Just wanted to get your thoughts on the current state of the X308 market. I've seen many of our cars with under 100k miles not sell at that $6000 price level which is shocking. I know these cars have problems - tensions, a-drum, headliner, ABS units, etc - but these were $50,000+ cars 10-15 years ago. I just dont understand it. I paid $6000 for mine and put another $1000 into it after I got it but for $7000 out the door there is no equal in the bang for the buck equation. For $7000 I can buy a x308 Jag or some crappy 2007 Jap econobox that will bore you to tears.

Off soapbox but am I the only one that doesnt understand why the market is soft for these cars?

 

I wonder if it in part depends upon where one lives. Up in the Midwest, Jags, Jag dealers, and mechanics willing to work on Jags are few and far between. So on the one hand, the average person is usually shocked to discover how little these "expensive" cars are worth and are understandably gun-shy about purchasing a 'cheap' one. On the other, only somebody either crazy or knowledgable would (or perhaps both. ) because of what they may cost to repair. That, along with extremely low KBB or similar online evaluations, makes for a soft market indeed.

Out of curiosity, I just went to KBB and looked up my car - a clean, pretty, and mechanically perfect '98 - $2471. I couldn't buy a rusty Focus for that! And neither will I likely be able to sell it…

Cheers,
Scott

 

When I was looking to buy the one I just got ('02 xjr) in the SF Bay Area, CA there were 4-8 solid looking supercharged cars on Craigslist at the time between 6500 and 9500, and I was the only one who was serious enough to actually look at the cars in person (based on what they said directly, or what I gleaned from their general comments).

So yes, it's a buyer's market - I would hate to have to sell one, especially a naturally aspirated version.

I did notice very, very few sub-100k 2002-2003 XJR's, even on eBay. If you have one of those you can probably get a good price at auction in the US (I'm watching a white one in Texas on eBay right now for kicks), but my other car is a Merc 83 300D diesel with 150k, and I could easily sell it for over 7k within a week or two locally.

I'm sure it depends on the area - people around here want Honda's and BMW's.

 

I think that the car market for a car that is 10-15 yrs old will be soft. The better ones will demand more money. The ones with all the paperwork. The way I try to buy a used car is, buy the best one that you can afford. Buy the one with all the books and records. I paid a premium for the XJR ($13,000.00), but it was from the original owner. Had all the books and records. Former owner Maintained it without sparring any money. Never in an accident, so no body work. So yes, I over paid, but I know what I got. Could I have gotten one much cheaper? Yes. But would of been putting money into it to make it correct. I'm planning on putting about $2,000.00 into it which mostly is cosmetic. Redo front drivers seat. No one ever sat in the other seats. And the headliner and some small things. Also, transmission fluid and adding blue tooth. So, all in is $15,000.00. If I am going to keep the car for 4 plus years, it doesn't matter that I paid a few dollars more for the better car.

 

I watch the market here on a daily basis, and yes it is soft. I am seeing running X308's for sub 3K, (some 2k!) where they were 4-6 only a couple years ago. The market does bounce around a little, so I would expect it to climb in the not- too-distant future.

 

funny you mention that...I've seen some REALLY nice x308's pop up in the OC and San D area lately. No idea on history since they were craigslist listings but the prices were sweet.

We need to grab a beer sometime...it was good hanging out with you guys that one morning.

 

It is incredibly soft. You can find a PERFECT example for $10,000. As you said, I've seen several VERY nice XJRs with around 100k miles on Craigslist not sell for months for less than $6000. As MidwestJag said, here in the middle of the country, there just aren't many shops that will touch a Jag, and the ones that do are bloody expensive. And people still have a bunch of misconceptions about the reliability of these. They don't realize that at least on the XJR's, the drivetrain is nearly bulletproof and they managed to exorcise almost all of the electrical demons from past generations. It's just a combination of an enduring (false) stigma and high maintenance cost for those who can't work on them themselves (i.e. most people).

 

Hey MCM, any time. I plan on putting the convertible on blocks for a month or so to clean up the interior while I road test the XJ8 and make sure all is as it should be.

I bought the one listed for $625, I tried to help him diagnose a couple weeks ago, but he was kind of impatient and just wanted to sell it. He came down a little more, and my wife finally relented to get it for my son. It's not perfect, but a great first car for sure.

 

hmmm, do I spy a potential work day at Daves??

 

If you look at the big MB and BMW sedans of the era you will see about the same prices -- it is surprising what you can get for 8k .. and perfect examples 10-12.

A 2003 VDP was over 72k list if I remember correctly ..... I think the price was 65k

 

I'll be receiving the tensioners Friday, so hoping to hear it roar by Sat am. Then onto the cooling system, which seems to be leaking *a little bit*

 

I really kind of doubt if there is much of an upside for xj8 values. It was really the S3 that got me hooked and I still see beautiful examples of those for $5,000. Restoring collector cars has been my hobby for 30 years and so I have watched prices for all sorts of cars, always dreaming of what sorts of projects I might do. What I have observed is that the primary driver of prices for mass-produced collector cars is nostalgia and the recapture of youthful dreams. And lets face it, very few teenagers and young adults owned or ever wanted to own a full-sized 4-door sedan, even if was a Jaguar. And on top of that, they made a whole lot more 4-door sedans than sports cars to begin with. I would think we've hit bottom tho I just don't foresee any sort of collector value surge in the near future.

 

Bought a 2005 Jaguar XJR a couple of months ago with 99000 on it from a dealer of off-lease up market cars. This Jag was a trade in. He said he usually sells a car like this at auction but because it was in such nice condition he kept it on his showroom floor.
I had been researching XJRs for at least a year and wanted the new aluminum body for sure. Thought I was going to have to go for a 2004 because of budget but then this one came up only 40 miles away at a price that many 2004 models were going for.
CARFAX said a 1 owner vehicle who the dealer said was a female attorney.
Anyway dealer agreed to replace all brake pads, oil and filter change. His mechanic overtightened wheel lug nuts which took a long time for another mechanic to get off including chiseling one off. Anyway I am extremely happy with my purchase. Have installed Bluetooth and VACM and bought an updated GPS DVD for $50.
Also I replaced a pillar cover as the original had what looked like animal scratch tears in it. Yesterday I replaced the spark plugs. Next I will replace the super charger belt and later the transmission oil.
This will be the 4th Jag I have owned.

 

Supply and demand for any big luxury car that's 10-15 years old, I reckon. The big sedans from BMW, Cadillac, and Lincoln all seem to be in the same price range. The Mercedes and Lexus prices haven't fallen quite as far, but they don't really cost too much more.

Specific to the x308, once you add in the teething problems with the first few years of the engine in the XJ8 you've got a good recipe for a lower price. It's easy enough to say, "Just replace the timing chain tensioners and the water pump and you're good to go." But realistically that repair adds several thousand dollars in cost to a car for most buyers. That definitely drives down the price of a used one on the market. Plus, even if somebody has his heart set on an XJ from that era, a late-model XJ6 with a bulletproof straight six or a newer XJ8 with the engine flaws corrected before it left the factory is likely to look pretty good by comparison.

Still, I can't possibly imagine a better overall deal in the used-car market these days. These are fabulous, well-built cars.