Aloha, I currently have a 03 XK8 in excellent condition, it's a hobby car.

I have fallen head over heels in love with getting a XKE, been researching but am still very green at my knowledge base of the XKE.

Probably looking for a Series II or an early Series III. I can't handle the big rubber safety bumpers. Series I or ideally a 68 Series I.5 would be nice but I'm sure out of my price range.

Would prefer a vert and manual trans.

What should I look out for other than RUST!?

What are the good and bad in mechanics when comparing the Series II vs Series III?

Thanks for any advise and hopefully I will come to my senses before my dog leaves me and my wife sends me to live in the dog house.

 

Small world. I had a 2003 XK8 when I made the mistake of sitting in a '68 E-Type. Do lots of research since it will cost a lot if you pick a car that was not cared for. Do searches on this and other Jag forums and you might avoid some pitfalls. The OTs is a tight fit for taller people so try get to a British car show and see if you can sit/fit in a few. I am 6'1" so I opted for a 2+2. Enjoy the addiction.

 

Much depends on how much money you have available.

You can either buy a fully restored car and then (hopefully) not have to spend too much on it, or you buy a car needing attention, and then spend the money anyway. The thing is most people who restore an E-type never get back the money they spent, so buying a fully restored car is a bargain, although it may not seem so at the time !! Problem is that you have to find all the money all at once, whereas when you buy cheap and do your own work, the money is spent much more gradually.

 

Fraser, exactly...

I'm able to handle most any mechanical issue and the body, cosmetic items weigh around 80% on my decision. Interior work/ restoration is less important than the overall body condition. I absolutely do not want to get into major rust repair and would prefer not to have to repaint.

This would be a hobby car and I like to tinker but it must be dependable.

Living on Maui makes finding one a challenge as travel to inspect and shipping add to the cost. I bought my XK8 unseen and got lucky, excellent car and arrive on Maui as represented but I'm not willing to take that chance with a XKE.

It's always come down to available funds which are limited so I'm sure I will have to make compromises.

 

More than likely then you'll be looking at already-restored examples. I have doubts that rust free or mostly rust free, non-restored E-types exist anywhere.

Cheers
DD

 

hey jandreu,

after searching for almost a year and missing on 2 that sold before i could get them i saw an ad for a 69 2 seat coupe on an obscure web site. i emailed and low and behold the owner was in kona where i did the ironman in 1982. after talking with her i was on a plane from denver about 6 hours later and test driving it the next day. she got it shipped from california (beverly hills car club) in 2010 and in the 4 years she had it drove it a total of about 500 mi. sometime in it's 43k mi life it had been cosmetically restored meaning new paint job in the original primrose and all new interior. mechanically it
was in basically good shape but i have been doing a lot of mechanical upgrades myself and with the help of jaguar-denver, a shop that specializes in old jags. i expect i will spend between 10-15k over the next 3-4 years. to i will have a total investment of about 50K in it. i'm 68, wanted an e all my life and finally gave in. i have never regretted it for a second because i fire it up and stick the mp3 adaptor into the old cassette deck with 60-70's r&r music i turn 20 again.

my advise: either have an potential e professionally inspected or fly there yourself and take a hard look. there is a book about buying classic cars you might want to read as well and if you see one you are really interested in don't hesitate. if they are on the net too long they are either over priced or others have looked at them and passed them up for good reason. if neither is true they don't last long.

best of luck bill

 

...at least the rust is usually on the sheet-metal. The underside seldom rusts , thanks to English gaskets undercoating the bottom as you drive down the highway!

 

X2 what Bill said; "fly there yourself and take a hard look", that saved me from buying 2 cars that weren't as represented. The cost of the air fare was small compared to the cost of buying a bad car. Some sellers enhance the condition of their cars or don't even know about them.


I finally found a Series 2 FHC fairly local and really lucked out on the condition of the car. A Series 2 FHC just sold on Bring a Trailer for $48,500 and the paint was 20 years old but the car was rust free and looked to be in good condition. Expect to pay around that amount for a decent car.


Andy

 

Hi,there, might I introduce myself, my name is Ray. Out of uk, now ns,well I had the ,daimler jaguar,,think it it called the bubble now,? Anyway great motor 1965 v8, what should look for ,hmm I would say deviding ramps to a slipway of a motorway ,I went up one at 120 mph, yes indeed right off, raining, come out a tunnel back end got away from me and that was that ,crazy bang lights concrete piller s and finally stoped, hanging over someone s back garden 20 ft up, hmm so look out for them ,anyway hope you find what you are looking for ,Ray, ps just thought I would give you a heads up,

 

I bought a stunning '69 that has been throughly sorted. Except at any moment the wiring may fail. So after 70K invested throughly going through every system on the car, I still may end up on the side of the road. After rust, which in mine is perfect, my biggest concern is Lucas electrics...an invisible and hard to diagnose problem that can hit you at any time, even my flawless Series II, which by BTW I'll sell for 75K....throwing in the towel, but what sellers remorse! See Denvers Craigslist, green over tan.