It isn't roomy, it's cramped for one thing. I'm 6' 1", maybe 6' 2", and my hair can touch the headliner. If you start to think about it, you can feel very cramped. And the front seat is identical between SWB and LWB.

I own a 2002 model, Made ion 9/28/2001, and its been 10,000 miles of happy motoring. as soon as it hit the 10 year (sept. 2011), 50,000 mile mark, coincidentally, (at the same time), the MAF failed. 700 bucks later, (400 quid?) I have the same warning light come and go. That's the only problem I've had with the car, and it had a spotty maintenance history. It had only been driven 90 miles in 2010, the year I bought it. Although, this didn't worry me since the car's only done a few miles.

The Jaguar 4L V8 is way better than a Ford V8. I am so sick of Ford V8s. In college, all I hear is Mustang 4.6 and 5.0 blubbering away, and I hate hearing them now. Every single mustang has a custom, noisy exhaust seemingly. The Jaguar V8 has some character, and it really winds up (I've hit over 6800 rpm) well. Fully depreciated? I wouldn't go that far. Tell me how your test drive goes! BTW, the SWB cars have better weight distribution and it is a perfect 50/50. The backseat is small though. Plus, my car has the heated seats, so there is a rear centre console.

Also, I have yet to do the tensioners or any of that other stuff. I replaced some filters, the oil, the tyres, and because of some... "high speed cornering manoeuvres", I needed a radiator, ZF steering work from Porsche, and all the wheels re-finished, and now 2 of the front wings are replaced. So that's what I've had done.

The Sport 4.0 and XJR models seem to (styling-wise) age the best. The chrome on a VDP can be overwhelming. If the car is always dirty, it will look old. If it's a Sapphire Blue Daimer V8 Supercharged, 2003, and is always waxed, it will be a beauty queen and belong in a James Bond film (see Quantum of Solace's Daimler). The chromed cars seem to show their age a lot, unless they are really clean. Because older Jags (which are now neglected) also have a lot of chrome.

 

so I drove the car on Saturday - nice clean car - only two issues but I don't know enough to determine how ominous they are. First, while waiting for the salesman to make a copy of my license I was crawling around looking under the car - was wet with oil at the rear. It was actually the crossbrace that runs under the rear so I couldn't spot the source of the leak. There was no oil puddled on the ground that I could see, but I could see one drip forming. The other issue was a groaning noise when I put the car in drive. I had to back it out of a tight spot so in going forward and back, I felt the shifter was very soft and while on the brakes waiting for the transmission to engage, there was about 2-3 seconds of audible groaning (I had all the windows open, sunroof, A/C and radio off) before I felt first gear engage. Once on the road, it shifted fine, stopped fine, turned fine. Nice car - much different ride (more "floaty") than what I am used to in the Mustang - but I could live with it. Would appreciate any insights from you folks regarding experiences with these issues before I consider pursuing this car further. Thanks - Kevin

 

Oh - and the driver side mirror wouldn't power-adjust. When I parked the car after the test drive I tried it again and it worked.

 

The LWB actually is slightly taller than the SWB, and I think it has a slightly more headroom. The weight distribution is 51/49 on the LWB.



@ OP, could the moaning sound when shifting from reverse to drive be the brakes? My brakes make a noise when shifting from reverse to drive. I think its normal. My old Jeep Grand Cherokee and BMW 5-series make the exact same noises even when new.

 

@burmaz - that's what the sales guy suggested - about the brakes. I've owned only two cars with automatics in my 26 years of driving - so I'm not aware of what would be considered "normal" groaning noises. Seemed like a heck of a racket to be considered no big deal. I wasn't overwhelmed by the car, nor was I underwhelmed - just sort of whelmed. I'm going to take a look at a Super V8 to see if there is a significant difference and if the ride is a little more like what I am used to. Maybe I can be overwhelmed by that one.

 

Mine makes a similar brake groan, it's the rear pads. by the way, the Sports versions (Sport, VDP Super V8, and XJR) will be much better to drive. I've driven the standard car and it felt much more like a waft-o-matic machine. My sport rides a bit like a Mercedes normally, but when pushed harder its very compliant and sporty.

The Super V8 should be great... the car mags loved it to death. 0-60 in 5.47s is amazing for that big, comfortable car. Plus, the adaptive suspension should be better than the wafty standard stuff on a VDP. The small issues bother me, some are hard to clear up. For example, my car's J-Gate backlights are both now burned out, and (they werent when I got it) and apparently they are almost impossible to replace.

Brake groan... If you wait for the revs to come down to about 600, and really mash the pedal in, there will be no groan. Hopefully. That groan is louder when the brakes get wet, for example.

 

I'm not sure what there is to not like about the Super V8! Let us know how it goes.

Now let me tell you about my Jaguar ownership experience. I may get flamed but I'm not worried. I also am not speaking for anyone or to anyone else's experience but my own. I too was smitten with a VDP, a '98 to be exact. I loved the long wheel base, tray tables, etc and in general the high level of class the car has. About these things I still feel the same.

