Jaguar XJR

Comments please, I do a lot of miles is it trouble or a great touring car, preferred year, issues known.

The usual stuff

There was a thread about these here recently. If I recall, the concensus was that the early 6 cyl cars were better than the V8s, but that they are still British cars and all that that entails.

In high school I had a friend who's Dad had a then new 97 XJR. I taught my friend how to do burnouts in that thing. It did a nice job melting off those PZeros

I don't hink they put a v6 in the XJR, at least not in the states. That car is sex on wheels....too bad its automatic only. Never understood that.

Edit: I was thinking X - K - R , my bad. The J is a nice looking sedan tough.

The first year or 2 had an I-6 with a blower, V8's after that

There have been a few generations of XJR. The original XJ40 cars had sport suspension and cool add-ons but no blower. Then in '95 the I6 was supercharged for extra sex.

I am hot to get my hands on one. They're sublime! :)

In reply to aussiesmg:

95-97 XJR (X306) had supercharged 4.0 inline-6, good for just over 320hp and ~380ft-lb. Early cars of that generation had some rust issues. But other than that they are pretty much bullet-proof. The interior does look and feel very dated though.

The 98-03 XJR (X308) has supercharged 4.0 V8, 370hp, 390ft-lb. Early cars 98-00 are known to have some issues; mainly Nikasil deterioration, cracking timing chain tensioners, failing water pumps and throttle bodies. 2001 was the transitional year, Nikasil was phased out and tensioners were upgraded. Last years of production (MY '02-03) are the best ones to have, mainly because of the 3rd gen tensioners, no-Nikasil, worked out bugs and updated trim.

'04-'08 XJR (X350/358) is a totally different animal. 4.2 V8, all-aluminium construction, air suspension, etc... Early ones are trouble-prone, as usual for Jaguar, and late ones are still rather expensive. And they don't quite look as nice as previous generations...

That"s what I wanted looking at, the later 01-03 versions, do they hold up to 1000+ miles a week.

I love the look and 390 hp sounds good, for what I do an auto is fine, but, and it's a big but, are they reliable for that type of use.

Im going to have to say run away, without looking too hard you can find more than a few stories onlone about transmission failure under 100k miles, and cost from $4k (rebuild) to $15k (new transmission installed at the dealer) to fix it. Most of those cars are designed to be driven 2-5 years by the original owner, have maybe one or two more owners that dont really maintain them, and be scrapped before 150k miles. Are there really any cars of that type that are still good for 1000+ miles per week use when they are 10 years old without huge repair costs? A w126 mercedes is probably one of the last luxury cars that was made to be kept forever, but are there any others? I havent heard good things about bmw 740 transmissions, but other than that they might be good too.

I have been running Town Cars for years and they have been rock solid up to 250 to 300K, just thinking of a change with some ooomph.

LS400.

Travis_K wrote: Im going to have to say run away, without looking too hard you can find more than a few stories onlone about transmission failure under 100k miles, and cost from $4k (rebuild) to $15k (new transmission installed at the dealer) to fix it.

Are you talking about XJ8s or XJRs because they use different transmissions. The XJR uses the same Mercedes 5 speed as the E-series AMGs (and others) whereas the XJ8 uses a ZF trans. I know the XJ8s have had some trans problems, but not the XJRs as far as I know.

I love my 2001 XJR. It hasn't been super reliable, but it is an 8 year old car, so I guess I shouldn't expect it to be. I usually have something happen twice a year (water pump, MAF, fuel pressure regulator, window switch). Take one for a drive and see what you think. The steering is pretty light, and the ride is a little softer than I'd like, but if you're putting 1000 miles a week on it, that might not be so bad.

If you've got any specific questions, let me know. Bob

1000miles a week + w126 = 300sd

The stories about transmission issues i read online were in reference to the v8 XJR with the mercedes transmission. I have no doubt that there are many good ones, but the fact that they are not meant to be serviced unil 100k miles, and many of them dont make it that long, doesnt sound very promising for buying a 10 year old used one, especially with the cost of fixing it.

