1991 H Reg JAGUAR XJS 3.6 Price: £998
137,000 miles Automatic Red Petrol Saloon 3590 cc
4 Doors, Automatic, Saloon, Petrol, 137,000 miles, Red, MOT-06-2009. Adjustable seats, Adjustable steering column/wheel, Alloy wheels, Anti theft system, Central locking, Computer, Cruise control, Electric windows, Front armrest, Head restraints, Leather seats, Leather upholstery, Lumbar support, Immobiliser, Metallic paintwork, Power assisted steering, Radio, Radio/Cassette, Sports seats. Insurance Group:1616, THIS JAGUAR XJS IS THE 3.6 LITRE AUTOMATIC, FULL TAN LEATHER, RE-FURBISHED MULTI-SPOKE ALLOYS BRAND NEW PIRRELLI TYRES, SPARE SET OF WHEELS, CURRENT MOT, VERY SOLID BODYSHELL, IDEAL PROJECT FOR JAGUAR / CLASSIC CAR ENTHUSIAST! MUCH ADMIRED BUT DOES NEED SOME ONGOING TLC
I am sooooooooo tempted. Didn't realise you could buy a Jaguar coupé for this sort of money. What a way to spend a few hundred quid. I wonder what he'd give me for my Vectra in p/x.
As somebody else said... "It's one of those classic 'two best days' cars (the two best days of my life were the day I bought the car and the day I sold it)."
|
|
Surely a 16/17-year-old car isn't a classic yet -- it's still just a banger at this stage?
|
Who says it's a classic?
"IDEAL PROJECT FOR JAGUAR / CLASSIC CAR ENTHUSIAST!"
I guess it doesn't directly say it, although the implication is clearly there.
|
If you want to throw thousands at a car; start with a good, low mileage, example - not a leggy ruin.
|
>>If you want to throw thousands at a car;
Don't be silly. £999 until something goes wrong... then it's bye bye - at which point not paying to fill the fuel tank (nor to worry about the next major fault) will be such a blessing I'll be delighted to be shot of it.
|
|
How long do you think it'll last?
|
Didn't finish this message -
Next question was how long would you want it to last in order to be happy with the £900 it cost you?
|
|
|
>>How long do you think it'll last?
Who knows. MOT next June, so if it lasts that long, that'll be about £50 per month (Scrap value on eBay is £4-500); if it only lasts until 1st November , that's still only £250 per month - £50 per weekend; you couldn't hire a car for that. I doubt it will last any longer or less time than would Florence, but you could buy 8 like the first one for the price of Florence:
1993 JAGUAR XJS 6.0 V12 2dr Auto Coupe £8,250ono
90,000 miles Automatic Burgundy Petrol Coupe 5994 cc
This is a beautiful 2 door coupe, petrol, automatic, V12 6-liter 1993 Full facelift in Morocco Red. This car has full service history with bills going back to 1993. Everything works on this car with 90k on the clock, this is rare in the fact it all works. I take her out only in the sun (no rain) and only on the weekend, as i work most weekends. Its often at cars classic shows, real head turner. I clean her more than I drive it !! I have some goodies that will come with her, for the right buyer too. I selling up to start up a business so I will need some cash, and yes it will be very, very said day to see her go. :( If you like to know more about Florence please do call me. £8,250 ono.
|
|
|
|
|
|
I think in advert parlance, the words 'ideal project' generally mean that it's an absolute shed which wouldn't make it the 5 miles to the scrap yard.
|
I'm surprised that I'm arguing the way I am here actually. I'm all for buying 'prestige' cars second hand, when they're often ridiculously cheap because everyone is afraid of the running costs.
I think either I'm getting too old and risk averse (but I'm driving an Alfa, so that can't be it, can it?), or this Jag, at first glance at the advert, seems to be taking it just that step too far.
But then you've always been a bangernomics approver, haven't you? I have wanted to be at times, but keep finding my beady little eyes being lit up by things a little further up the price range.
|
When I read up about old XJS problems... I decided I did not care to spend lots of money buying parts that bent or rusted due to design failings.
You could spend £20k on it and still have a shed.
It's not a money pit: it's a money mine.
Better off with an old Mercedes : at least they designed them to last.
|
>>Better off with an old Mercedes : at least they designed them to last.
I had a couple of those. The first cost me £200 per month, the second £1,000 for a fortnight. Never again. Both were nicked - no doubt dismembered and shipped out to Africa.
|
|
|
Nicely worded advert - designed to appeal to the more, let's say, 'innocent' car enthusiast.
