| Author | Message | ||
| James Angle (Jimangle)
Junior Member Username: Jimangle Post Number: 88 Registered: 9-2002 |
Yeah I don't know why I put a V in there. It's a 4.0 straight. | ||
| Jim E (Jimpo1)
Advanced Member Username: Jimpo1 Post Number: 2520 Registered: 7-2001 |
Jimangle, the XJS has a STRAIGHT 6, not a V. | ||
| James Angle (Jimangle)
Junior Member Username: Jimangle Post Number: 86 Registered: 9-2002 |
Doody, I have an 85 xjs v12 that just had an engine fire last weekend. I loved the car. Look at Jagbits.com for information into the jag world. They have links all over the place, and part too. I would recommend the 1994 or 1995 xjs with the v6 for a women to drive. The earlier cars are for poeple with automotive skills. My car (when it burnt up) had 135k miles on it, and still ran strong. I would buy another one. I learned alot about jags, and the xjs is really a solid car. You can upgrade the steering rack bushings, and the steering becomes very responsive. The cars are good cars. I think that when they came out, know one really knew how to work on them, and that's why they were maintenance nightmares. It's the best driving car you can get for the money. I would recommend the V6 just for the ease of maint. and the fuel economy. | ||
| Dave White (Dwhite)
Junior Member Username: Dwhite Post Number: 67 Registered: 5-2003 |
Get the car. Do the research as you would buying a ferrari. You want an owner who liked and owned Jags and did the maintenance. How many miles is your wife going to be driving the car? | ||
| mwg (Mikeg)
New member Username: Mikeg Post Number: 20 Registered: 8-2003 |
Doody - I had an 87 XJS-C. To me this is the best looking XJS there was. 12 cylinder with a removable hard top - two large panels in the front that fit in the trunk and the rear half that folded down convertible style. Great cruising speed and no major problems - just lots of minor annoyances. Speedometer went out twice, window motor. etc. I loved it and only sold it to get the 996 Cab (due to lack of parking in my SF house.) Wish I kept it now that I have plenty of parking - to which I just added the 550. | ||
| Jason Fraser (Jfraser)
Member Username: Jfraser Post Number: 443 Registered: 3-2001 |
Doody, I had an XJS celebration (which was the last year of manufacture '95).....I put 120,000 miles on the car, it was superb (my wife absolutely loved it) I also had one MASSIVE crash in it...I was stationairy and got rear ended by a car going @ 60 mph.....they demolished their car and mine was about a foot shorter than normal but it is an immensly solid/heavy car.....I had the V6 which was quick (relative) it felt about the same as an XK8. Things to look out for....dodgy a/c heating controls....there's a part in the unit that is prone to corrosion and causes the a/c fans to remain on after the car is switched off (it's about a $900 fix) a quick fix is to pull the fan fuse out, so check the fuse box....There's a magazine (which Barnes & Noble carries) called Jaguar Monthly....great info on things to look for when buying XJS's etc. I didn't have any maintenance issues with the car (a little heavy on oil consumption) | ||
| Mitchel DeFrancis (4re308)
Intermediate Member Username: 4re308 Post Number: 1049 Registered: 6-2001 |
Had a 1988 V12 model and loved it! Never really had any problems with it. It is a gorgeous car! | ||
| Jim E (Jimpo1)
Intermediate Member Username: Jimpo1 Post Number: 2489 Registered: 7-2001 |
You're right Kds, I was gloriously happy the day I bought my first Jag. I was also the happy the day I sold it to buy another. Doody, get the 95/96 6 cyl, you'll have a decent car. | ||
| Kds (Kds)
Junior Member Username: Kds Post Number: 141 Registered: 5-2003 |
There are two gloriously happy days in the life of a British car owner............. The day that they take delivery..............and the day they sell it. If you are insistent on an XJS get the 6 cylinder version. | ||
| Jack (Gilles27)
Intermediate Member Username: Gilles27 Post Number: 1373 Registered: 3-2002 |
Doody, my parents have had 2--one a V12, the other a V8. Definitely skip the V12 for the reasons you read. Their current one is a '96, and it's a nice car. I'm not crazy about it because I'm 6'2" and always feel a little closed in, especially with the top up. I assume your wife is a bit shorter, so it may not be an issue. For what it's worth, I drove it from Daytona to Chicago, and while it ran beautifully all the way home (definitely a solid-feeling car), it started getting uncomfortable after a while. | ||
| Dan (Bobafett)
Intermediate Member Username: Bobafett Post Number: 1337 Registered: 9-2002 |
Old school = real soul. --Dan | ||
| Sunny Garofalo (Jaguarxj6)
Member Username: Jaguarxj6 Post Number: 866 Registered: 2-2003 |
The roadfly forums I found way too small.. Jag-Lovers has 20k signed up and the factory keeps tabs on the site because it has so much influence. I've been on there for over four years now and made some great friends all over. If you want a 2 seater, you can go XKR. Its all they offer now, but they are a bit pricey compared to an XJS  The R series are definitely great handling cars. Sunny | ||
| Dan (Bobafett)
Intermediate Member Username: Bobafett Post Number: 1333 Registered: 9-2002 |
Doody, It's a good idea, just not the greatest! --Dan | ||
