I have a 1998 XK8 rag top with 96K on it, There are a few scratchs that have been touched up etc, what I would expect for a car of this age. It is topaz gold with the Oat meal interior. front seat covers are new, the rest is like new. I added chrome gauge trim rings and a really nice shift knob. the rest of the car is stock. I up graded the hydraulic top system with the pressure releif valve set up and had the system flushed. I Had trans serviced engine tuned, all filters replaced, oil changed and the timing chain tensioners changed to the metal ones. I also replaced the water pump, thermostat and housing with the upgraded metal one. Up graded head lights to HID system works great!!! Car runs really well. I see that prices are all over the place. I have all the parts and service records form when I bought the car. What do you guys think a car like this might be worth?

 

From what you describe it sounds like your car should sell at the top value of other cars of that time frame. The only thing left that might need work in the future is some front bushings. But that car in that condition will be a reliable car for a lot more miles as some guys have reported. I'm curious as to why you want to sell it. Great fun car to have.

But I will give you my guess as to what you should ask. And that is $15,000. The thing that will scare buyers is the mileage. But all the problem areas are fixed and some great upgrades. The one thing I always think about in a situation like this is could I buy a car this good for what I have to sell it for. If not then I keep it. Only you know really how good it really is.

Good luck and let us know what you decide.

 

Blue Book in excellent condition is $6900.00 Selling it yourself. I would consider a little more, because of records and added accessories $15,000.00 seems a high especially in the present economy.

 

sounds like a very nice car.
I'm sure that to some extent, the value of this car can be affected by regional weather patterns.... :-)
But unfortunately, in my neck of the woods, going into the winter, anything over $9k is a bonus for that car.

there are several in my local listings, same year, fewer miles, advertised for under $10k, and they've been advertised that way for months.

 

I'm a dealer.... I've been mentioned 100 times on this forum.

And I'm in Hamilton NJ.

Here's my take.

15k is wishful thinking at best / borderline delusional as a matter of practical application. As I say good luck with that.

6900 is reasonable / semi likely to happen at the retail level. But we're heading into winter... and this is NJ. If you can afford it, and have the INDOOR storage space, I'd put it away for the winter and dust it off in the spring and put it for sale.


Here's the thing with the earlier cars. The fact that the tensioners have been done doesn't add value to the car, at least in my experience.
A car with no history of the tensioners at that mileage is a time bomb, and at least the value of the tensioner job (and probably more) will be deducted from the price by a purchaser.

The newer cars with no tensioner problems are readily available at 4 figure prices in good condition. And they have the upgraded alpine stereo, newer wheels, the seats with the headrests and a bunch of other upgrades. So why pay full boat for an earlier car that has had the engine work done, when u can get a newer nicer one without the engine concerns for close to the same price.

To give you an example, a near perfect 2001 xk8 White over oatmeal, with
60k sold for 8800 bucks at the auction in bordentown this week. And I think the buyer paid a bit too much...

That being said, if you're serious about getting out of it, I'd like to have a look... Especially If you're looking to pick up something else, I can probably put together a deal that would be more advantageous to you than anything you can muster on your own.

Take care,

George

 

Auction price is dealer buying price. I would assume a retail markup of at least $2-4k, over the $8800. These prices are still low for these cars, however you have to remember that they are now 12 yrs old, even with low mileage. I have an '01 65k mi, and the plastics and rubbers are what are wearing out, not the mechanicals so much, but did have tensioners done in April at about 63k miles.

 

Thanks everyone, I see that prices are still all over the place but when dealing with cars like this, it is understandable. Price will be what someone is willing to pay much like Corvettes. The car is garaged and I never drive it in bad weather. Rubber is still in good shape. I am going to do the sway bar end links, I have one that is clunking on sharp bumps. I am also going to do the temp gauge upgrade as well.

I am not really looking to sell as yet, just wanted to get a feel for what the car may be worth. I figured it was worth around $9.500-10k. I think I'm in the ball park. I still enjoy buying a car and fixing it up, I used to restore Corvettes and miss it. Watching a car come back to life and be better than it was, really makes me feel good.

