So there I was, minding my own business, and bringing my beloved XJ8 back to that it once was.
I believe her to be unharmed in her life and well tended to by the 2 previous owners.
And then it happened, the clock ticked a couple of times and I got old. Having already done the timing chains and tensioner, and coils, wtr pump, etc. etc.
So I put it in the air and after carving my way in by removing exhaust , driveshaft, crossmember, and coolant resevoir, and anything else in my way, I removed the gearbox. That gets me back to the Clock. Don’t hate me cause I ran out of juice, but this cat is up for grabs. Tranny is disassembled in 7 different boxes on my work bench and the housing near by. It’s a young mans sport and a man has to know his limitations. Check out my profile for an idea and I’m on the big Island, yeah the one rocking hundreds of earthquakes every day. Have many parts on hand as well, new rotors and pads, shocks, 2000 with 130k on the clock. Aloha

Wow, you’ve addressed all the car's weak spots except the last big one, the transmission. That ZF unit was failure prone after 80k miles due to metal dust accumulating in its synthetic fluid. My Jag specialist wrench rejuvenated my 2001 XJR’s transmission at 100k miles by flushing it, exhaustively cleaning out the gunk from all areas including the hard to reach torque converter, replacing all filters and magnets, and adding new fluid. I believe I paid around $1,000 for that, a fifth the cost of a rebuilt unit.

If your transmission has failed it’s too late for preventive maintenance. But rebuilt units are available. Last time I looked into it they cost $5,000 plus another thousand for installation.

I know such a move isn’t cost-effective given the car’s low residual, but we 308 owners are aware that our cars are far more valuable that their market price. They are the apex of the XJ series, with Lexus-level reliability and infinitely more character than any Lexus.

Since my XJR’s transmission overhaul about five years ago I’ve driven it another 55,000 miles, problem free. The only preventive maintenance I’ve had done is replacement of some of the plastic hoses in the cooling system. I’ve had the car nearly ten years, and every successive year it’s been cheaper to maintain. This is because, thanks to this board and having an honest, Jag-expert service shop, I’ve fixed each of the few problem areas before something broke. Unlike my spouse's 3-Series BMW of the same year (2001), which was constantly in need of repair for random and unpredictable problems (we finally unloaded it), my Jaguar has been super reliable. My wrench has customers whose 308s have 220k on the clock and are still purring along. A Jag repair guy on YouTube calls the 308 a 300,000 mile car.

For the above reasons, and because parts are readily available, and because I’m 68, retired, and don’t commute or do big road trips anymore, I’m hoping this will be my last car. Another reason to keep it: I don’t want any other car. It’s the perfect sedan for an aging motorhead: still plenty fast, wonderfully comfortable with ride quality superior to most current luxury cars, easy to drive with superb outward visibility, and even in the Bay Area, the Jag capital of America, I continue to get compliments from strangers. At 5’ 10” I’m just the right size for the car's compact, fuselage-design interior. My factory optional Emerald mica paint looks like new because it’s always been parked inside, as does the interior for the same reason and thanks to top quality materials. This car is aging better than I am!

So weigh the above and consider a rebuilt transmission. It’s expensive but not nearly as costly as selling the car for peanuts and then trying to find a replacement car of equal quality. And if you take the plunge for another car, you’ll have to deal with correcting its foibles all over again.

Whichever way you go, good luck!

John tech writer, I cannot argue anything you said. There just isn’t a reliable shop on the Big Island which is why I’ve always done my own work. When I posted I was probably just venting, cause like you said, it’s not worth very much in its present condition. But thanks for your encouragement.