1988 Jaguar XJ40 Sovereign
Discussion
Earlier this year I started a new job so just to add to the change, I thought I'd buy anew car. It actually turned out to 2 cars I bought, a MINI R53 with a great spec and the car in question, the Jag. I'd just sold my E38 740i after having it on and off for sale for months, trying to decide whether to forge ahead and get rid, or keep and steadily improve. I got 2 offers for the E38 and so it left my ownership early this year.
I decided I wanted a car that could be considered a classic, but without the pitfalls of a "proper" classic. I'd found that although the E38 was a great car, it was still too new to be considered a true classic but too old and temperamental to be a daily driver. The budget was limited as the R53 was already bought (a car I'd wanted for a while to be fair) so choice was limited.
Most Mercs and older BMWs in my budget were either poverty spec or projects at best plus I didn't really know what I wanted. I then stumbled across a few XJs of various ages and these fitted the bill perfectly. I'm fortunate that I have a decent size garage with a scissor lift so I had the space and reasonable ability to DIY most things that may need doing.
So I started the search for an XJ deciding I liked the XJ40 as it was old enough to be a true classic even though in reality it appears to be an unloved car in classic car circles. Which means they can be cheap.
To cut a long story short, I got talking to a guy from the XJ40 Facebook group and although I ideally wanted a local car as I'm sick of travelling to look at heaps of rubbish, it sounded good and looked OK in the pictures. A video was requested and sent, more photos as I needed and all and any questions answered. Great. A deal was done and a plan to get the car to me in Kent provisionally made. A week or so later I got a call to say the car was leaking hydraulic fluid (more on this later) and he couldn't sell it, but also wasn't willing to spend any more on it either. I was gutted. We agreed I would buy it, at a further reduced price on the understanding it needed work almost immediately. A deal was done and I started to arrange getting it transported half way across the country. I hadn't physically seen the car at this stage and didn't until it turned up one Friday lunchtime....
[url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/JToLadhW[/url][url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/rwnptouv[/url][url]
|https://thumbsnap.com/yQ4FcKAk[/url]
More on this tomorrow...
I decided I wanted a car that could be considered a classic, but without the pitfalls of a "proper" classic. I'd found that although the E38 was a great car, it was still too new to be considered a true classic but too old and temperamental to be a daily driver. The budget was limited as the R53 was already bought (a car I'd wanted for a while to be fair) so choice was limited.
Most Mercs and older BMWs in my budget were either poverty spec or projects at best plus I didn't really know what I wanted. I then stumbled across a few XJs of various ages and these fitted the bill perfectly. I'm fortunate that I have a decent size garage with a scissor lift so I had the space and reasonable ability to DIY most things that may need doing.
So I started the search for an XJ deciding I liked the XJ40 as it was old enough to be a true classic even though in reality it appears to be an unloved car in classic car circles. Which means they can be cheap.
To cut a long story short, I got talking to a guy from the XJ40 Facebook group and although I ideally wanted a local car as I'm sick of travelling to look at heaps of rubbish, it sounded good and looked OK in the pictures. A video was requested and sent, more photos as I needed and all and any questions answered. Great. A deal was done and a plan to get the car to me in Kent provisionally made. A week or so later I got a call to say the car was leaking hydraulic fluid (more on this later) and he couldn't sell it, but also wasn't willing to spend any more on it either. I was gutted. We agreed I would buy it, at a further reduced price on the understanding it needed work almost immediately. A deal was done and I started to arrange getting it transported half way across the country. I hadn't physically seen the car at this stage and didn't until it turned up one Friday lunchtime....
[url] |https://thumbsnap.com/JToLadhW[/url][url] |https://thumbsnap.com/rwnptouv[/url][url] |https://thumbsnap.com/yQ4FcKAk[/url] More on this tomorrow...
