So hypothetically selling an XJ8 the most important thing would be to get it into the hands of an enthusiast with a garage to park it in and the resources to continue to maintain it properly. It seems that the everyone on the forum and in the Jaguar club who wants one already has one so I would need to post somewhere else. I thought about Hemmings, but I realize X308s are not particularly valuable, not yet really collectable and not so rare that one has to travel very far to find a nice one (at least not in the U.S.) so I don't know if Hemmings would be worth it. What sources have y'all used, either to sell or when you were shopping? If you were going to resort to craigslist, any advice for how to word an ad to attract the enthusiast buyer and dissuade those just looking for a luxury car at an economy car price? I'd hate to watch any Jaguar get sun-bleached in the parking lot of a local apartment complex. Let them buy a Mercedes for that fate

 

You can start by posting it here.

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/j...classifieds-8/

 

A lot of nice cars attract good prices on "Bring A Trailer"

https://bringatrailer.com/submit-a-vehicle/

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1998-jaguar-xj8-6/

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2003-jaguar-xj/

 

Thanks, but I don't think I want to do a 7-day auction. Besides, I don't know that its quite BAT material as its not an R, nor a Vanden Plas, nor low miles, nothing a serious collector would want, at least not for another 20 years. I just figure it'd be a good car for someone to get into the car hobby, maybe join the Jaguar club, go on their wine tasting tours, etc., without making a big investment.

 

Ebay often brings good results, and of course there's Autotrader, CarGuru etc, etc.,

And there's really nothing wrong with Craigslist, there are often some very nice vehicles on there. Reputable dealers as well as private sellers advertise there a lot.

I think I would try Craigslist first. If you list a lot of hi-res pictures and compose a tempting overview it can attract a good buyer.

 

IMHO, have you asked a local Inde' if they have had anyone interested in one? Mine trades his off about every 6 months, whether its from a good offer or he's flipping them I cannot say.

 

Yes, there's a local British car shop that I have bought a ton of parts from plus he's done specialized jobs for me that I can't do myself like alignment. The owner takes his Triumph to local car shows so I see him occasionally outside the shop. He's very familiar with the car and knows its for sale, but I don't think he buys and sells cars himself. It would probably be just be a chance happening if one his other customers happened to be in the market, but who knows. He may call tomorrow, but I suspect most of his customers are reeling from their latest repair bill and not interested in adding another British car.

I may go ahead and do a craigslist ad and just mercilessly quiz any applicants before I arrange to show the car.

 

I bought both of my Jags off the DFW Craigslist... both of my miata's, too. Both Jags were on CL for at least a month with the prices dropping, until I couldn't refuse and both sellers took less for the car when I got there and looked at it.

My ungaraged 42K mile '98 XJ8 was $2,550. After replacing all the rubber in the suspension, It is the perfect daily driver (36 mile round trip @ 70 mph) and I don't feel too bad parking it out in the sun.

 

The problem I've found trying to sell my 03 XJR - is that it's not in perfect shape. It's got some issues (216k miles will do that), but all in, a few hundred dollars and a set of tires and she'd be fine. But at least in this area, it doesn't matter what you price it at, nor what you disclose. Craigslist/Facebook buyers want it for half what your listing, PLUS more off for any work that they have to do, even though you've priced accordingly. I originally started the car around $2000, knowing people would offer less. One person gave me a number of $800. Seriously? And you know that if I sorted all the issues out, they'd still low-ball it by a ton. Short version, is buyers expect you to practically give the car away if it needs any work whatsoever, as if it's doing you a favor for them to take it off your hands.

And of course I told the guy no. I could easily part it out for four times as much, but I hate to break up the car, and don't have the time. That doesn't mean I'll give it away.. some people, I tell ya.

 

Selling/buying older vehicles is always problematic, the seller often thinks he/she has a future classic and therefore worth a small fortune, and the buyer always thinks he/she can get a deal for next to nothing on an old vehicle.

Twenty-year-old Jags are a dime a dozen, especially if they have high mileage, need several obvious visible items addressed, and have a couple of "check engine" lights on.

But low mileage, well cared-for examples are desirable, and therein lies the difference.

The X308 will become a "collectible", but not for several years. It's like the XK150, depending on your view of things it was probably the less beautiful and desirable of the 120/140/150 series, but after the E-Type became beyond the financial reach of the average Joe, the XK150 suddenly reached stratospheric pricing. Supply and demand!

The MKII Jaguar was such a wonderful car it sold in the hundreds of thousands, you couldn't give them away when they were 20 years old.......who would have thought that they would ever be sort-after, even in poor condition!

The X308 NA and SC are beautiful cars and a sensual design-example of a prior age, but we are currently in that "quiet zone" where they are not yet fully appreciated. There may be some who are ahead of the curve and are paying top dollar for prime, low mileage examples, but on the whole values are underpriced right now.

It's a good time to buy a pristine, well cared-for, low mileage example, higher mileage, less-well-cared for examples probably won't extract their value for many years to come. But they will.

Hey all we can do is enjoy what we have right now. I guess the future is the demise of the internal combustion engine and the introduction of efficient electric vehicles, I just hope that sleek, swooping, sexual designs don't have to die with this transition.

 

I'm right with you Carnival. I grew up in the era when if you drove a 4-door sedan, it meant only one thing, that your parents got a new car and you got the hand-me-down. No teenager or young man would ever have bought a 4-door with their own lawn-mowing or grocery sacking money. Hence what I've observed in the classic car market is that the 4-door versions are generally 1/4 to 1/2 the value of their 2-door version and took an extra 20 years even to get to that level. They aren't first line collectibles. Its usually only after a collector has satisfied his craving for whatever dream muscle car or sports car he wanted when he was young that he starts looking into other cars from his past to include a sedan maybe like the one his father or uncle or boss drove.

But I'm kinda weird in that its not so much about getting the most money out of it, rather its mainly about seeing that it gets into the hands of an enthusiast who'll continue to take care of it as well as I have. I'd be perfectly happy to deal if the buyer is going to garage it and has the financial wherewithall and/or the DIY knowledge and skills to maintain it the way it needs to be. I come by it honestly, I guess its in my DNA. My uncle had a pretty nice 67 Chrysler Imperial but it needed paint. When he was going into a nursing home, he put it up for sale. I would have bought it myself, but I did not have the space at the time (kinda like now). Several people offered him astounding sums for the car, but all anybody wanted was the 440 engine. He refused, finally selling it for a fraction as much to a serious collector who promised that the Imperial would not be dismantled for as long as he lived. I won't require that level of promises, but if all somebody wants is a cheap car to drive back and forth to work till the wheels fall off, then the price is non-negotiable. Plus they can't live in my neighborhood because I don't want to watch it deteriorate.