This scenario reminds me of the original v12 xjs introduced in 1975 ,where sales were not as good as expected due to the 5.3 litre's extreme thirst and servicing complexity .By 1983 jaguar brought out the 3.6 litre version which being cheaper to purchase ,more economical to run and more service friendly ,helped the model achieve a run of 21 years .
Personally I'm a big fan of the straight six engine .....it tends to howl unlike a v8 burble .......and in keeping with the traditional British sports car.....
Unfortunate timing for the V12 XJS as OPEC had gone in for serious price hikes of crude oil...
