Good day,

I am coming from a rotary background ( two Rx7s ). To keep things short I bought a motorcycle to fulfill my sports needs so I am looking to move away from the sports coupes and get something more sedan like. My choices were basically narrowed down to Jag, BMW, and Benz but I'm pretty sure I want to go with the jag after forum hopping all over the interwebs reading comparison, maintenance, etc threads.
I hadn't really thought about jag before but on the way to work a few months back I saw a old lady driving a XJ8 and I thought to myself " Dat **** right there... I like it".
This will not by my daily commuter. I will only be driving it when I feel like it or maybe big shopping trips that I can't handle on my bike. It will basically be my joy/relax ride.

I'd like to stay in the $5k range. I'm willing to go higher but that's when I start to approach the "You don't need it, you want it" territory. I also like to do most maintenance work myself so if the engine bay resembles a 3000gt/Stealth/300z I'll pass.

Thanks

 

Welcome to the forum Emoney,

If you're 'hands on', it's a good choice. If you'll be paying for repairs and maintenance, it'll be expensive.

Follow this link XJ ( X308 ) XJ8 / XJR - Jaguar Forums - Jaguar Enthusiasts Forum to the X308 forum for help, advice and information. The 'HOW TO' thread at the top is a good place to start for info on regular issues.

Graham

 

$5000 should get you a more-than-decent 1995-1997 XJ6, known as the "X300". Besides the XJ6 you can also look for the supercharged XJR and/or twelve cylinder XJ12 in the same body style. Good cars, mostly DIY friendly.

If you want something more "olde world"-ish in style and feel then $5000 will also get a nice Ser III XJ6....the most modern of all antique automobiles. Old school technology for sure, and DYI work is a pleasure in most cases.

For something more unusual look at the XJS. Great cars, love-it-or-hate-it styling, sometimes a bit of a challenge to sort one out. $5000 will get you a nice 80s coupe but probably not a 90s convertible.

You'll find buyers guides for these model in the sticky threads at the top of each appropriate section.

Cheers
DD

 

Thanks for the advice, fellas.

Doug, I never really considered a XJ6 because they seemed to share the same chassis as the XJ8, leading me to believe that they were more than likely under-powered. I do favor the XJ6 front end compared to the XJ8, mainly the solid headlights over the four single.

The XJS isn't bad and there are some 90s coupes for sale under 10k in my region but I think if I were going with that look I would more than likely pick up a Benz SL.

I see that you own a 95 XJR. How is she treating you? I can't remember why exactly but through my researching I had come to the conclusion that buying an XJR earlier than a 2000 was a no-go. It may have been because of that nakasil issues. As I said, I cant exactly remember off hand.

 

Emoney, if you are more after a sedan and just want something to enjoy cruising around in, then take a look at the X-Type (aka, X400). That can be had for in the $5000 for a 2003ish vehicle with some looking. It will be on the lower end of things, but at the same time, will still be a nice ride. The one thing that I would caution you on is that if you are planning on having something to also play with, the X-Type is going to be an expensive car for you. From first hand experiences, the car is a great cruiser, but if you are looking for something to go light to light with, it is going to be throwing transfer cases (yes, it is AWD if you are in the states, elsewhere, you need to look at the car closely as it comes as both AWD and 2WD). A new transfer case is about $3000.

I will admit the body style may not be quite what you have in mind as it has the XJ8ish (ie, 4 separate headlights) styling. But the 3.0L V6 is plenty to get you down the road and if the weather turns bad, handles the snow really nicely too.

If you want to know more about the X-Type, let me know. It is a very easy car to work on as it shares a lot with the Lincoln LS/Volvo S40. If you have any mechanical ability, you will be able to do 90% of the maintenance with no issues.

 

I'll go with Doug and suggest the 95-97 XJ6, but also extend backward to the approx 91-94 4.0L XJ6s as well (the ones you were thinking of, with the big rectangular headlights). They're all closely related to the 98-03 XJ8, with similar (excellent) ride and I'd say great handling. If you go for a 20-year old you might consider classic car insurance with Hagerty or someone. The nikasil issue was with the early V8 engines (from 1998 in the XJ8), whereas the sixes don't have anything like that to worry about. No need to worry about durability with the supercharged 6 either.

No disrespect to the X-Type but they put the engine in sideways

 

If you're lucky you can find some XK8's that might need paint, etc. but with some TLC can be made whole again.

Here's my example of a >$5,000.00 car: https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...ter-box-99174/

 

Doug's advice is very sound.

However don't be totally put off the X308 model series, but you do need to "mug up" on them as the engines initially were a disaster area and Jaguar must have spent a fortune on warranty. Apart from the Nikasil bores issue, there is the upper cam chains tensioner issue. If you see a car, you need to make sure these two issues have been dealt with. Nowadays, an original Nikasil engine is unlikely to blow if it has got to 2013, well over a decade since the problem started ! Fuel is now totally sulphur-free the stuff that caused the problem in the first place. BMW had a similar problem and it's always a puzzle to me why Jaguar did this when their engineers must have known about BMW's travails.

