A Mark VII entered by Ian and Pat Appleyard finished second in the 1953 Monte Carlo Rally. Apparently the weather was mild with 253 cars reaching the finish without loss of points, so it boiled down to the form of a simple acceleration and braking test. A Zephyr driven by Dutch driver, Maurice Gatsonides lost 2 seconds around the course, with the Jaguar losing only one second more. Jaguar had a great string of victories already with the XK engine - this would have been a sweet win for Sir William Lyons. He had to wait until 1956 when another Mark VII took the honours.