Tell me about Jags

[keithyboy]

My entire life I've always gone for the sensible option when buying cars so it may be time to live a little. The one car I have always wanted is a Jag but my budget is a bit Arthur Daley so I think we're talking XJ40.

What goes wrong that's drastically expensive to fix and where do they rot?

[10mpg]

Good cars, I love 'em, check for rot everywhere especially arches sills cross members and suspension mounts, any car fitted with metric wheels/tyres will cost loads to retyre, better to buy some imperial wheels off another jag...
They can have a myriad of electrical faults but nothing usually that serious and replacing the suspension bushes can be time consuming and expensive..

Don't bother with a 2.9 the economy is no better in the real world than the bigger engined ones, go for a 4.0 if at all possible and avoid pov spec anything and especially avoid non leather interior.

[karlspop]

just sold my xj40 to minidan , great drive miss it now as I'm now driving my company vw lt

[dollywobbler]

Smokey engines, rot, electrical gremlins, already-thrashed examples.

As mentioned, cloth interior may be cheap to buy but an absolute nightmare to sell.

[Marc]

Engines are extremely strong, beyond head gaskets not much to worry about. Check oil pressure gauge though! The AJ6 is a superb lump, it'll run mega miles with basic maintenance. The 3.2 and 4.0 are great, avoid early 2.9s as they're curse word. Single cam and gutless, prone to snapping cam chains too. Leaks and such are not uncommon and can be difficult to trace. Self levelling suspension is a nightmare and many cars will have had it removed. Suspension is complicated, listen out for any knocks or bangs.

Externally, they do rot a bit, but certainly no worse than BMWs/Mercs etc of the same age! Front subframe is a nasty one though, too many cars have been scrapped due to it. Rear arches can get scabby. Sills don't tend to be too bad though. If the car you're looking at is '93 onwards, check the bulkhead carefully. Jag changed the design to accomodate the V12, and it can rot vociferously.

Internally, trim is quite hardwearing. There will be the odd rattle and squeek, not as well put together as the German options, but a damn sight more appealing!

Post '92 things really pick up, quality wise. Early cars are patchy, but the later ones are seriously good value now. Ford came on board in 1990 and invested serious money in resolving the issues. The whole unreliable old Jag image is rediculous, typically British attitude to run down our own. They're not quite up to Germanic build quality, but they're leagues ahead of the old Series IIIs.

I've had mine four months now and its covered 5500 miles. Simply superb. Quiet, relaxing to drive, reliable and still looks classy. Paid £900 with full MOT & two months tax left. Show me a better car for less than £1000. I only wish it had full leather (got half), but it was in such good nick I had to buy it.

The X300 (after the XJ40) is basically the same car in a posh frock with a lot of the problems ironed out. They're seriously good cars and built superbly. If you can stretch the budget, aim for one of them instead. However the XJ40 is well worth considering on its own merits. Go for a nice '92 on, 3.2 Sport or 4.0, with leather and all the toys. Buy wisely and you'll be wondering why you didn't get one years ago! ;D

Here's mine...