Does anybody have any experience of owning or running a 1998 on 3.2 jaguar.I was thinking of buying something a little more luxurious and they seem to be reasonable cheap .Regards Andy
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The 1998 3.2 is the XJ8, and the early ones have had Nikasil bore liner problems leading to a replacement engine (under Jaguar warranty). If this has been done all well and good if it has not avoid the car. I personally would go for a 1997 XJ6 with the AJ16 straight 6 engine, or a 2000 onward XJ8, but avoid the early XJ8s.
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Andy,
I've had a '99MY 3.2 Exec for a couple of years now and I love it to bits. It's quiet, comfortable and the ride quality puts it's German rivals to shame especially with the standard of UK roads. It's also knocked my blood pressure down a few points. Other drivers don't seem to find it offensive so they tend not to cut you up as much and will even let you out of busy junctions.
Some early models (98 to 2000) did suffer from bore wear problems caused by high sulphur-content fuels, like BMW (and Porsche iirc) but Jaguar replaced them under warranty if necessary. Replacement engines can be identified by a green plate affixed to the rear of the engine. Don't let the fact that a particular car hasn't had a replacement motor put you off. If it's done a reasonable mileage and isn't showing signs of wear (the most obvious is poor cold starting), it's very unlikely to start showing symptoms now.
Other problems to watch out for are:
Camchain tensioner wear: If there is any rattle from the front of the engine get them changed pdq.
Water pump impellor failure: The original impellor can disintegrate causing rapid overheating.
Front suspension bushes: Make sure there are no knocks.
Other than that they are pretty solid (check the various customer sat. surveys) and in two years and about 20k miles the only problems with mine have been a dodgy battery (original) and two blown bulbs.
They are a real bargain at the moment.
Kevin...
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This months Jaguar World has an article on buying a used XJ.
The car comes out really well with every part being reliable and easy/economical to repair. No rust problems either.
Their recommended version is my favourite....manual XJR....would have to be in black.
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