What I meant is, I like the X100s without the plastic add on side skirts the most. They are cleaner looking. I guess these were indeed the pre-2005 cars?

I didn't get the comment about a big word about nothing. If one is buck teeth then the one with any "teeth" must be edentulous , which means toothless of course.

Like I said I like both designs.

 

BC, Jaegar. I do not think it is fair to say that the 2005-2006 is edentulous. The Rabbit teeth (Cat fangs?) are still there, they are just lurking behind the wire mesh grille. You could say that the 2005-2006 have been fitted with braces. Jaegar, apologies; the EU 2001 4.0 XKR listed at $9k (EU) referred to in my prior posting was a French listing. It was still available as of last night but it is RHD. There is a lower mileage LHD 2001 XKR coupe in Italy listed at $12k (EU) which looks pretty clean in pictures. Has the same 18 inch wheels as my 2001 XKR convertible which have better ride quality than the lower profile 20's. The asking price leaves plenty of EUs left over for any rehab or upgrades. Are there the same sort of administrative hassles to import Italian registered car to Germany as bringing US car over?
https://www.autoscout24.com/offers/j...6361?cldtidx=2

 

So are you saying it's the same bumper, but the grill covers the two bars?

To be honest I'm not quite sure about importing cars within the E.U.. I'm sure it must be easier and less bureaucratic than from the U.S. But I have no idea about the costs or process involved, as different E.U. countries might have different rules concerning cars.

 

It is hard to make them out in the picture, but it looks like the same bumpers as in the earlier cars, just sitting behind the grille. See slight gray shapes which are pointed out in pic.





Since the nose cone and opening are slightly larger than the earlier models, there is room to accommodate the grille ahead of the bumpers. I had to tap the door sills to confirm that the skirts on the rocker panels are cladding on the 2006. Pretty solid. I agree that the earlier models look closer to the earlier classic e-type whose nose cone also grew over the years.

 

Interesting. I had never noticed that. But is it really the same bumper or just has similar bars?

 

Jeager,
JRabbit has sent you a Photo of the internal Bumper which sets inside the Grill area of the 2005 - 2006 XKR. It is made of Aluminum or Lite-weight steel and is silver....you can see it through the Mesh Grill if you look for it....What's it good for? Might save the radiator.....!!! But he's right as it does have teeth, Fangs, Buck Teeth or whatever, therefore it is not edentulous because it does have Teeth or Bumper guards or whatever you would like to call them!

Now, what else? What do you think about the Body Side Moldings on the 2005 - 2006 XKR's? Don't you like the way they draw your eye down to make the XKR look even lower than it is and the way the Front Nose-piece has the little area down in front of the wheel that starts the Body Molding lines?

The Rear Bumper is larger and has cut-outs for duel exhaust Tips....All these things change up the last XKR Model........Don't you like it?

Billy Clyde

 

Ok, thanks for clarifying it. I had misunderstood JRabbit. Like I said I like both looks. Exposed bumper bars or covered by the mesh grill. I like both fronts.

As for the body side moldings on the 2005 - 2006 cars, as I mentioned before I prefer the earlier cars without them. I think it's a more clean look. Like JRabbit said, it makes the cars look closer to the earlier classic e-type .

But in general I like any X100. I think it looks much, much better than the X150 and I'm sure it will age better too.

And talking about side moldings, did they have different versions for the pre 2005 cars? Sometimes I see pre 2005 X100s which look to have a more pronounced wedge on the side moldings.I wonder if it's just the colour and lighting making it look different or if there were indeed a more sculpted side molding.

 

Jeagar,

There are serval After-Market Companies that make different looking types of Side Moldings....Some even have scoops built into them....Personally, I like the stock design the best as it makes the 2005 - 2006 look even lower than they are! Did you know that they are 3 piece?

Billy Clyde

 

Jeagar,

I think these Side Moldings make the XKR look lower! What do you think?

Billy Clyde

 

The 2005-2006 cars side moldings are 3 pieces? No I didn't know that. What are the pieces? I would have thought it was a single flat piece.

I wasn't talking about any aftermarket body kits. I agree that stock looks better. I dislike body kits. I think they are for ugly cars.

But as far as I know what I'm referring to is stock. Some pre 2005 X100 cars look to have plain flat sills or side moldings, such as these:






But others look to have a lip where the sills or side moldings look to become wider closer to the rear wheels, such as these:






I'm thinking it might be just an optical illusion caused by the angle of the photo and the lighting. But I just wanted to make sure there were not different types of side moldings for the pre 2005 cars.

 

I have a 2005 XKR, which came without side mouldings. My previous one, late 2002 4.2 model (2003 style) had both side mouldings and ducks teeth, which I didn't like at all. It was little trouble to remove the grill (which has spaces where the teeth are) and replace it with a continuous mesh.

I also had the car resprayed as it had picked up lots of dents and scratches. I took the opportunity to remove the bonnet badge and re-site it in the middle of the grille, and fill in the bonnet hole left behind. I also removed those side strakes and replaced the reflectors and lenses with smoked glass (which matched the body colour). I felt it looked good.

As far as the OP is concerned, all of the maintenance issues have been around elements common to XK8, such as suspension and so on. I have never had any problems caused by the 'R' upgrade. I dislike the hard ride of my current 20" Sepangs compared with the original 18" tyres on my first car. The higher specs, better brakes and better acceleration make the XKR safer, in my view, and it is certainly worth deciding what extras you might appreciate, such as adaptive cruise control (which I use constantly).

 

Jeagar,

All XK8'S & XKR's have the Upper Side Moldings on the Front Fender, Door and 1/4 Panel from 97 thru 2003....They were discontinued with the 2004 Model......Then in 2005 & 2006 Jaguar added the lower Body Molding.....and the Double grill Front end.

