XJ8

I found one abandoned in a local parking lot. It has been sitting all summer. It has plates and a current sticker. It is gold with a tan interior.

If I can get this for cheep $$$$ what should I look for in these cars?

It looks to be an X308 car (97-02)

Other than that I know nothing.

I did drive a 02 Vanden Plas a couple of years back and really liked it. As a DD it would be great except that I would not be able to take it to see clients (client's like me driving cheep American but that is another story) This is a car that I have wanted for a while. It is on the bucket list.

I've had evil thoughts about getting a used coupe for a while now. I'll be following this thread closely.

from what i remember, they like to eat transmissions and the stock Pirelli's tend to wear quick....

The primary issues are the Nickasil engines in the early (97-00) cars... not all of them are bad, but a lot are a lot are... I passed up on a clean 100k XK8 convertible for $6k because after factoring in the risks, I decided it wasn't worth the gamble

My wife was interested in an immaculate XK8 convertible with just under 70k on it. I think it was a '99. The Nikasil cylinder liners was enough to scare me off. The cost of repair to various other systems like the hydraulic-actuated convertible top was pretty scary also. I understand the transmissions aren't very durable either.

Look for smoke on startup, and difficult hot re-starts (this car had both). As someone somewhere noted: When you're talking about a Jag, 70,000 miles is NOT low mileage.

Excellent info!!! I am betting that something has gone wrong with this one and that is why it is sitting.

So what is a good deal on one of these if say it needs a motor (I am thinking GM LM or LS swap with trans.) couple thousand? Or should this be a free car if the motor/trans is junk.

Because otherwise the car is really sharp. A bit of cleaning and and wash and wax and it would look great.

I was offered a 62k XJ8 with a known bad engine for $1500 and I passed.

The issue on engine swaps in a car this new is that most places require you to maintain OBDII compliance... a huge complication for the average engine swap.

Hmmm I did not think about the obd2 issue. Can you swap a newer motor in to an older car as long as you keep the smog stuff intact and functioning?

So say you get a LM7 from a 2003 and you bring across the cats and the complete computer wiring etc. I wonder if the obd port would come with the harness. The problem comes when you have to mess with secondary computers for the chase.

I've seen lots of ls1 swaps with obd2 functioning. I don't think it's that hard.

The X300 XJ6 just seems much more appetizing, at least to me. Cheaper, too.

If you've not driven one, XJ8's are pleasantly quick in a straight line but soft and wallowy in the corners. The transmissions (auto only) are mediocre, and the gas mileage is weak. However, these cars have a certain heritage and presence which their contemporaries lack. If taken care of, the interiors are lux and beautiful, if somewhat small for the car's overall dimensions. The depreciation on these cars is staggering, so If you're looking for a classy highway and boulevard cruiser, you'll be hard pressed to find a more elegant ride for the price.

The obvious answer is an LS1 swap and I don't know about where you live but no one checks for OBD1 or 2.

2002maniac wrote: I've seen lots of ls1 swaps with obd2 functioning. I don't think it's that hard.

There is OBDII "functioning" (which it will be to some extent on any swap because it's an integral part of the control system) and OBDII functioning completely enough to endure a detailed handshake with a state emissions computer.

It's not an insurmountable task and has routinely been done, but I'd still place it in the "hard" category (even though I admit I've not studied it in detail, preferring to simply ignore the possibility altogether and deal with older cars.)

Lots of great info on ls1tech.com

If you don't have this concern, awesome... but beware of having to potentially sell the car in the future to someone who does.

If this car has been sitting all summer, I'm betting the timing chain tensioners were never replaced/updated and they broke, the transmission went out or the computer controlled suspension took a dump (not all of the cars have the "CATS" suspension so this isn't always a concern). The depreciation on these cars, like most high end luxury cars, is horrible so it makes these repairs more expensive than to simply replace the car.

Jaguar improved the design of the tensioners, but kept them plastic, in late 2000 I think, and then changed it to a metal part in 2002 (the 4.2L engines). The general consensus is that the updated plastic ones are adequate, but the metal ones are bulletproof. Also, while Nikasil was an issue, if the car hasn't had problems with it yet, it probably won't. The Nikasil coating on the aluminum cylinders (so a steel cylinder liner wasn't needed) would react with sulphur in gasoline and would flake off, exposing the relatively soft aluminum cylinder to the piston rings. The cylinders wouldn't last long after that. Gas in the US has been low sulfur since 2006 and the number of nikasil related engine failures has pretty much dried up since then.

I love my 2001 XJR, but have never driven an XJ8 so I don't know how much of my experience will transfer over. As was mentioned, the suspension is kind of floaty. It's not bad in the XJR, but it has more aggresive suspension tuning than the XJ8. Even with the XJR suspension though, this car is incredibly comfortable for long distance trips. I recently had an 8 hour drive, stopping only for gas and a quick meal and I felt like I could have gone for another 8 hours without getting tired or uncomfortable. My gas mileage on that trip was about 24mpg according to the car's computer. I average about 23mpg overall, with more highway driving than city driving typically. The XJR requires premium because of the supercharger, I don't know if the non-supercharged cars use regular or premium.

The steering is horribly light - I think Jaguar's standard is that the Queen must be able to steer the car using only her left pinky finger and if she realizes that she is steering the car then the steering is still too heavy.

If you need to carry a lot of things in the trunk, make sure it's big enough for you. These cars have full size spares, and the top of the trunk sits relatively low, so the trunks don't hold a lot. The aluminum bodied cars (2003+) have a much larger trunk, and are a much larger car overall, despite weighing a few hundred pounds less.

Other than that, get a pre-purchase inspection. A good Jaguar mechanic should be knowledgeable about the problems with these cars.

If the car is running and in good shape, you won't be disappointed.

Bob

Unless the car is being stored where it sits I don't think it is running. Thanks for the Writeup. Is the XJR the same as or similar to the Vanden Plas ? It was also supercharged. I would really scoot!!

Well at the time I made this original post I left my card on the windshield saying if you are interested in selling the car let me know. Someone saying he worked for the owner called about the car saying that the owner was te president of the company whose lot it is on and that they were interested in selling it. More info on the car. 1998 XJ8 with 45K. I was told that it is the owner’s second/third car and they really have not been using it. They also don’t have the space to keep it at their home. They said make an offer. The car is supposed to be dealer maintained in good working order. There is a small scuff on the driver’s side rear bumper. Interior looks perfect. The rest of the car looks well above average for a almost 13 year old car. No visible rust no dings or chips in the paint. So what should I offer if it all checks out. Or is the answer still run.. . Run far away?

I will post up some photos later.