo was taken somewhere in SD. I could probably narrow it down a bit given time, but it's late here.

I sent my folks to Hawaii as a Christmas gift. They had been there several times so knew where they wanted to go and what to do. They reserved a compact rental car but on arrival were offered a Caddy convertible for the same price. Pop said hell yeah but after one day and a couple of close calls returned that monster for a compact. :haha:

Carruthers;1008967 wrote:

Memory has faded somewhat, but I think that photo was taken somewhere in SD. I could probably narrow it down a bit given time, but it's late here.

FWIW...

Having had time to delve, I'm pretty sure that location is the Meriden rest area on US 85 in Wyoming, about forty five miles north east of Cheyenne.

Despite the lack of vroom noises I love the idea of rescuing beautiful old car designs by marrying them to modern power plants.

I had a '99 Le Sabre I loved that car.

[QUOTE=Carruthers;1008967]One like this?

[ATTACH]63824[/ATTACH]

Yes just like that.

xoB wrote:

a 1968 type E Jaguar which is one of the most beautiful cars ever built.

[SIZE="6"][COLOR="SeaGreen"]QFT.[/COLOR][/SIZE]

Gravdigr;1008868 wrote:

A British electrical system?

Pass.

.... whatcha sayin Grav?

I'm jus' sayin'...

[ATTACH]63850[/ATTACH]

Her name was Baby Blue. And she would do the ton quicker than you could think about it.

Well, maybe not that quickly...

Not with a vroom, but a whoosh.

Useless trivia:

The 97 Buick LeSabre came stock with more horsepower than the stock 78 Corvette.

I bet that Series III 3.8 sounded great uncorked. You could hear a very subdued soundtrack when on the gas. Very subdued, but, it was there.

Waiting.

Lurking.

It was great fun to blow the doors off some kid with a loud exhaust, and fancy wheels with my grandpa car. the Blue Bomber as Keryx called her.

DanaC;1009148 wrote:

.... whatcha sayin Grav?

LUCAS, prince of darkness.:vader1:

fargon;1009172 wrote:

It was great fun to blow the doors off some kid with a loud exhaust, and fancy wheels with my grandpa car.

Hah, wasn't it though?!:lol2: