Is it wrong to want an XJS ?
Discussion
The more I look at them , the better they look . I think they are gorgeous . Don't fancy anything new .
The car would get semi regular use , running about , shopping , gym , visiting local friends etc ( I'm rarely in the UK and luckily I have a couple cars / bikes to use . Point being nothing extreme planned ) .
The thing is I know nothing at all about them . Is this opening the door to a world of hurt or are they as good as they look ?
The car would get semi regular use , running about , shopping , gym , visiting local friends etc ( I'm rarely in the UK and luckily I have a couple cars / bikes to use . Point being nothing extreme planned ) .
The thing is I know nothing at all about them . Is this opening the door to a world of hurt or are they as good as they look ?
Is it wrong to want an XJS ?
More to the point, It is wrong not to want an XJS.
Not that I have one, but I've always wished I'd bought one back in period, I got so close ...
And now LadyB8 won't let me have any more cars, she seems to think I've got too many already. Look I don't have as many cars as she's got hand bags.
More to the point, It is wrong not to want an XJS.
Not that I have one, but I've always wished I'd bought one back in period, I got so close ...
And now LadyB8 won't let me have any more cars, she seems to think I've got too many already. Look I don't have as many cars as she's got hand bags.
Not wrong at all, but it kinda depends what role you want the car to have.
I have lusted after them ever since they launched in '75, but only this year have I felt it is the right time for me to own one. Mine is intended as an every day car & lives outside during the summer, but when the bad weather comes I will garage it, but it will only stay in there if we have bad snow.
Back to the car, I decided on a 3.6 manual in the end, but mainly because a very good one became available, I was not against a V12, & someday I will have to try one. I love it, it's very comfortable, a bit like taking your house in the country for a drive! More than quick enough to cope with today's traffic too, point it at a motorway slipway & it is surprising how quickly it surges forward.
One thing I will say though, we also have a MY 2000 Boxster S, there is only 10 years between them but as a drivers car the Porsche is so much more involving, & feels like a space ship by comparison. But when I go out I take the Jag keys first, almost every time.
Just look at it!
I have lusted after them ever since they launched in '75, but only this year have I felt it is the right time for me to own one. Mine is intended as an every day car & lives outside during the summer, but when the bad weather comes I will garage it, but it will only stay in there if we have bad snow.
Back to the car, I decided on a 3.6 manual in the end, but mainly because a very good one became available, I was not against a V12, & someday I will have to try one. I love it, it's very comfortable, a bit like taking your house in the country for a drive! More than quick enough to cope with today's traffic too, point it at a motorway slipway & it is surprising how quickly it surges forward.
One thing I will say though, we also have a MY 2000 Boxster S, there is only 10 years between them but as a drivers car the Porsche is so much more involving, & feels like a space ship by comparison. But when I go out I take the Jag keys first, almost every time.
Just look at it!
Not wrong in any way. 
I had a 1990 3.6 manual years ago. Loved it. Barely any slower then the V12 but with a tighter lower suspension.
I was looking for another 'toy' earlier this year and was considering either a convertible XJS or XKR. Ended up getting an XKR mainly because they are 'better' cars in every way and I found one locally that ticked all my boxes.
However, there were a few XJSs that I came close to looking at.
I had a 1990 3.6 manual years ago. Loved it. Barely any slower then the V12 but with a tighter lower suspension.
I was looking for another 'toy' earlier this year and was considering either a convertible XJS or XKR. Ended up getting an XKR mainly because they are 'better' cars in every way and I found one locally that ticked all my boxes.
However, there were a few XJSs that I came close to looking at.
wtdoom said:
The more I look at them , the better they look . I think they are gorgeous . Don't fancy anything new .
The car would get semi regular use , running about , shopping , gym , visiting local friends etc ( I'm rarely in the UK and luckily I have a couple cars / bikes to use . Point being nothing extreme planned ) .
The thing is I know nothing at all about them . Is this opening the door to a world of hurt or are they as good as they look ?
Brilliant cars. Mechanically pretty sound. Rust is the biggest issue, wood trim can crack and headlinings sag. Worn suspension bushes make them drive poor. Rust is the only thing you can't easily fix though. The car would get semi regular use , running about , shopping , gym , visiting local friends etc ( I'm rarely in the UK and luckily I have a couple cars / bikes to use . Point being nothing extreme planned ) .
