Was it the car that impressed the fine maiden or was it the hunky ex copper, no doubt built like the proverbial outhouse like real ones used to be.

S'ok i'm only envious never had the car the money the good looks the silver tongue or the hunky bit to entice the fair maidens with, thank goodness SWMBO took pity on me :-)

I reckon that grand car of yours will be doing the same trip again next year if you have one such planned, well done for keeping it going (and yes a good indy or sterling home maintenance is the secret, the latter for poor old broke lorryists) and for keeping your hard earned in your pocket and not lining some sales bods instead plus vanishing by the second in depreciation.

Getting rare now those not quite a Jag, maybe it's the not quite bit why its giving such good service without regular eye watering bills?

Not quite a jags can give some eyewatering bills, espescially if pierre the garagiste gets his mains humides upon them.

I bet that 'coppers nose' started tingling when Pierre tried his 'fill my palms with pounds english' sales speel, did Joe think to himself 'this peirre geezer reminds me of fingers malone pleading innocence when we all knew he was in on the blag''

:-))

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Of course it's not a real Jag. How many real Jags reach nearly 200,000m with minimal trouble?!

I bought my two year old XJ8 with 50K on the clock (Car Giant, Great Trade Centre then) and then sold it on with 170K on the clock four or five years later, absolutely nothing went wrong outside usual wear and tear items - apart from a wiper parking sensor - and I used to absolutely cane it coz the revvy V8 was addictive at full chat - almost NASCAR sounding. The bloke I sold it to has still got it 13 years later with 230K on the clock, the engine and transmission are are still as sweet as a nut - although he has had to have a fair bit of welding done, okay it's over 20 years old but still, modern cars shouldn't rust. My Previous Jag XJR had no issues at all - well none that cost me, they claimed to have replaced the supercharger bearings under warranty, I didn’t detect any issues and I've got a keen ear for mechanical issues - perhaps the workshop was looking for work?

Now my Audi 100 on the other hand - jeez, electrical falts - total brake failure (twice) - My Jags were far more reliable. Even my BL-era XJ40 was 100% reliable, a couple of electrical niggles but it never missed a beat or let me down.

Thanks for the responses.

GB: No, I'm only standard issue. Pierre the pirate mechanic was a bit of a scumbag, no doubt about that, and had we been in UK we might have had a different discussion. I am still annoyed about the rip-off of my breakdown insurance and we all pay for that in the long run.

I'd like to pay tribute to the HJ site here. I used to be quite mechanically-minded (I could rebuild a Minor 1000 from the ground up) but lurking and reading e.g. the technical questions I have picked up all sorts of knowledge on stuff I'll never need to use. Knowledge is never wasted, they say.

And as to the 'it's not really a Jag'....

Well, it's black with black leather. When it's polished (which I try to keep it) sometimes I look at it shining and admire the curves etc. I've never before owned such a beautiful car.

And, in the spirit of exotic adventure, to be able to admire the slim and suntanned legs of a young lady curled up on a black leather seat is a memory that won't fade soon.

I have had a great deal of pleasure from this car and will do my best to keep it going.