Heading up the Goodwood Hill in Princess Diana’s Jaguar XJS

Legendary designer Malcolm Sayer penned the first drawings for what would become the XJS in the late 1960s, but after his death in 1970 the car’s design and development was completed by Doug Thorpe and his team. Power, a full 245PS (180kW), came from Jaguar’s 5.3-litre V12 engine that had previously been deployed in the Jaguar E-type. But this was a new era for Jaguar, replacing the sportscar with a big, lumbering Grand Tourer.

It was popular, though, and over time it garnered the interest of some notable customers, including royalty. Having originally been built as a coupe, Jaguar eventually caved to popular demand to introduce a convertible alternative in 1983.

Diana, Princess of Wales, was evidently a fan of the XJS, and she commissioned a bespoke version of the Cabriolet for her own personal use. It was fairly standard on the outside, but this car was the only convertible XJS built by Jaguar with rear seats. They were of course required for two young Princes, William and Harry. The rear section of the convertible roof was also fixed in place, which gave Diana’s XJS the look of a targa top.

It’s no surprise that the late Princess had taste, and her Jag was of course powered by the V12, feeding power to a three-speed automatic transmission. The result was perhaps the most relaxing drive up the Goodwood Hill we’ve ever experienced during the Festival of Speed.

The temptation was to grace spectators lining the hillclimb with a royal wave, but we resisted the urge in order to instead soak up the history of this car which has a very special royal connection.

Princess Diana was known to have driven her XJS regularly for the four years she owned it from 1987 to 1991, but you wouldn’t have known it from the state of the interior. The leather was barely tarnished, and all the electronic functions, including the radio, were working as they should.

The otherwise perfectly comfortable cabin was sullied only by the unfortunate realisation that the air-conditioning was fit only for pumping hot air into your face, which on a stiflingly hot Festival of Speed day was somewhat less than ideal. That aside, this was a brilliant experience to live like royalty for a brief moment.

The 2025 Goodwood Festival of Speed is underway! You can watch every moment of the action by watching our livestream.

Photography by Pete Summers.