I'm going to be looking at cream puff 98 XJR in the next few days. This car is a 98 with less than 50,000 miles on it. Owned by a professional person that taken good care of it and has had its regular service intervals met. It's never seen winter.

I'm a recent owner of a 01 BMW 530 which I really love but the new cat would be for my wife and probably need to be driven in the winter.

I'm a little concerned about the cost of repairs and how it will perform in the snow but I'm so smitten with photos of a similar car that all common sense and caution are blinding me.

Can anyone give me any insight on anything with this model? Good, bad or otherwise? I'm starving for information.

Thanks in advance!

 

It has traction control so it can be as useful in Winter as your Bimmer and if you read around here you will find the the XJR is a reliable car. In many cases more so than an XJ8. That may sound odd that the performance version is more robust than a lesser model but it seems to be the case. I'd have it inspected by someone in the know and if it passes don't be afraid of it at all.

 

I would encourage you to do enough research to feel comfortable making a decision.

These are very good cars but the cost of parts and labor on repairs can be very shocking. Things like AC problems can cost as much as a transmission. At the top of the XK8/R forum in the FAQ Sticky is a check list for inspecting a car for purchase. Top of the list is replacement of the cam chain tensioners, a chronic weakness '97 - '02. While a $200 DIY job it is a $1200 dealer effort and the results of not doing the replacement is a $6000 engine. If you do not feel qualified to work through the check list I would strongly suggest the take the list to a qualified mechanic and pay a couple hundred bucks for a complete evaluation.

Hope to see you as a new owner and active member!

 

Yes, I would say that an XJR is a very good choice with regards to reliability, but I don't know about a 1998. That's 14 years old, I'd suggest a normally aspirated 01, preferably an 03 which has more safety features. The 98 has Nikasil cyl. Liners, like a racecar, but this makes the engine more short-lived. And these are very robust cars, mine wasn't well maintained but is extremely good, an 02 I got at 40k. Try for an 02 xj sport, or xj8, 98 is a bit too old in my opinion.

 

I must clarify one thing about the nikasil lined engines, if they come out of a compression test well they should outlast the steel liner engines, it's that good. The kryptonite of the nikasil (98-00) engines was high sulphur content fuel, this has gone, and the survivors will be good. But that said, they have another weakness in plastic timing parts, later upgraded to metal in post '01 engines. Any car made after Aug 18 2001 have the later metal parts and are the kings of the 4.0 XJR's, hense the premium for later ones. Generally later is better, but not always. If the earlier cars' have had these updates, all is well.
If you buy...
The great thing about your prospective purchase is never seeing the winter. Get it wax treated, and thoroughly lubed. Check the antifreeze and do a change of all fluids inc trans.

It might be good as gold, but ask the questions, compressions/timing parts., read as much about them ask you can. I did this right here on the forum and it really helped make decisions about cars.

 

I agree with Sean B. The 1998 XJ8 Nikasil Engine will outlast most on the market.. The engines that used High Sulfur Gasoline did have failures. Most folks that experienced the Cylinder/ Compression issue had their engines replaced.
Major issue has been the Tensioners on the timing chain. I had this issue and replaced both the secondarys and primaries. DYI jobs cost about $550.00 to $850.00 and dealers $1200.00 to $2000.00.

front end Bushing were an early issue.

Another issue was the water pump. If it was changed in 2001 it will be good. The thermostat cooling tower is thermoplastic and develop cracks, a DIY person can replace it with a metal one including thermostat for $75.00. The rearview self dimming mirror was another issue.
Another issue with many Jaguars regardless of year is the Bonnet Latches not releasing.
Some can be opened by going thru the firewall. The 1998- 2003 XJ8 have to be unlatched by drilling a 3/8 inch hole thru both front fender wells to activate the hold down latches.

These are great driving and riding vehicles.

Good luck

 

Just a short update:

I went to look at the car and while it was clean I just wasn't feeling the love with the car.

For starters, I'm a pretty big guy and I really felt cramped in the driver's seat. The car only had 32,000 miles on it and it's in very nice shape. It's the color red with a cream interior.

I think he's asking $12,000 for it so if anyone is interested in it let me know and I'll connect you.