One of the many great things about the Mazda Miata is that it’s a great platform to build upon. A decently roomy engine bay in NAs and NBs accommodates a ton of engine swaps. Ford and Chevy V-8s are common, K-series Honda engines are getting more popular too. One company in the UK, Rocketeer, is swapping in Jaguar V-6s. And now they’re coming to America.
As Carbuzz reports, Rocketeer just took on new funding, and it’s using the money to bring its wares to the US. Rocketeer calls its car the MXV6, appropriately, and it’s offered them as turn-key builds or do-it-yourself kits. The intent is to bring turnkey and restomod cars to the US.
Shockingly for a modern restomod, the MXV6 conversion is relatively affordable. At least in the UK, Rocketeer will convert your Miata for £16,662 (roughly $22,000), while its DIY kits start at £5,995 ($8,000) for the hardware and £1,995 ($2,260) for the electronics. Rocketeer also sells rebuilt and reworked Jag V-6s for £5,995, too.
Photo by: Rocketeer
This Jaguar V-6 might not be super familiar to Americans. The AJ30 is a naturally aspirated, 60-degree 3.0-liter based on the very well-known Ford Duratec, but with a Cosworth-designed cylinder head. Jaguar debuted it in the S-Type and kept it in production up through the early versions of the first-generation XF. It was also an option in the X-Type and XJ, and Ford borrowed it for the base Lincoln LS.
The engine is all-aluminum, so it’s actually lighter than the NA and NB Miata’s iron-block four-cylinder, and stock it makes 280 horsepower—over 100 more than even the turbocharged Mazdaspeed Miata. Rocketeer makes a version of the engine that puts out 375 hp and revs to 9,000 RPM. Which sounds like a good time to us. And note that this engine is not the 90-degree V-8-based V-6 Jaguar and Land Rover used for many years.
Rocketeer also offers full-on restomods, with reworked suspensions and trim. It’s also working on an ultra-light car called the Kieryo. For that, it’s targeting a weight of under 1,900 pounds and 350 hp from the Jag V-6. It’s also working on a conversion for the NC Miata.
We can’t wait to see ’em stateside.
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Source: Rocketeer
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