I test drove one a few years ago, auto or not those things are sooooo sweet. I have had bad thoughts of putting a manual in one, isn't that motor very close to the one in the Aston Vantage?

Bob, you have had no transmission or major engine issues?

Everything you have mentioned seems to usual wear and tear items, you give me hope.

The XJR haunts me. I want one SO badly, but I know it is a cruel mistress. Such gorgeous looks and performance, but knowing that a $$$ repair is just waiting would give you high blood pressure.

Just look at it......

Might as well just go punch myself in the gut, it would be the same thing.

Hmmm, '95-97 XJ6s are pretty cheap right now......maybe if I bought it and just drove it for a little while, then sold it I could get this itch out of my system.

The guy I bought my GTI from had an 02'. He loved it, and it was quick, corfortable etc. all the things a Touring car should be. He even said it had very little reliability issues, however he said Gas mileage was TERRIBLE.. Like 15mpg bad. And they require premium. I think you'd be better off with just about anything at that kind of miles.

In reply to nocones:

Gas mileage is inversely proportional to the weight of one's right foot...

Normal combined average for X308 XJR is around 19-20mpg (~22-25 hwy). Not much worse than TownCar.

Dr. Hess wrote: LS400.

This.

If you want a 2-door, an SC400 is fine, too.

Travis_K wrote: A w126 mercedes is probably one of the last luxury cars that was made to be kept forever, but are there any others?

Yeah, I don't know about that. My father has one. Some parts are hard to find at this point and getting pricier each year. Also the driving experience leaves something to be desired.

There are so many w126s being scrapped right now at least used parts would be available. I wouldnt really want to drive one either, but at least they are durable. I just meant they werent designed to be thrown away after 100k miles like newer luxury cars are. If you are willing to spend the money to keep it running, you can drive just about anything. I think transmissions that last under 100k miles is pretty bad, but thats farily normal for big luxury car like bmws, audis, jaguars, etc.

aussiesmg wrote: Bob, you have had no transmission or major engine issues?

No, I've had no major engine or transmission issues (although this will probably jinx it, and I'll walk outside to find a huge puddle of oil, coolant and transmission fluid underneath it). My car is new enough that it has the updated timing chain tensioners and does not have the Nikasil issue, but it also has less than 60,000 miles on it, so take what I have to say with a grain of salt. My car does sit for extended periods of time too (all winter, a few weeks at a time in the summer), so if you're driving your's regularly it will probably fair better than mine. The newer you can get, the better the quality will be. I know JD Power isn't perfect, but Jaguar's currently at the top of their lists for quality and customer satisfaction, so they've really improved things from their old reputation. One thing to watch though is that insurance prices jump a lot for the 2003 model year because repairing the aluminum unibodies is much more expensive than the 2002 and older steel unibodies.

Another thing to consider is the CATS computer controlled suspension. Parts for that are crazy expensive, whereas shocks for the non-CATS cars aren't that bad, even from the dealer.

The Mercedes transmissions are serviceable. The Jaguar-Lovers forum has info of a dealer in Arizona (I think) that will sell you a kit to service it, but I think it's just Shell ATF 3403 fluid. You can also get a dipstick for it (right now the dipstick tube is capped) at the dealer as a service tool. I've got the part number written down somewhere.

Also, expect the auto-dimming mirror to have stopped working.

I read this line in another forum about owning an XJR: "Though, one certainly shops for an XJR for different reasons than an LS430. I think you sort of go into buying a Jag knowing it's going to piss on your shoes a couple times a year, it's part of the charm." http://www.corner-carvers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=42223

Bob

Ah, got it. As a long time 'owner' of that car, I was thinking from a different perspective.

Most of those XJ jags sure are nice sedans. I have illicit thoughts about the 80s body style XJ with an LS1/2/3 and a T56.