It says nothing much really - other than list the original spec & mention of re-furbished wheels, the MOT is "current" - hurrah, so at least a week then! I could well imagine, if bought, the car would just limp home & rest forever in the driveway, gradually returning to its component elements.
|
MOT-06-2009
|
|
If the MOT is kosher then the car can't be *that* bad from a structural perspective.
|
|
|
>>MOT-06-2009
Oops.. didn't absorb that. But still wouldn't entice me.
|
> MUCH ADMIRED BUT DOES NEED SOME ONGOING TLC
DEEP SUCKING OF BREATH THROUGH TEETH
|
I had a high miler Jag, cost me a grand to buy and I stuck 10k on it, just had to change the break pads and an oil pressure sensor in that time. Sold it for £1200 a year later.
I dont regret it in the slightest and any car enthusiast should own a Jag atleast once.
Mine was a '93 XJ40 with 157k and very little SH but plenty of MOT.
|
|
|
|
if the tyres are all new then they're worth at least £300ish surely ...depending on how good the re-furb of the wheels, another £150ish maybe, then there's a spare set of wheels, even if they're below par £50-£100 maybe.....that's nearly £600 worth of stuff in the sale, if it goes bang tomorrow, before he's even bargained with the seller on the purchase price
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Buy it now!
4 door versions of the xjs are quite rare.
|
4 door versions of the xjs are quite rare.
Good One...i missed that. So is it a 2 door XJS or 4 door XJ6?
|
Well....
It is cheap but it does say 'saloon' twice. My guess is that its an XJ6
|
Pictures only have 2 doors...
|
|
Hasn't HJ said somewhere that this -- mid-80s to mid-90s -- is the generation of Jaguars to avoid (or at least the XJs)?
|
He does go on about oil changes every 3k or 6 months; coolant changes every 2 years (else it sludges up, overheats and HGF); general rust; brake fluid every 2 years (else ABS kit rusts and seizes); rust; suspension rust; did I mention rust?; timing chain rattles.
That's why they're £999. You can only run 'em until something expensive fails...
I can see the worry if you buy "Florence" (above) for 8k.
Edited by Mapmaker on 04/09/2008 at 18:46
|
|
|
|
A grand is too much to pay. If you owned it, you'd bite their arm off if someone offered you a grand for it, in the current climate! As others have said, a carefully worded advert! As it's basically worth just the MOT and I would guess is practically unsaleable, I reckon £500 quid absolute max. Then if it goes down the pan next week, you can cut your losses without losing sleep!
|
There are over 30 Jags on autotrader for less than a grand, so if you're tempted then you can be picky.
If you don't mind the possibility of scrapping it after a few months then go for it.
A wise man once said if you can afford to run an old Jag, you can afford to by a new one.
|
I'd say from the pics it looks in very good condition to me:
tinyurl.com/6fcgpk
But the pictures are of a 2 door XJS but it does say 4 door saloon in the text. Sorry if someone else on here now goes to buy it... but it's not listed on his website.
|
Mapmaker - did you change the description of the first line of the original post?
The Auto Trader ad has Jaguar XJ6 3.6 as the first line, the wrong model probably input by the dealer in error. Auto Trader will then default the first few words based on the XJ6 model input i.e. 4 Doors, Automatic, Saloon, Petrol.
Checked on the DVLA website to see what it says, but actually it doesn't say anything about the model at all.
It does say the date of liability is 01/11/2006 so it has possibly sat around for a while. Interesting that it had an MOT three months ago. Has someone been trying to sell it since June.
|
|
Buy it, drive it, enjoy it. Can't go wrong if you've got a grand burning a hole.
|
|
Wouldnt you rather have a lovely 3 cylinder supermini? All the rage these days.
|
I think it should be said - and I know this may be difficult to understand in the land of the Mondeo and the Megane - some cars are classics from the day they are new and the XJS is one of them. Style, rather than temporary fashion, and feel-good factor can't be quantified by number crunchers. (Sorry, Number Cruncher, nothing personal!) :-)
Either you want to play about with old cars or you don't. A grand isn't much for a bit of fun that might last a year - how much does a new car drop every month? Of course, you do need to have a grand in your pocket in the first place - a situation that, for some reason, seems to be shared by few company car or flash new motor drivers these days. Maybe the market went wrong when people stopped thinking about whether they could afford the item itself or just the monthly payment?
It seems to me you make a decision to pour your money into petrol and parts or into the coffers of the bank or the finance company. The biggest cash sink I've ever had to deal with is called "a certain High Street" Bank - but I know better now.
IE: you spend the money one way or the other but either you get something swish to look at that makes every outing an occasion (even if you return home on a transporter) or you end up with something like a Hyundai i10 or a Vauxhall Corsa.
I know which way my decision will always go - and I've had 'em new, I've had 'em old...
Edited by Pugugly on 05/09/2008 at 08:38
|
To put the grand into perspective my company car (Octavia) costs me around £400 a month insured and maintained. All I do is wash it and fill it up.
The Jag would not have to last long to be cheaper than that. If only I could guarantee it would start every morning, do 3k a month, and I could find another for a grand in three months time when it goes wrong and every three months after that I would do it.
Is it old enough to be road tax exempt?
|
Is it old enough to be road tax exempt?