I remember going with my uncle in the 80s to collect his brand new sovereign from the dealership in pretty much that exact colour. It seemed incredible compared to the bangers I was used to. The fact it had leather seats, LCD screen, a ‘fancy’ auto and twin exhausts. However, the thing I remember most was how smooth it was on the road. Lovely
Edited by Boom78 on Monday 15th April 07:27
I'm in 
I used to have the Daimler Double Six version, with the 6 litre V12. I absolutely loved that car. That engine was the best engine I ever had in a car. My old thread is here in case anyone wants to do some background reading
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
Looking forward to reading about yours!
I used to have the Daimler Double Six version, with the 6 litre V12. I absolutely loved that car. That engine was the best engine I ever had in a car. My old thread is here in case anyone wants to do some background reading
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
Looking forward to reading about yours!
Cambs_Stuart said:
Lovely. Is it the 3.6?
Good luck with it. Interesting to hear what the leak was.
Yes, it's the 3.6, which is the engine I wanted althoughvthe 3.2 and 2.9 seem to be far more common. Good luck with it. Interesting to hear what the leak was.
Also to answer another question, I believe the wheels aren't original, I think they're from an XJS and were likely to replace the metric originals.
So, let's start with the good bits. Remember I hadn't seen the car until it turned up to my house via Shiply. ..
Rust, or lack of it. It isn't rust free, but the weak areas (so everywhere really but in particular the sills, jacking points, rear deck by the fuel filler cap and front wings) are far better than cars half its age. So a great start.
It started and ran lovely, the guy who transported it to me commented how good it is and I assume he's seen plenty of cars that aren't....
The air con works, in fact everything works. The electric aerial fascinated my children although the big comfy seats didn't.
The headliner had been replaced along with a new windscreen.
Upon further inspection, it appears to have been sold by Loxleys of Bromley which no longer exists today but would have been my local Jag dealer as a boy. In fact towards the end of the XJ40 production run I probably would have been removing brochures from there for my collection, the majority of which are now gone
In short, it was in far better condition than I expected and if any of you read the barge thread and the associated budget, I'd have been able to buy this car twice over, tax and insure both too
Rust, or lack of it. It isn't rust free, but the weak areas (so everywhere really but in particular the sills, jacking points, rear deck by the fuel filler cap and front wings) are far better than cars half its age. So a great start.
It started and ran lovely, the guy who transported it to me commented how good it is and I assume he's seen plenty of cars that aren't....
The air con works, in fact everything works. The electric aerial fascinated my children although the big comfy seats didn't.
The headliner had been replaced along with a new windscreen.
Upon further inspection, it appears to have been sold by Loxleys of Bromley which no longer exists today but would have been my local Jag dealer as a boy. In fact towards the end of the XJ40 production run I probably would have been removing brochures from there for my collection, the majority of which are now gone
In short, it was in far better condition than I expected and if any of you read the barge thread and the associated budget, I'd have been able to buy this car twice over, tax and insure both too
MedwayMonaro said:
So, let's start with the good bits. Remember I hadn't seen the car until it turned up to my house via Shiply. ..
Rust, or lack of it. It isn't rust free, but the weak areas (so everywhere really but in particular the sills, jacking points, rear deck by the fuel filler cap and front wings) are far better than cars half its age. So a great start.
It started and ran lovely, the guy who transported it to me commented how good it is and I assume he's seen plenty of cars that aren't....
The air con works, in fact everything works. The electric aerial fascinated my children although the big comfy seats didn't.
The headliner had been replaced along with a new windscreen.
Upon further inspection, it appears to have been sold by Loxleys of Bromley which no longer exists today but would have been my local Jag dealer as a boy. In fact towards the end of the XJ40 production run I probably would have been removing brochures from there for my collection, the majority of which are now gone
In short, it was in far better condition than I expected and if any of you read the barge thread and the associated budget, I'd have been able to buy this car twice over, tax and insure both too
I remember Loxleys (and was it K J Motors not far away that was linked?) from driving past it as a kid. Amazing that your car still has all the original bits it seems, shows it was well loved. Rust, or lack of it. It isn't rust free, but the weak areas (so everywhere really but in particular the sills, jacking points, rear deck by the fuel filler cap and front wings) are far better than cars half its age. So a great start.