Jags are an under priced bargains as I see it, they suffer from past problems and people remember the problems of the 70's and that kills these cars for resale. It's a real shame.


Again thanks for all the great advice.

 

I thought that the 2000 model year cars were the last to use the plastic tensionsers, and that 01+ have the metal replacments straight from the factory. Is there are reason u did yours?

Usual markup is 20-25%... And you'll take a 15% profit happily. I'll buy anyone a car for $500 over auction price and fees... If I use their money to do it. If I buy the car with no intended purchaser, those are the usual guideline.

But that still makes this 01 xk8 a 10kish car.

Point being... Would you buy an 01 with 60k for $10,500? OR a 98 with 96k for $9000?

Just keeping it real....

Take care,

George

 

Hi,
early this year we ended up at a motor Auction. we were after a car for our son, sat in the middle of the auction room was this amazing Jaguar in perfect condition, full service history, not a scratch or dent, simply perfect.
Everyone looked at it, we took a gamble thinking something major could be wrong with it and we purchased it for £2,500. not good at exchange rates, but that is $4,000 i think. It turned out to have no faults whatsoever
Still I think they fetch a better price in the US.

steveeasy

 

George, the changeover to the upgraded tensioners was on engines built after August 13th 2001 (there is a specific time if you want to search for it) these engines went into 2002 MY US cars but there is no guarantee that earlier engines weren't also used for 2002 cars.
The engine number is the only clue, VIN is irrelevant.

Personally I'd still check if it was my car.

 

What you would buy, would also depend on if you had 10K or 9K to spend and the condition of both cars. I have seen low mileage cars that I wouldn't give you for free because they were driven into the ground during those low miles. No service at all just driven and driven HARD!! I would never want a car with 60k that didn't have an oil change or trans service etc. a Problem car waiting for me to pay to fix it. repairs could and do raise the price you pay for the car in the end.

Service history means more to me than just miles. I have owned cars with over 150K that were better runners than my friends cars with half that mileage. I took better care of my car, it repaid me by not breaking down or running badly. I guess I go over board with my cars because I see them as works of art and they each seem to have a personality of their own. That said, I really enjoy trying to improve on the way it looks as well as runs. Average person sees that as wasting money. We are not the average person on this forum.

They want to put gas in a car and little else. Heck of a way to treat such a wonderful invention.

 

The only detractor from "peak" private party value would be the lack of front end R&R work, including shocks, upper mounts, bushings, sway bar links and bushings, and brakes. That's a lot of $$, but once done they won't need any major maintenance except pads for another 100K. That would still put the car around $9k in my market.

Buyers are funny and sadly far between on these beautiful cars. I've had mine for sale on Craig's List for awhile for about $8500; got a few seemingly serious lookers, but I think the old Jag fears make the marginally qualified buyers fade away. With all the necessary stuff done, including a transmission replacement about 30K ago, I think my car is a good buy if someone really wants an XK8. The ones that drift off and go to the $6500 cars with no maintenance records are just plain fools. I tell 'em, pay for a better car now or pay much more later. They weren't really serious anyway as far as I can tell.

 

I don't know if I included new lower front ball joints on my XK8 and the bushings, shocks etc have been checked and found to be solid. I only need the end links for the front sway bar. They are on order as we speak.

I believe that any car with a good service history is worth alot more than one with out a good service history. You will pay far more in the end.

It is funny how some people think they are saving money by getting a cheaper car without a service history only to find that it needs $$$$$ worth of unseen repairs.

My car had a small history but at least I knew it was cared for and I had researched the car so I was expecting the rest of the stuff I did.

Past problems with Jags will haunt the brand for years to come. People think nothing has changed, because they are clueless and auto ignorant.

They wouldn't know a good deal or a good car if it bit them in the a##.People have been duped into thinking only the Japs make a good car. Hello. Toyota is recalling over 2 milllion cars because of door switch fires. Doesn't sound like good car to me!And the bad gas pedal thing was a real mess too. Floor mats my a## the car had a computer glitz. It took people from NASA top fix it.So much for drive by wire.