Now let me tell you about the rest of the story. I've learned that the first trick to selling a Jaguar is finding someone dumb enough to buy it. Unless it was given to you, you generally paid too much and you can never sell it for what it should be worth. Unless you find a chump of course. Usually you could pay 8k for a XJ8 or VDP and the next day it wont be worth 4k. The R series cars seem to do better.

It is true that you can keep the cost of repairs down by doing as much as you can on your own. But what happens when you need to take it to a shop? My mechanic of nearly 20 years refuses to work on my car. Several other shops have done the same. Sometimes they say they are just too hard to work on or they don't know much about them. Others just dismiss the car out of ignorance. I haven't found the work I've had to do to my car any more difficult than any other I've owned but if you need a pro, be prepared for the potential of having a hard time finding one.

I had always wanted a Jag and now that I've had one it is the last Jag for me. Others here love their cars and that is great but my experience has been mostly regrettable. Mine was great the day I bought it and then a transmission fault appeared the next day. If you do buy a Jag I hope it works out great for you and to listen to the advise about the timing chains, etc. A little spent now can save a lot in the future.

 

dba, perhaps you should petition a mod to move this one to the new-member section as you seem to be going for a blanket insult of the entire membership of the board?

Are you sure it is the car they find troublesome and cantankerous at this point?

As you point out from your own wrenching experience...they're not "too hard" making one wonder about their "professionalism" - for my part, if a guy thinks a Jag is "too hard" he has no business near my Mercury nor any of the Fords, either....let alone the Jeep!

dba, REALLY sorry you had a rough go, and a bad experience, but that hardly makes the rest of us idiots. Maybe I just misread you, but I get bitterness and sour grapes here rather than constructive criticism that the potential buyer (OP) can use to inform his opinion. I see you have quite a number of posts and assume many of your issues are detailed therein. I think it would be more helpful if you linked to some of the threads detailing your issues and problems experienced in getting them corrected. But then again...sometimes...we just need to vent. Or maybe you (rightly) put the burden of work on the OP and leave him to search out your posts if he is truly interested in contrary opinions on the cars? I don't see any problem with that, but perhaps you should offer him a tip, "search threads I've started for details" or something? Just a thought, as the purpose here is to share information and help enhance the ownership experience for all members - even potential ones, former ones, and/or disgruntled ones!

I AM curious what brand you find suitable as it appears it is certainly not the Jaguar? To me, they are incredible values, so always interested to learn from someone who has tried them and found something better.

 

A 1998 is probably the worst introduction to these cars. They got steadily debugged as the years went on. A 2002 or 2003 would be much better.

But the various mechanical and electrical faults are the reason these cars depreciate so much. For effortless luxury, I suppose there must be used Lexuses (Lexi ?) out there.

 

If you read my post I wasn't looking to insult the entire board, I'm just stating a fact. Doesn't matter if you like it or not. These cars can be problematic and if the car is so great, why is it for sale? Go buy it from the dealer at their price and then try to sell it for at least what you paid. After that fails the OP can come round and confirm this. Maybe calling the buyer a dummy could have been put better but that is what I feel like and if I can save another from that then I want to.

As far as you eluding to me being some sort of ******* and that is why my mechanic wont work on the car, you should really rethink that. After having the same shop for nearly 20 years and numerous cars, do you really think they cut me loose? I still bring my Wife's car and am welcome to bring the Mustangs, DSMs, Mercedes, Acrua and a vast amount of other cars I have owned.

Now, I have no hostility towards you but I stand by my statements about finding someone to buy these cars. This thing was what 70k new? Now I can't give the damn thing away. There are plenty of Jaguar owners who wanted one, got what they wanted and got burned. Count me in that group.

I didn't think I needed to recommend that the OP search here and there because they were smart enough to join up here. I thought that was rather a good start and if they can't search here then where else would they?

I gave an honest description of my ownership experience and I don't think I have any obligation to attempt to be fair and balanced as you implied. When I wrote

"Now let me tell you about my Jaguar ownership experience. I may get flamed but I'm not worried. I also am not speaking for anyone or to anyone else's experience but my own. "

I figured that would help avoid a response like yours. These words above were meant to let the reader know this was my experience, opinion, etc. I couldn't have made it more clear. Or so I thought.

Again, I have no hostility towards you but I have spoken nothing but the truth about my Jag ownership experience and I make no apologies and I stick by it. Jags are a good value because they sell for a fraction of what they were when new. Sure it is a good value as you put it but there is a reason why these cars get dumped. Bimmer mag once describes the depreciation of 7 series cars like a Russian nuclear sub with an iffy reactor. I put the Jag in that category.

As to what I find suitable, I'm probably going to go back to a German car. I've considered leasing a new Passat (I know the new one is made in the USA) but I may end up with a 2-3 year old E Class Mercedes and hopefully a 500 or 550 car equipped car. The Mercedes I had before this car was fantastic and I only got rid of it because a CLK 'vert is hardly suited to hauling two kids.