It started and ran lovely, the guy who transported it to me commented how good it is and I assume he's seen plenty of cars that aren't....
The air con works, in fact everything works. The electric aerial fascinated my children although the big comfy seats didn't.
The headliner had been replaced along with a new windscreen.
Upon further inspection, it appears to have been sold by Loxleys of Bromley which no longer exists today but would have been my local Jag dealer as a boy. In fact towards the end of the XJ40 production run I probably would have been removing brochures from there for my collection, the majority of which are now gone
In short, it was in far better condition than I expected and if any of you read the barge thread and the associated budget, I'd have been able to buy this car twice over, tax and insure both too
Good work... I had a 1988 XJ6 3.6 many moons ago and mainly happy memories. I loved the digital dash, and its ability to throw up random warnings all by itself even without anything wrong with it. "Bulb failure" was a popular one.
Fantastic combination of ride and handling. Probably the best I've ever had in that respect, much better than modern German luxury cars with firm ride and stupid low profile tyres.
I had a great book all about the design and development, range and driving impressions.
Fantastic combination of ride and handling. Probably the best I've ever had in that respect, much better than modern German luxury cars with firm ride and stupid low profile tyres.
I had a great book all about the design and development, range and driving impressions.
Thank you everyone for the lovely comments. I am very pleased with my buy, it has helped to restore faith in humanity (some sellers are honest!).
Now let's look at the issues. To be fair, most are minor. A few interior lights needing bulbs, a few bits of trim missing here and there. When the car arrived, there was a box of bits that most would just throw away, however I decided to keep them, there were a few electrical modules, various relays, belts and switches and odd bits of trim. Interior door handles didn't look right, so I set about trying to resolve it. Managed to secure them to the door OK, but as luck would have it, the covers were in said box! Very lucky as they are no longer available.
After:
Missing trim on headliner, a bit bizarre but a replacement is on order...
Front number plate was broken so I ordered some replacements which I'm very pleased with....
Now let's look at the issues. To be fair, most are minor. A few interior lights needing bulbs, a few bits of trim missing here and there. When the car arrived, there was a box of bits that most would just throw away, however I decided to keep them, there were a few electrical modules, various relays, belts and switches and odd bits of trim. Interior door handles didn't look right, so I set about trying to resolve it. Managed to secure them to the door OK, but as luck would have it, the covers were in said box! Very lucky as they are no longer available.
After:
Missing trim on headliner, a bit bizarre but a replacement is on order...
Front number plate was broken so I ordered some replacements which I'm very pleased with....
Now the big one....
So this car uses a system for the servo assisted brakes, most use a vacuum but not a 1980s Jag. It uses some overly complex system driven by a pump and using LHM fluid. I've no idea how it works, but all I know is that it was unreliable when new and time has not been kind to it coupled to the fact many parts are no longer available. The low pressurecswitch for this system was reported as leaking, but previous owner topped up the system and reported the car drove fine still.
After it arrived to me, I carefully drove it around on private access road where I live and it was fine. But as time has gone on, it dumped green fluid everywhere and this weekend the brakes were hard to use, effectively unassisted. I'd finished doing the supercharger service on my MINI so the Jag went on the ramp and I was greeted by this..
Low pressure switch was leaking. Easy enough to access and swap, but at around £350, not cheap. Vacuum driven conversions can be done, but the UK does not have a plug and play conversion, the US does but its expensive, especially with postage and duty. Just by chance, I found an aftermarket alternative so that is the route I'm going and part turned up today.
Will fit it thus week, then onto the next jobs.
So this car uses a system for the servo assisted brakes, most use a vacuum but not a 1980s Jag. It uses some overly complex system driven by a pump and using LHM fluid. I've no idea how it works, but all I know is that it was unreliable when new and time has not been kind to it coupled to the fact many parts are no longer available. The low pressurecswitch for this system was reported as leaking, but previous owner topped up the system and reported the car drove fine still.
