Hey all, Lately I've been considering replacing my daily hack Mercedes with a Jaguar XJR. I've owned a few Jags in the past, and my mother still has her '86 XJ6 Vanden Plas which is now her summer only wheels..Anyhow, I've checked out both the six cylinder cars, which as I understand have the Aston Martin engine, as well as the later V8 cars which pack somewhere in the neighborhood of 390hp. Anyone here on the board have one of these bad boys and can you offer some opinions? I've always felt that the XJ6 was one of the most beautiful sedans on the road from its inception in '68, particularly the Series III cars of the 1980s. Think about it, what other sedan from that era has such beautiful, sweeping curvaceous lines? Definitely not anything from Germany and I'm afraid Rollers and Bentleys can't compete in that department, at least in my eyes. Well, any insight is always appreciated. And don't bother with the Ford/Jag opinions. Yes, there were some Ford influences when they took over, but they're still 'proper carriages' and of course always favored by London gangsters Cheers, Aaron '82 GTSi
I owned a 2003 XJR for three years, just sold it this summer. It was a great car, very fast. I too love the way they look, and it drove wonderfully. Being a Jaguar it spent many days in the shop, which was OK b/c we were always given a service loaner, but still annoying. The car is big, but surprisingly the rear seats are cramped and the truck does not carry very much. Besides that IMHO very few 4 door cars look better than a XJR! At least before this latest generation came out. Matt
Jag's are ****, im sorry for anyone that owns one. Buy a Bimmer or a Benz, but no Jag. Thats just my opinion though.
I wouldn't go that far ... but let's put it this way. My parents have an XK8, always tell me to take it for a drive, for the weekend ... etc. I'm so worried it won't get me home (and it did in several occasions!) that I just keep my little POS G5 Pursuit. Sure, I have to put a paperbag on my head, but at least, I get to my destination and back. I'm not familiar with the inline 6 XJRs, so I can't comment on them. On the V8s, avoid like the plague the first years, 97 and 98. The V8s were some very neat all aluminum engines with Nikasil coated cylinders. You can see it coming, if you put gas with high sulfur content, or if you overheat, you're ruining the Nikasil (and your whole engine block as well!). Be careful of crap gas, I guess is the bottom line. These first years also have poor quality plastics (in the engine), meaning the water pump will self-destroy, losing all its fins, often helped by the poor quality thermostat. Jag sells these parts with design improvements (new plastic ... black platic=bad, white platic=good), and apparently they are problem free. My parents' XK8 had this fin loss issue. Secondary chain tensioners are as well plastic, and well, you guessed it, they break. If they do, your engine is toast (same as timing belt on an F-car). Once again, Jag sells redesigned tensioners (made of steel) that are trouble free. My parents' XK8 had this problem, we replaced them for safety ... and they were cracked. Can't remember off-hand any other issues, but suffice it to say I'd go with as recent as possible, and avoid anything under MY 2000. If you're not mechanically inclined (ie bring the car to the shop for all the glitches), it will most likely ruin you. My parents have had the XK8 for 2 years now, problems they've had ... water pump, t-stat, secondary chain tensioners, door lock actuators, electric seats, car refusing to start after being washed (still trying to figure this one out!), front suspension bushings going at a crazy rate, electric seat button constantly breaking off. Come to think of it, that's about it. As much as I love the XK and XJ ... it has kinda drawn me towards japanese cars ... I'd suggest you check out the Roadfly Jag forums. Sure it's a "problems only" vision, but at least you'll know what to expect.
I'm curious, how many have you owned? That's a pretty strong opinion if you don't have first hand experience. I appreciate your sympathy, but my guess is you know not of what you speak. You might also look into the JDPower surveys on Benz's before you recommend them. I've owned 2 XJ's, a 95 XJ6 and my current '02 XJ Sport. They've both been great cars. I have no major failures, and service has been no worse than my Yukon XL. Zorro's experience doesn't mirror what other owners I know have been through. I've driven my cars over 100k miles total. Some things that annoy me: As brought up earlier, the back seats ARE useless. I have 2 kids, 8 and 11, and I have to move both front seats pretty far forward to get them back there. I'm 6', and I don't have a lot of room to move forward. A trip with 4 adults should be short. The trunk is good for 1 set of golf clubs, and not much else. Small items only. These cars eat tires for entertainment. I've had tires last as little as 12,000 miles. It doesn't matter if it's the 16" on the XJ6 or the 18" on the XJSport, they wear out fast. My '02 is on its 3rd set at 53k miles. Buying tires every year gets old. The XJR is a great car. I had one picked out, but ultimately decided that the extra $$ wasn't worth it for the kind of driving I do. 85% of my commute is multi-lane big city highway, the extra 100hp just didn't make sense. The 296hp in my car does very well when I need an extra kick. The other 95% of the time, it's smooth and silent. When I want to drive fast, I'll hop in the Ferrari. One suggestion: Buy a car that's a year old. The first year depreciation is amazing. Good for the 2nd owner, sucks if you buy new. If you're truly in the market, check out this place: www.texas-cars.com I've bought from them, and it's a great place. Their prices are near wholesale, and they buy great cars, mostly from Jaguar financial.
As far as performance, luxury, looks and style go, I think they lead the way. I'm a bit leary of their reliability though. I would also consider the Audi A8.