 

Thermo,
I definitely don't mind the 4 singles. The XJ8 was what I was initially interested in. I just think the solid headlamps on the XJ6 look better now that it has been brought to my attention as a possible candidate. The X-type suffered from tranny issues, huh? It doesnt sound like the same issues i have been reading regarding the S-type and STR. Something about the front end of the tranny giving out if I remember correctly. I will defintely look into the X more and see how prominent this tranny issue is.
I currently live in an apartment complex. While we arent allowed to work on our vehicles management doesnt say much to me as I don't cause trouble and my rent is never late. I've worked on engines, suspension, etc with no complaints. I feel like I'd be pressing my luck if I'm out there dropping transmissions though, haha.


MKii,
The XJ6 looks promising. I have been looking at shots of the engine bay and it looks very DIY-ish. How is the power to weight ratio? I just cant help but feel that they may be under-powered. I'd hate to be at the whim of other drivers. Do you have any over taking issues when driving? There are some cheap ones for sale on CL but I find that majority of them are selling in the same price range as early model XJ8s.


Cattitude,
The XKs arent bad but I think I would have to go with a Mercedes SL if I were going for that specific look. The SL has better lines, imo.


Fraser,
I have definitely read about the plastic tensioners and what they like to take to the grave with them when they go. The problem was only with the upper and required a swap for all metal tensioners, right?
From what I have read other people agree with your statement on Nikasil. I read somewhere that the nikasil hardens over time and if it hasn't given out yet, it more than likely won't at this point.
The Nikasil issue was due to sulfur in gas and cheap oil/poor oil changing schedule?

 

The 1995-97 XJ6....the "X300" range....with the normally aspirated 4.0 engine will do 0-60 in about 7.4 seconds. Supercharged version 6.6 seconds. V12 version about 6.9 seconds

The "X308" type XJ8 (1998-2003) with the normally aspirated V8 does 0-60 in 6.9 seconds. Supercharged version about 5.3 seconds.

The older "XJ40" XJ6....the rectangular headlight style....with the 4.0 comes in at about 8.5 seonds, I think. Not quite sure

I know that "0-60" doesn't tell the whole story but hopefully this will give you a rough idea of performance

Cheers
DD

 

I used my 95 XJ6 as a daily driver for 3-4 years putting on 100,000 km (four snow tires mounted through the snowy times). I'd never had a decent car before (as a daily) so honestly for the first couple of years I was so so happy with the lovliness of that car...ride and handling just so nice and the weight of the car felt good, the interior beautiful and full of nice touches....of course I was always listening for things going wrong with the car and it took me a long time to realize my XJ6 was still just a car, but better than everything I had owned before. She hustled like a locamotive at full boil. She didn't break down. But I got a series of giant speeding tickets because she was so smooth and quiet inside. No problem passing.

Year three and I started using the "Sport" setting on the transmission, which made gear changes snappier. But in the end, I felt that I would go for an XJR next time to get a bit more umph. I did notice an appreciable drop in acceleration abilities with four people on board. If only I could mature a bit and keep the speed legal.

In the end I got a manual-gearbox XJS so now I get my fun from shifting instead of speeding. But there's still an XJ6-shaped hole in my life that will have to be filled. It's the comfort/performance mix. The Jaguarness. Something you just won't see in photos...you have to feel it.

Now, I've never driven an aluminum XJ (2004-onward) but from what I have read, the ride is not the same as it was (X350 and X358 forum). I'm sure some would prefer it.

When you mentioned the Merc SL, were you referring to the Panzer Wagon R107 or a later version?

 

Welcome to the forum!

The 95-97 XJ6 (X300) looks almost identical to the 98-03 XJ8 (X308). The only exterior differences being the shape of the side markers and front turn signals, and the chrome on the bumpers.

The rectangular headlights you speak of belong to the 88-94 XJ6, which is also referred to as the XJ40.

In my opinion, in your price range, the 95-97 XJ6 would be a good choice. They don't have the wiring issues of the older Jags, and you don't have to worry about the cheap Ford parts that cause problems in the V8 engines. The inline six motors are pretty much bulletproof. And don't underestimate the power of the inline six motors.

 

EMoney, it isn't so much a tranny issue as it is a transfer case issue. The tranny's are actually pretty reliable as they are the JATCO tranny's used in a lot of other vehicles. The transfer case though was a Ford one-off. It is great if you cruise the highways at 70ish MPH and will last forever. You want to go 0-60 in Oh YEAH!!!!!!, then you are going to find that numerous runs like that is going to result in a lot of bad sounds coming from the transfer case. There are some other annoyances, but they are easy and cheap fixes that we know all too well on how to fix. But, this is true of any vehicle if you get to know it well.

 

I would also suggest the 3.0 V6 S-Type can be had in decent condition for your budget.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Jaguar-S-Typ...US_Cars_Trucks

 

Thanks for all the advice fellas.

My bike was recently stolen so I will be buying another bike ( storing it inside my apartment ) and I will be holding off on the jag until I find something with a garage. For now I am just going to invest that money into more rack equipment.

When I finally do get the Jag I will revive this thread with a strong bump and pictures XD