Jag XJS? Am I crazy?
 

I'm thinking of replacing my wife's PT Crapper with an early 90's XJS. Not a 12 but a 6 cyl. version as I hear the 12's are really trouble. Now I know these cars are a PITA but man they are are SO cheap right now. My wife never drives anywhere since we retired. Her PT is an 02 and has like 50K on it. Most of the time it just sits in the garage hooked to the trickle charger. A Jag would look much better in that spot and I would at least drive it once in a while. I hate the PT cruiser so I don't drive it.

Am I nuts?

Considering your circumstances as you describe them above, I would go for it!

Do it but for the above mentioned reasons go V12. The 12 is ok as long as it doesn't sit in tons of idle traffic overheating. If it gets little use get a 12.

The 12 is tempting as there are few production cars that had 12's in them. But I have heard they were hard to maintain and were sensor hogs. I would rather have a 12 from the mystique stand point but let's not forget that I will be DIY here. A ton of traffic here in tractorville is getting stuck behind a combine on the road.

Certifiable

Nothing wrong with an XJS that a small block chevy can't fix.

Except for the wipers. You might look at the cost of a replacement wiper motor on an XJS. Seriously - if the wipers don't work pay the going price per pound for scrap metal.

angela

I owned a 12 for many years (83 coupe) and the motor was trouble free. The car was a joy to drive on long trips, powerful and fast (by the standards of the day) and was pretty reliable (brake rotors kept warping- that was the major problem). Parts are expensive on both the six and the 12 but if it were up to me it would be the 12 hands down. If you don't know the transmission is from GM (unless you can find an early 4 speed) so any fixes there are cheap.

I always said it was better to have owned a Jaguar and lost money than to have never owned a Jaguar at all.

I have both engines in the stable and indeed the V-12 is a bear to work on. Also the fuel mileage is pretty tough. If I had it to do over again would not get a V-12 unless I had a really good Jag mechanic and a second car.

The XJ-S is a good car and well sorted out by this time so if you can find one that you like would go for it.

I have owned Jags before, so that is why the apprehension. My wifes E type was a joy,sold it to buy a house, but my XJ6 was a nightmare. Angela....really?

Sush your mouth! :) There is nothing wrong with Jaguar engines, just idiot shade tree mechanics who do not know how to work on them!

Seriously, I have 700,000 miles on my 1969 XJ and its never stranded me out on the road. If you know how to work on them they are fine. There is no need to put any other engine in the cars, just find a good mechanic and keep them stock.

You're not crazy... In their day they were a great car. Just the other day I saw a convertible with the top down. It was burgundy and it looked great in its own way but a small part of me was thinking how dated the car looked.

But if it's what you want then go for it. Just buy the best one you can afford.
(take your time finding a good one with a doting PO)

How bad could the wipers be? I've never heard about the problem. More info please.

Angela....I see them for $100 - $150 (google) about the same as a dodge mini van. That's not so bad.

There was a really pampered mid 90s that came up for sale here. So I looked into them a bit. seems that after ford took over in the early 90s and sorted out a few issues on the XJ that they became pretty trouble free. I know that seems counter intuitive, ford making something right but that was the consensus. That was a six that i was checking out, I love the buttresses. I know blind spots and all that but they do look good.

Cheers Richard

What price range?

My Dad, who is a Jag nut, bought a 90's XJS convertible about 6 years ago.

He sold it within six months.

Little things drove him nuts.

Jags with lumps in them are no longer Jags. They become Camaros. I'm surprised you would say such a thing.

The straight 6 is an incredible engine. The prince can be a bit of a pain, but unless you just get a lemon, it's worth it. British cars just have a.......presence.....not commonly found elsewhere.

Just know that whatever breaks will cost more to fix than the market value of the car. If you're ok with that, do it.

Paul, I see them as low as $3K and up to maybe $8K in good shape. Saw one with 56K on the clock for $6K. well sorted too. I am in favor of one with more miles on it as it would have some things addressed already.

My wife is little and drives me nuts... so it would be the perfect car for her.

Well, given that your aim is to have a car sitting in your driveway not being driven often, a Jag XJS is a fine choice and will probbly live up to those expectations ;)