After it arrived to me, I carefully drove it around on private access road where I live and it was fine. But as time has gone on, it dumped green fluid everywhere and this weekend the brakes were hard to use, effectively unassisted. I'd finished doing the supercharger service on my MINI so the Jag went on the ramp and I was greeted by this..
Low pressure switch was leaking. Easy enough to access and swap, but at around £350, not cheap. Vacuum driven conversions can be done, but the UK does not have a plug and play conversion, the US does but its expensive, especially with postage and duty. Just by chance, I found an aftermarket alternative so that is the route I'm going and part turned up today.
Will fit it thus week, then onto the next jobs.
I have always had a soft spot for the original 3.6 litre XJ40s with their digital instruments. This is the earlier spec with the taller door mirrors and neater open plenum - I always thought they looked better than the later cars. They're rare cars now.
My late father bought one in February 1987 - it would have had a 'D' 'plate had he not had his own number. It was Westminster blue and my brother and I called it the Blue whale. I remember a trip down to Oxford when my dad called out 'full house' as the VCM had scrolled through every one of the fault messages including 'Fuelling failure' - there was never anything actually wrong with the car though and it was actually very reliable. I believe the problem was caused by dry solder joints between a daughter board and the main board in the instrument panel. Whatever it was, it is fixable now. The main problem was rust and if yours is OK, that's a very good thing!
The XJ40 is a wonderful car and quite criminally underrated. I still have one once owned by my dad, this one a later 3.2 litre Sovereign in diamond blue. I really must use it, it is a lovely car to drive.
My late father bought one in February 1987 - it would have had a 'D' 'plate had he not had his own number. It was Westminster blue and my brother and I called it the Blue whale. I remember a trip down to Oxford when my dad called out 'full house' as the VCM had scrolled through every one of the fault messages including 'Fuelling failure' - there was never anything actually wrong with the car though and it was actually very reliable. I believe the problem was caused by dry solder joints between a daughter board and the main board in the instrument panel. Whatever it was, it is fixable now. The main problem was rust and if yours is OK, that's a very good thing!
The XJ40 is a wonderful car and quite criminally underrated. I still have one once owned by my dad, this one a later 3.2 litre Sovereign in diamond blue. I really must use it, it is a lovely car to drive.
dbdb said:
I have always had a soft spot for the original 3.6 litre XJ40s with their digital instruments. This is the earlier spec with the taller door mirrors and neater open plenum - I always thought they looked better than the later cars. They're rare cars now.
My late father bought one in February 1987 - it would have had a 'D' 'plate had he not had his own number. It was Westminster blue and my brother and I called it the Blue whale. I remember a trip down to Oxford when my dad called out 'full house' as the VCM had scrolled through every one of the fault messages including 'Fuelling failure' - there was never anything actually wrong with the car though and it was actually very reliable. I believe the problem was caused by dry solder joints between a daughter board and the main board in the instrument panel. Whatever it was, it is fixable now. The main problem was rust and if yours is OK, that's a very good thing!
The XJ40 is a wonderful car and quite criminally underrated. I still have one once owned by my dad, this one a later 3.2 litre Sovereign in diamond blue. I really must use it, it is a lovely car to drive.
I'd agree, although in this instance it's played to my advantage... that being said, if it was a Merc or BMW, it'd be a lot more money to buy initially.... My late father bought one in February 1987 - it would have had a 'D' 'plate had he not had his own number. It was Westminster blue and my brother and I called it the Blue whale. I remember a trip down to Oxford when my dad called out 'full house' as the VCM had scrolled through every one of the fault messages including 'Fuelling failure' - there was never anything actually wrong with the car though and it was actually very reliable. I believe the problem was caused by dry solder joints between a daughter board and the main board in the instrument panel. Whatever it was, it is fixable now. The main problem was rust and if yours is OK, that's a very good thing!
The XJ40 is a wonderful car and quite criminally underrated. I still have one once owned by my dad, this one a later 3.2 litre Sovereign in diamond blue. I really must use it, it is a lovely car to drive.
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