All XK's from 97 to 2006 actually have a sort of Lower Molding look stamped into the Rear 1/4 Panel just in Front of the Rear Wheel.....Look at the Photo you sent of the of the 2000 Model "Silverstone" and you can see this Stamping very plainly......Just in front of the rear wheel. That stamping is covered up by the lower body Molding on the 2005-2006......This leaves the 2004 XK without either upper or lower Side Moldings! The Photo of the Dark Gray XKR in front of the sign shows you what the 2004 looks like....The XK's only Year without Moldings.....

I hope this clears it up this mystery for you!

Billy Clyde

 

bcprice36,




I noted in your signature that you have Victory Edition LED tail lights. Were these lights LED as original or did you modify them?






Thank you,




Rob

 

Crtfour,

I found the V/E's in Scotland and they came with regular Halogen Bulbs....Sometime back CCFulton did a pictorial on how to make the Blinker and Outside Tail light/Brake light work with LED bulbs and not turn on the "Check Rear Lights" Warning.....I have used his directions to rig those (2) Lights......The English Fog-Light and Back-up Light are not monitored by the Warning Light and all you have to do to those two is put in one of the White magnified LED Bulbs that will let you see all the way down your Driveway while you are backing-up and Man....they do really work!!......and get one of those Round Red LED Bulbs with all the little points on it for the English Fog-Light. Look in the Forums "How to" Section for CCFowler's LED Tail Light directions....Those directions let you hook-up the Blinker and the outside Stop Light/Red Light....

If you want V/E's, you can go to this website: https://www.nationwideautorecycling....k8/L04040/2006 I've found that they often have them as they recycle a large number of XK's & XKR's....I saw a set there for $300.00 not long ago.......

Crtfour, the LED Bulbs in these Photos appear sort of yellow but they really are Red .........

Billy Clyde in Houston






https://www.nationwideautorecycling....k8/L04040/2006
Victory Edition Tail Lights with LED Bulbs! This is with Head Lights on ....



Victory Edition Tail Lights with LED Bulbs! This shows the Regular Tail Lights and the English Fog Light..Which shows the Brightness of the Stop Light, If it was on!

 

do not mean this disrespectfully, but if you have to ask then you should buy the XK8
I had a '05 xj8L and an '06 Super V8 and it was like night and day or 'with lobotomy or without lobotomy' - most car owners don't care enough about HP & tq to pay for it upfront or to maintain it but for those of us that do ......
sort of like marlin fishing vs fly fishing for trout, hard to talk about w/out offending somebody - one's not better than the other, just a very different thing - exists for other brands like Caddy CTS or CTS-V..... true M or 'body kit' M package, etc etc

given the above, I'd say go for the XK8

good luck with your search!

 

Hi,

I seem to have missed your reply. Sorry.

Thanks for clarifying. You are a wealth of knowledge on these cars.

I think one of the reasons I prefer the pre 2005 cars without the lower body Molding is that the lower body Moldings on the 2005-2006 look like an add on. It has a stuck on aspect to it. I think if it was flush and more integrated I would like it better.

After your explanation, I think my favorite style is the 2004 without any moldings at all. It looks the cleanest. But tastes differ wildly and in the end of the day any X100 is beautiful. I'm looking for one to buy at the moment and I would take any of them from a styling point of view. To be honest I'm not even that worried about it being a XK8 or XKR. You can't go wrong with a X100 for looks. They are all beautiful.

 

A bit late on this one but thought I'd add my 2 pennarth.

I looked at the XKR but decided against it mainly because I would never use the extra power, so why have the additional complexity and the additional fuel & insurance costs. Plus I love the standard XK8 anyway.

Mine is a 1999 coupe, and I wouldn't swap it for anything now. The tensioners had been done by a previous owner, and with only 28000 miles when I bought her in May 2016 she drove like a new car.

My advice is find one thats been well maintained, cosseted even, with a low milleage and I purposely went for an earlier car because the later ones are loaded with lots of toys, and as cars get older bits are more likely to go wrong, so less toys, less to go wrong. But I still get an amazing car to drive and she always makes me smile.

Most of the time I potter about at sensible speeds, but every now and then........ 😊

Terry

 

I can't possible comment just how fast I have been in my 2000 Conv XKR with up rated Supercharger bottom pulley and lowered suspension, but it is insane as the 155mph cut off switch under your pedal well just does not work clearly as your foot just does not get there when your supercharger gets uprated! Still now I have got that out of my system, I rarely use the power it has but, when you are plodding along in an XKR and that A hole rep is up you backside in his new Audi flashing his lights at you to move over you can say bye bye, see you later pretty quickly, who's the daddy now then? lol. That gentle G force, the distance between you, then the smile that hurts your face gives and the shock of that idiot is enough just to go for an XKR every time regardless, but seriously the power is a nice to have, essential probably not if you want to keep your license, but the sheer elegance of X100/ 150 series cars is enough but the Supercharger is defo one of the more reliable elements of the car and the grilled bonnet is to die for in my humble boy racing / old man opinion. I wish I had a newer X150 as possible now as in the UK rust is the killer of these cars.
PS My 09 XJ Executive diesel run around, day car is arriving soon, can't wait for my mates to be calling me 2 Jags!
Living the dream, the dream is Jaguar:-)

 

Icsighte, if you do choose the XK8 (or anyone else for that matter) I have a 1997 with 34k miles that I am about to prep for selling. As you can imagine with such low millage the condition is very good. Timing chain tensioners and water pump replaced and ECU repaired with lifetime warranty.

 

I can tell you that being called "Prescott" by all and sundry gets a bit wearing after a while!