Thanks for the insight fellas. Racerboy: No offense but I hate Bimmers, so those are out. I'm not keen on Audis either. My family is a Mercedes/Jag family, I've got just a hair over 300K miles on my MB Turbodiesel and the ONLY reason I want to replace it is simply because I want a change of "scenery" and from previous Jaguar ownership I can say that I always felt like I was driving a classic car yet with modern refinements. The Merc is almost a little boring, very Teutonic to say the least, but one thing's for certain, it NEVER breaks...ever. None of the new MBs excite me except for the SL65 AMG which is a bit out of the price range I am shopping in The new S-Class looks like a bloated Town Car, so that automatically discounts another big MB. My biggest problem with getting a newer XJ is the constant, rather hefty deprieciation those cars are afflicted with. If I spend $40K tomorrow, it'll be worth $15K in two years. I don't like the newest Jag body so I'm looking in the late '90s to 2004 range. I'm going next week to pick up a mint '87 XJ6 Series III but that's only intended as another toy, not a daily by any means. Right now there's a mid '90s XJR six cylinder on eBay for a scary low price of $6,500! It's the right color (black/black) and for that low of a price, if I get two years out of it before it blows up, I won't be upset. Besides, that has to be the most inexpensive way into ownership of an Aston Martin engined product! Cheers, Aaron '82 GTSi
Sounds good if you're after a disposable car, though the later V8's had a much nicer (IMHO) interior than the early cars. Didn't Hannibal Lecter have a black XJR? 'nuff said, buy one!
I agree that the V8 cars do have a nicer interior. The early X300 interiors seemed to be nothing more than a carry over from the XJ40 cars of the early '90s. I'm not sure if Hannibal drove an XJR but it wouldn't surprise me. The best movie that portrays bad-asses driving Jags has to be "Snatch". Cheers, Aaron '82 GTSi
Haven't seen Snatch - I'll have to check it out. I love Jag's - my Dad's driven them for years. I love the whole 'classy but with a dark side' image that they have. So much more effortlessly cool than a BMW or Benz. There was a V8 XJ Sport outside my office the other day that was black with black/grey interior. Looked fab - especially with the dark stained wood trim. I knew there was an F-chatter who has a black XJR - Indaville, see this link: http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=105578&page=2&highlight=family+photos
Dongerdude: Man, you haven't seen Snatch? It's a British film, directed by Guy Ritchie. It's the sequel of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. Anyways, the two biggest bad-asses in the film drive XJs. Bullet Tooth Tony (played by Vinnie Jones) drives a Series III (it's actually a Daimler Sovereign, I think) and Brick Top (played by Alan Ford) drives an (X300) XJ6 or 8, I can't tell from the exterior, they're so similar. In both instances, the Jags are utilized for proper gangster activities (stuffing bodies in trunks and bashing heads in by slamming the door on the guy's melon over and over again). Definitely check it out. Cheers, Aaron '82 GTSi
I would get the Jag. I think it's the best looking sedan available. It is also drives like a proper Jaguar with a splendid combination of handling and ride comfort that no other manufacturer has been able to replicate. The competition: The new 5 series is a mess aesthetically. The ugliest 5 series ever? Yes. The E-class with its mediocre styling and less than stellar build quality pales in comparison. The Audi has a nice interior. It ends there for me. I am still not sold on the sharp edges of the STS. Yep, get the Jaguar!
Basically if you want a Jag and all that it implies, get a 6cyl XJR. If you want a reliable daily driver, get a 99-03 XJR with the cylinder. Enough said. I personnally love Jags, and 6cyls are my fave.
I can tell you from experience that it is always best to buy a few years after a major deisign change. Especially with Jaguar. The early models seem to have issues that keep you going back to the service center. I havent kept up on the new XJ models and/or any changes to the new body style since its release a few years back.
Get the XJR............ I just traded my 01 XJR for an 03 XKR 3 months ago and still miss it. I love the XKR but in a different way. I've had XJR's or XJ's for the last ten years with very few problems. Use Mobil 1 Oil, changed regularly will ward off problems associated with Ji%%y lube type places. I owned a jag repair/restoration business in Europe and have owned 16 jags in total. You cannot beat the comfort and character of a jag that you just don't get with a merc, bimmer or japanese car that everyone else is driving anyway. The XJR has the advantage of being able to go fast but not catch the attention of the police as it doesn't look like a sports car. The car is as fast as hell and handles very predictably when pushed. If you buy a pre 03 V8 engine then you will need to do the timing chain guides and tensioner upgrade at around 40K miles if it wasn't done already. This costs around 2.5-5K on average. You can also get the 6 year warranty for around 2k from a jag dealer which will give you peace of mind.
If you ever get the chance, go watch the Aussie movie "The Big Steal" which features Jags. You will love it if you're into Jags.
i love my XJR....it has been very reliable...but the few times something has needed to be fixed or even just normal maintance, the bill is very high. much higher than the bmw 540i i used to have for the same type of items. i.e. the dealer wanted $1,100 for a 60K service. i got a local jag shop to do it for $700.... the prices are pretty low - you should be able to get an early 2000s for $25-35K...
Well, I pulled the trigger and picked up a '97 model. I do prefer the 4.0 AJ16 engine, as it is essentially the same powerplant that was used in the DB7 and where else can you have a chariot with an engine from Newport-Pagnell for relatively little outlay. Anyways, my car is coming from the second owners in Connecticut who kept it stored every winter and have a stack of maintenance records from day one with the car. Furthermore, it's the oh-so sinister color combination of black on black. Perfect! Only problem is that I've decided not to drive the car in the winter, so I've gone and bought another car that will require winter hibernation space and I'll choose between driving my Merc or my Range Rover in the winter months. Cheers, Aaron '82 GTSi Image Unavailable, Please Login
Nice Car I am looking into buying a Car for my grad ~25000 Cnd and a Jag is one I am looking at. I just love the look