| Mr. Doody (Doody)
Intermediate Member Username: Doody Post Number: 1654 Registered: 11-2001 |
thank you very much, guys! stellar info. i will start research from those links. in general, it sounds like a bad idea, but that's never stopped me before ;-) doody. | ||
| Rodney Haas (Icars)
Member Username: Icars Post Number: 424 Registered: 3-2002 |
The other option for a XJS is to find one that has been converted. There are two big shops here in Dallas that convert XJSs to Corvette engines. It's actually cheaper to do this when the V12 fries itself which they do @ around 130K. Personally I would go for a late model XJR and forget about the XJS. 420 HP and amazing handling for a sedan. | ||
| Kendall Kim (Kenny)
Member Username: Kenny Post Number: 526 Registered: 9-2001 |
www.roadfly.org has a Jaguar forum specifically for each model and bodystyle, as well as BMW and Porsche one... | ||
| Sunny Garofalo (Jaguarxj6)
Member Username: Jaguarxj6 Post Number: 862 Registered: 2-2003 |
Dan, 4015lbs according to specs for a '90 coupe. I weighed my XJ6 last week and the factory specs were right on. The straight six AJ6 engine was underpowered for that kind of weight. I love the 5.3L's, I've owned two and still have one Series 2 5.3L. The first was a 325bhp/310lbs tq. 4 carb'ed lead fueled monster with no cats that pulled in a respectable 10-11 city and 19-20 highway at 75mph. Sold unfortunately (smacks self again, three years and change after I did even!) The second which I still have is a first year E.F.I that does just slightly less than that with less power output and emissions gear to boot.. disappointing by comparison. Fix it once, it should stay that way. Unlooked after, look elsewhere. Nothing short of full records for V12s!! They can bite good, but are definitely sweet to drive. The turbine qualities especially if you do a few mods (head, crank, exhaust) and rev them hard is intoxicating as V12's can be. Oh, and on my carb'ed, even with two 11.5 gal split tanks, the fuel was sucked so hard from the tanks it created a drag on acceleration ;) Sunny | ||
| Dan (Bobafett)
Intermediate Member Username: Bobafett Post Number: 1327 Registered: 9-2002 |
Sunny, That car NEEDED the V12. We had the 5.3L engine. I think Unladen, the car was 5100 lbs or something. Cast Iron!!! But you have to admit, when it runs, it is so absolutely brilliantly smooth, it's great. Reliable when it went out of production! hahahah! Doody, I will do my best to find records, etc. The owner of the car is my parents' house-maintenance guy, actually. My mother gave him the car (w/o consulting me!!!). I drove that thing in high-school. It really isn't that bad...find a car that someone has sunk quite some money into fixing things the right way. Generally you only needed to do things once. Oh, and gas consumption, if you care...uh. Yeah. I could floor that thing, and when the kick-down came into effect, you could literally see the gas bar dropping... But I still love the car. The new ones have no soul in comparison. --Dan | ||
| Sunny Garofalo (Jaguarxj6)
Member Username: Jaguarxj6 Post Number: 858 Registered: 2-2003 |
To echo Dan's comments, the V12's were maintenance nightmares and they finally became reliable when they went out of production. No joke. Straight six good, V8 decent, V12.. heh heh great torque, incredible idle, gobs of freeway cruising power. Unless you have a V12 fetish, don't bother with a Jag V12. | ||
| Dan (Bobafett)
Intermediate Member Username: Bobafett Post Number: 1319 Registered: 9-2002 |
Doody, we had an XJS V12. I love that car to death, but seriously speaking, it is a maintenance NIGHTMARE. Ours was an 89 or 90. These things are SO shittily built, I would never consider one unless you already have it. When it runs, it runs BEATIFULLY, however you will have so many service bills you can't imagine. If you want more specific info, I will call. --Dan | ||
| Sunny Garofalo (Jaguarxj6)
Member Username: Jaguarxj6 Post Number: 851 Registered: 2-2003 |
www.jag-lovers.org (the best, its huge) www.thejagboard.com (lots of mechanics who regularly post) Sign up for the Forums and browse the XJS forum. The archives and the buyers guide are your friends. Also, you must must must do a search for the Kirby Palm's book on the XJS and the V12, unparalleled information. Sunny P.S. the V12's ended in '96 and '97 as an option and were special order only, a mid 90's 4.0L straight six in great shape will run you around $15k, get a '95 or later if you can, same engine in my sedan (bulletproof) | ||
| John Do'h (Combover)
Junior Member Username: Combover Post Number: 63 Registered: 8-2003 |
www.jag-lovers.org There's a forum section. Look on the left hand side of the screen. | ||
| Mr. Doody (Doody)
Intermediate Member Username: Doody Post Number: 1650 Registered: 11-2001 |
my wife has always been a huge fan of the XJS. i'm thinking of buying her one. anybody know if there's a jaguarxjschat.com out there or the like? anybody own one of these puppies and can comment on it? as best i can tell, they made them until 1996, and for a few years they were available in V6 or V12 formats. the used prices are in the toilet compared to, say, 8 series BMWs from that period or 928s from that period. are they dogmeat cars? any info appreciated. doody. |