Nowhere near - you are looking at pre 1973 (roughly before anyone jumps on me!) cars for no tax - with the £35 a year cars around these days its no so much of a selling point any more, thank goodness... perhaps we'll have people buying the old classics who actually want them to "preserve" them rather than as a tax dodge?!
|
JamesH>>Mapmaker - did you change the description of the first line of the original post?
Yes, because it was patently wrong (given the rest of the description and the pictures) - I guess you're right about the default Auto Trader bit, thus explaining the 4 doors bit. Interesting bit of research you've done there, thanks.
"Fortunately" it is 200 miles away from me - although I shall be passing within half a mile of the dealer's front door a week on Saturday... Et ne me inducas in tentationem...
MichaelR>> 3-cylinder super-mini.
Yeah right - "LOL". It's all your fault, actually. For pointing out to me how utterly unpleasant my current motor is.
|
|
|
|
|
Sadly sold. I wasn't actually really serious when I first posted; now I fear I may be following all the enthusiasm from you others. Some research suggests quite how cheap that one actually was. Others at that price point are no MOT, long-term SORNed...
Now, is it really worth paying twice as much money as the previous one for: 1991 H 46,000 miles, Metallic SILVER, MOT-01-2009. Full black Leather Interior, Full Service History, Lattice Alloy Wheels, New Battery, Huge Service History File. AMAZING CONDITION FOR A COLLECTABLE CAR
For only 4 months' MOT, £2k is a lot of money. Realistically just as likely to go wrong as the first one, but the cash tied up in it compared to scrap is 3 times as much. The first one cost less than a couple of suits.
I'm only going to drive it two weekends in three; it will live on the London street, in the rain, salt, being bumped and banged by others as it rapidly turns into a pile of rust.
|
|
If I was buying it I'd walk away unless it came with 12 months MoT.
|
If I was buying it I'd walk away unless it came with 12 months MoT.
Quite. Actually MOT'd until April. But it leaks. It has a soggy carpet, and that faint smell of soggy car. I can still smell it. Ugh! I remember that smell from my W123 days and I don't want to go back there! Nice car though... ...otherwise.
|
|
|
|
That'll be like me owning a BMW 520i E28 sharknose.
Personally I'd love to own one just for the hell of it, if I was to be given the chance.
|
www.bmwclassics.co.uk/e28_528i/index.html
Eight grand too much ?
|
Check the new issue of Practical Classics magazine, towards the front it has a peice on how much XJS have dropped in value. It also talks of these cash strapped times in which we live and people selling their classics.
It says that XJS are dropping in value and many more sellers than buyers so advises to wait and see how much cheaper and how many more there are next year.
I just taken a loan out for a 'hobby car'. I can see me using the 14 day 'right to cancel' facility and waiting till next year. Will the £2200 car that's caught my eye be a £1500 car in the spring? That the car is at the other end of the country helps me resist.
Talking of XJSs did anyone else see that one on eBay where some chap had shortened the tail and got rid of the flying buttresses and managed to get a Citroen Xantia hatch and rear lights on it? A DIY XJS hatch.
I'm not sure about the XJS. Designed by committee, originally intended to be mid engined, and skewed by a wary eye on US crash standards.
|
Still looks the business, though, especially in drophead form, now that time has put it in context.
A grand is worth a punt on a bit of fun and I'm not surprised that one went quickly - but not 2k for an unknown quantity that would have to live on a London street and cope with salt as well. They rot badly underneath and it's expensive to put right. It would only be worth having with a new ticket, a full underbody check, steam clean and Waxoyl or other treatment straight away if it's not too far gone to be worth doing. Already the cash register is ticking.
A couple of weeks ago I went after what looked like a really tidy, low mileage 1988 Honda Legend Coupe for not much money. Now there's nice looks, comfort, performance and bullet-proof engineering. I think it was on the forecourt a day...
(Can I just say, it still comes up on Autotrader, but it's sold!)
|
|
|
The_Flexible_Flaw , nice to see another PC reader on here!
I have seen the article re cars plummeting in value, especially my MGB that I am working on.
However given that I only paid £230 for it and the price of scrap is so high I cant lose that much as if it drops any more I can always weigh it in and get a decent bit back for it : o )
Seriously though, I did look into buying an old Sovereign like my Dad owned mid-eighties then read the tales of woe and remembered him saying that the day he sold that car he opened a bottle of bubbly as it drove off into the sunset........and it was only four years old then........
|
|
In this months Practical Classics Staff Car Sagas the guy has a 1988 Daimler 3.6 bought for £600 which is his daily driver and very reliable too apparently.
|
|
|
|
|
|
he's not asking £8k , just says that apparently it was bought previously from him at £8k - serious offers considered . That means he'll listen to the best offer out there. If I were interested ( which I'm not ) , I'd offer £4k and take it from there .
|
|
|
|
|
|