The thing is I know nothing at all about them . Is this opening the door to a world of hurt or are they as good as they look ?
5.3's are supremely smooth and great GTs. But the auto box is sluggish and kills the performance. Not that they are slow, just they never feel overly lively.
My advice would be to source a 6 litre V12 with the 4 speed auto. Seriously rapid cars and drive great. Either that or hunt high and low for a manual 3.6 or 4.0. Don't let people tell you the 3.6 isn't as good, it is.
300bhp/ton said:
Oh be warned the 5.3's do drink fuel. I never bother to work the mpg out on mine, as frankly I didn't care. But it's realistic to expect 11-15mpg. Maybe lower if you use the power.
I've manually calculated the fuel consumption on my 5.3 HE V12 on several occasions. On long mostly motorway trips it averages around 22mpg. Including a mix of around town about 15mpg.Olivera said:
I've manually calculated the fuel consumption on my 5.3 HE V12 on several occasions. On long mostly motorway trips it averages around 22mpg. Including a mix of around town about 15mpg.
22mpg certainly seems very good. Suspect you must have been driving it quite sedately. Mine certainly wouldn't have done that. We've also had a 6.0 XJ. The 4 speed box transforms the car. That would get up to that sort of mpg on a good run. Modal average was more like 16mpg mixed driving however if you were gentle and 14mpg if you were a little heavy footed. The 5.3 with the 3 speed auto was certainly more thirsty. Olivera said:
300bhp/ton said:
Oh be warned the 5.3's do drink fuel. I never bother to work the mpg out on mine, as frankly I didn't care. But it's realistic to expect 11-15mpg. Maybe lower if you use the power.
I've manually calculated the fuel consumption on my 5.3 HE V12 on several occasions. On long mostly motorway trips it averages around 22mpg. Including a mix of around town about 15mpg.300bhp/ton said:
Interesting you should say that. As we ran a 6.0 litre Jag and a 4.6 p38a Range Rover at the same time. And generally the Range Rover gave the better mpg. And both were better than my 5.3 XJ-S.
To be fair I think the P38 is a little bit more efficient than a fairly careworn RRC. Slightly O/T, but what fuel economy did you get out of the P38?0llie said:
To be fair I think the P38 is a little bit more efficient than a fairly careworn RRC. Slightly O/T, but what fuel economy did you get out of the P38?
I actually have another 4.6 p38a now. For short journeys and off roading it's reading 17.6mpg on the computer (I've done some checks on filling up and noting fuel/mileage and it seems fairly close).Doing better than I thought it would. For longer runs it does 20-21mpg. I admit I don't drive it overly hard, as it's just so nice to cruise in. But I have used low range a lot.
0llie said:
Olivera said:
300bhp/ton said:
Oh be warned the 5.3's do drink fuel. I never bother to work the mpg out on mine, as frankly I didn't care. But it's realistic to expect 11-15mpg. Maybe lower if you use the power.
I've manually calculated the fuel consumption on my 5.3 HE V12 on several occasions. On long mostly motorway trips it averages around 22mpg. Including a mix of around town about 15mpg.300bhp/ton said:
I actually have another 4.6 p38a now. For short journeys and off roading it's reading 17.6mpg on the computer (I've done some checks on filling up and noting fuel/mileage and it seems fairly close).
Doing better than I thought it would. For longer runs it does 20-21mpg. I admit I don't drive it overly hard, as it's just so nice to cruise in. But I have used low range a lot.
Impressive figures 300, thanks for that.Doing better than I thought it would. For longer runs it does 20-21mpg. I admit I don't drive it overly hard, as it's just so nice to cruise in. But I have used low range a lot.
williamp said:
Oh yes a n Xjr-s with the revised styling would be great. I remember mgazine articles raving about it. Beter then a 928gt adnd othes...
I sadly haven't driven the competition for comparison, but I can confirm the XJR-S is a special car that does drive far sharper than a standard XJS. The V12 bark is also more apparent when you accelerate hard too, but it never shouts. It is a wonderful thing.Gassing Station | Jaguar | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff