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Xalty: Having just bought a 30,000-mile x308 VDP since I couldn't find what I considered to be a decent 350/358 within 1,000 miles to replace my destroyed '06 x350, I am curious what you mean by xxx "the 308 where NAs are to be avoided at all costs." What am I looking out for that might be an issue, apparently with the transmission best I can tell from this thread?
Many thanks.
Transmission an issue with high mileage cars, especially when looking for a beater the XJR is a better choice. Put a new pressure control valve in while it’s still fresh.
I drove an 06 XJR yesterday. I definitely noticed the difference in the leather vs the VDP. At this point I'm looking for a Super V8 if I can find a good example at a good price. It's not really an option to buy back my car, especially for parts. I just don't have anywhere to keep it at the moment. Said goodbye to it yesterday when I went to have the original Sabres put on, reclaiming my Whitleys.
Luckily I'm not in a huge hurry at the moment, so I can kinda afford to take my time. Right now my biggest issue is finding comps to try to get more $ out of insurance. Of anyone knows of any 09 VDPs for sale online with I'd say 80k - 105k miles on them please let me know!
If the car I end up finding doesn't have one, I've resolved to put a nice pinstripe on it, in memory of the beautiful one on my first Jag. I've never felt such affection for a pinstripe before!
Hey Yellow,
Hope your search is going well. All potentially nice cars. Couple of comments:
- VERY strongly suggest you stick to X356 (late '06 - '07; "H" VIN), or X358 ('08 - '09). Early (X350) issues will plague you on a used car... (jackra mentioned this as well)
- Believe you'll find that the drivelines (incl ZF transmissions) same on all models. Change pan, fluid, and filter on whatever you get, and repeat every 50K or 5 years.
- Buy the nicest example you can find (..as there's nothing more expensive than a cheap Jag...)
It's a 2005 XJR (no mods)
British Racing Green with a red pin stripe
One owner car
It was one of my father's JAGs, he passed away in May 19. The car is in my photo gallery; the pictures in the gallery were taken today. The car is in Missouri, approximately 11 hours from Atlanta. If you are interested I can share more info or get you directly in contact with my mother.
It's a 2005 XJR (no mods)
British Racing Green with a red pin stripe
One owner car
It was one of my father's JAGs, he passed away in May 19. The car is in my photo gallery; the pictures in the gallery were taken today. The car is in Missouri, approximately 11 hours from Atlanta. If you are interested I can share more info or get you directly in contact with my mother.
I think a few more pics in your album are needed. Atleast a couple of the whole car and also the rear interior.
Yellow,
Hope you're enjoying the search...
Just a gentle caveat: On the spectrum of pure hobby cars (eg, series 1 XKE) to modern, reliable everyday cars (eg, new Jag under full warranty), the X308 is definitely much closer to a hobby than, say, a well maintained X356/X358. This includes both the way it drives and functions, and the reality of using it day to day. Having said that, the X308 (to my eye) is more attractive, and you can buy a very nice one for a song
Speaking personally, an '07 XJR is my long distance, cross country road burner. So, it needs to be dead reliable, quasi modern, and easy to live with. I've got three other vehicles; two of which are more on the hobby end of the spectrum
Regardless of which you choose, here's to you finding a gem!
@hisport That's an interesting perspective. You don't think a well-maintained x308 can be an easy daily driver? I may duck into that forum for more opinions on that one. That wouldn't have been my guess.
Please don't start a controversy here...
Gosh, anything can be a daily driver if you're determined enough. And, given enough time and money, any old Jag can be rendered sufficiently operable to do it. I've done this, years ago, with an E Type. But, IMHO, it becomes a hobby. Like your old VW...
Hell, I've driven aircooled 911 and 930 (911 turbo) Porsches coast to coast. I now have an '85 Westfalia "Fishing Car" (with subaru/porsche/audi running gear) that takes me on Montana fly fishing trips. But this stuff is in hobby land, takes a dedicated hobbyist to do, and definitely isn't for the faint of heart.
Go drive some X308's (later models are better); try sitting in the back seat (watch your head). The X308 chassis is several generations removed the X35x cars; the ergonomics are generally poor, quality control was at best questionable, but then they're dead cheap to buy and (I think) look really great. No air suspension as well - a bane of the X35x cars. If you have the garage space, a reliable daily driver, an understanding wife, short passengers, and a penchant for fiddling with old cars - go for it!
I drove a couple of X308 XJR's while looking for a x35x Jag sedan; and feel that its a completely different generation of car. Most folks don't know all this (I didn't); they look somewhat the same if you don't know what you're looking at.
Even the X356/X358 cars are getting pretty long in the tooth at this point, but are still fairly modern vehicles...
I only briefly considered posting something over there, and quickly thought better of it.
I do think it's absolutely reasonable though to expect a MY ~2000 luxury vehicle to serve as a daily driver though. Why, before my Jag I was in a 2000 E-Class Benz wagon that I purchased for $5k, and it was fine.
I've found a 2001 XJR locally (Atlanta) that I'm going to drive tomorrow, just to see how it feels. 130k miles. $10k. Silver on black. That will help me decide if I can deal with an x308 vs my x358. I'm pretty excited about it, actually. I drove a 2006 XJR, but it was a little too rough cosmetically for me. It had some sort of front end damage that I wasn't comfortable with. At the same time, though, I'm more than willing to drive a mechanically great car that has met with a little unpleasantness in life cosmetically, but not structurally. Those are difficult to come by, though.
Another option is to just stick with another x358, but give up on my desire to trade up to a SV8, or even just pick up another VDP. They're just to rare, while it's not difficult at all to find an XJ8L. We shall see.
08-22-2020, 11:51 AM