 

See, this is a fair expectation from a modern Jaguar if you ask me. Being an English car, I could tolerate certain "eccentricities" if you will but my car has been nothing but an ownership disaster. Live and learn I guess.

 

Most of your complaints can be applied to ANY luxury car. I will admit I have had a lot of problems over the 7 yrs I've had mine, but "Try to buy the car from a dealer and try to get back at least what you paid" really doesn't make sense as a complaint, along with questioning why the car is for sale in the first place. EVERY used car can be criticized like this. What luxury car can't be?

Name some cars please. Maybe name just one? You said your complaints we just an opinion so I'm just asking for one car in your opinion that is immune from this criticism so that the OP can consider that car instead. We would all like to know about some used cars made by Jaguar competitors from the early 2000s that appreciate in value when sold.

 

I don't have to do that. We are talking about Jaguars. I never claimed that there were vast brands that appreciated with age. You are looking for an answer to a question YOU asked, not me. If you want to argue that Jags don't drop value faster than most luxury cars why don't you go **** against the wind because both efforts are a waste of time.

What you and others like you fail to see is that even though cars loose value over time, some sell themselves. Pay attention here because this is important and I don't want you to ignore it. When I had a 5.0 Mustang coupe I had 13 calls the day it appeared in the Auto Trader and the first to come see it bought it. My Mercedes being a black 'vert would always be worth something and I had no trouble getting rid of it. I know a Mustang isn't comparable to a Jag so you do not need to attempt to be clever and point that out. Point is, the car sold itself just being what it is. A Mercedes is comparable to a Jag and I've never known anyone to have a problem selling theirs even with high miles.

Go look up the blue book value for your car in a private sale, put it up for sale on Craig's List or where ever and let us all know if you get anywhere near your asking price. If you get any interest at all. Go ahead, I dare you.

My Jaguar is a piece of **** and I don't care if you or anyone else takes issue with that. If you love your car then good for you but I hate mine and I'll tell anyone to stay away from Jaguars.

 

My next ride is going to be Mercedes as well. I have set my mind at ease too . However, telling everyone to stay away from Jaguar is not a proper approach , there're many Jags running like a swiss watch .

 

As the OP - I appreciate all input to my post. In my case, dba's advice is helpful and worthy of consideration. Perhaps I find a car that runs trouble-free forever, perhaps not. My criteria of what I am looking for in my next daily driver is specific. I really want something with a big back seat - it bothers me to see a sedan (saloon?) where the back seat has no more legroom than my Mustang or Trans Am. So the LWB thing really limits me to XJ8s, 740iLs or S-class. I would consider re-owning a '96 Impala SS, but I've already had one and I'd like something with a little more (I don't know)...class? On the other side, a problem with the LT1 or 4l60e transmission wouldn't cost a small fortune and I could do the work myself in my garage. BUT...the newest Impala is 16 years old and was only a $25k car new. So either they have a ton of miles, are beat or expensive relative to the age. Plus the interior was spartan - no modern luxuries at all.

For reference - my wife is dead set against a (almost) fully depreciated luxury car and would rather I spend a little more for a nice low mileage Impala SS, for which parts are cheap and plentiful and wrenching is easy. So if I ran into a dba-one type ownership experience, I get beaten to death with "I told you so". I drive less than 6k miles per year and I have a weekend fun car - so I can't see buying new or spending big money (on the in or on the total ownership) on daily driver - even if I am capable of doing so.

Thanks for ALL the input. I'm still unsure. The good news is I haven't sold the Mustang yet, so I need not rush into a decision just now.

 

To avoid having costly repair bills, make sure you have a PPI done. They cost about $250-300. If something is found not to be in working order or needs to be fixed, walk away or use this as a negotiating tool. IMO, it's not very smart to by luxury car without having a PPI done.

 

I've been driving Jaguars for about 15 years and Brit cars for longer than I would like to say. I can only say from my own experience that I, personally would not enjoy another type of car, and I've had 2 Mercs, etc. My first Jag was an '85 XJ6 and everyone asked me how I could depend on such an unreliable car - although of course beautiful. These cars had a reputation for tappet guides backing out and getting chewed up and causing big trouble. I got the fix "kit" and installed it myself in an hour or so, and 13 years and 100K later I regretfully had to give the car up due to body rust. My current VDP - I did my homework, replaced the secondary cam tensioners, water pump, thermostat, and plastic thermo housing myself. Now I have a gorgeous VDP with a bulletproof engine. I don't think it can be beat for the money. Now if you want to compare a 10-12 year old Jaguar to a 2-3 year old Lexus, like many people do, then go ahead and call the Jaguar names. If you are a car enthusiast, and know your car, and don't just treat it like your refrigerator, you MIGHT be Jaguar owner material. If you want a vehicle that will get you from point A to point B for the least possible amount of money, go buy a 2-3 year old Nip car with no personality or distinction whatsoever.