RE: Shed Of The Week: Jaguar S-Type
Discussion
I have mixed feelings about S-Types, as a fan of the Jaguar marque.
I would agree that the 2004 onward models look so much better. The interior on the originals (like this one) is very American and hideous. The 2002-2004 are improved, but still got the horrible tachometer, ect.
I drove one recently a 3.0 and I have driven the Type-R (down a dragsrip). The colours make or break these IMO, the 3.0 was very 'senior' with zircon blue and beige/drown interior, the STR on the otherhand looked so much nicer with its black on black colour scheme (general not a fan of black leather though).
The 3.0 is a fun barge to drive, loves to rev, not a fast car, but gets moving nicely. It felt almost sleeper-ish hammering this old gents car about. The MPG very much surprised me, the dashboard said I averaged 40mpg Carnforth and from Doncaster, seemed to barely use any fuel. My lighter X350 3.0, never got near that...
I would agree that the 2004 onward models look so much better. The interior on the originals (like this one) is very American and hideous. The 2002-2004 are improved, but still got the horrible tachometer, ect.
I drove one recently a 3.0 and I have driven the Type-R (down a dragsrip). The colours make or break these IMO, the 3.0 was very 'senior' with zircon blue and beige/drown interior, the STR on the otherhand looked so much nicer with its black on black colour scheme (general not a fan of black leather though).
The 3.0 is a fun barge to drive, loves to rev, not a fast car, but gets moving nicely. It felt almost sleeper-ish hammering this old gents car about. The MPG very much surprised me, the dashboard said I averaged 40mpg Carnforth and from Doncaster, seemed to barely use any fuel. My lighter X350 3.0, never got near that...
Andy S15 said:
Always wondered WTF was going on in that Antonio Pizzonia video. Did he forget he wasn't driving a formula 1 car at the time? He was nowhere near making that corner!
Exactly that. He forgot himself and used his F1 braking point for the corner... I was always impressed that Steve Sutcliffe's first response was "are you alright?"Edited by new_bloke on Friday 17th February 12:03
ianwayne said:
Does anybody else find these frequent "part ex, sold without warranty" listings a bit tiresome.
They are traders, what about the sale and goods act?
Granted, you can't complain about all the faults you are made aware of (like some buyers try) but if the engine went bang or the suspension collapsed after you drove it round the corner, they can't just say, sorry your problem can they?
And, annoyingly, the number plate is blanked out so the MoT history can't be easily accessed although shed says they've looked at it, so someone has called to ask for the registration presumably.
It is the CRA now but similar. The CRA isn't designed to stop two sensible adults coming to a deal or to remove all personal responsibility from a buyer. If you take a decision to buy a cheap old Jag I think most people would recognise you are accepting a big risk. There is nothing stopping you from buying a 1.0 Fiesta instead.They are traders, what about the sale and goods act?
Granted, you can't complain about all the faults you are made aware of (like some buyers try) but if the engine went bang or the suspension collapsed after you drove it round the corner, they can't just say, sorry your problem can they?
And, annoyingly, the number plate is blanked out so the MoT history can't be easily accessed although shed says they've looked at it, so someone has called to ask for the registration presumably.
How a car is described does effect the sale as it either increases and reduces a reasonable buyer's expectations. If a seller describes a car as "probably has some faults, but it will do 50 miles - beyond that I have no idea" and it does 55 miles then no one has been ripped off as the product has done what was suggested it should do.
If on the other hand something is sold at top price as "a perfect car, drives superbly, nothing wrong with it, will last for years" and it blows up 2 miles later.......then it clearly hasn't really done as advertised.
I own a '02 3.0 v6 Sport with 180,00 miles on & have to say other than consumable items it has been utterly reliable - the complete opposite to the article/comments on here.
I have to agree they are very colour sensitive. Mine is Grey with Red leather & no chrome which makes it a little less 'old boy' spec - it could do with some bigger wheels though.
As for value I agree with people on here if I had to replace it tomorrow I wouldn't know what with without spending a lot more money.
I have to agree they are very colour sensitive. Mine is Grey with Red leather & no chrome which makes it a little less 'old boy' spec - it could do with some bigger wheels though.
As for value I agree with people on here if I had to replace it tomorrow I wouldn't know what with without spending a lot more money.
Dafuq said:
s m said:
Dafuq said:
What a barge-in, did you see what I did there?
You know what they say though these days.....sometimes, it can be hard to drive a bargain
muppet42 said:
Looked at these a few times when I've been out and about looking for a cheap (to buy) but interesting car. These and X-Types seem to litter the cheaper used car forecourts quite a bit round where I am. I agree, the facelift is the more acceptable looking of the line-up, both inside and out, but I'd have to have a V8 for the full Jag experience 
Yet to see one at sub-£1k and I can only imagine how rough it'd be(!) I have seen them between £2-3k though for high milers.
My good friend, with whom i've bought more than a few cars, has had 3-4 of these, one of which was a V8, and none of which cost any more than £750. And yes, they were tidy, with plenty of MOT. Not my cup of tea, but a better barge than the repulsive X-type (which is an 'inverse-TARDIS'; smaller on the inside than it looks on the outside). Yet to see one at sub-£1k and I can only imagine how rough it'd be(!) I have seen them between £2-3k though for high milers.I seem to remember that the arches and sills of his S-Types were curiously free from tin worm, which is more than can be said for a couple of XJ8's he swanned about in, which did passable impressions of paper doileys....
rustyross said:
I own a '02 3.0 v6 Sport with 180,00 miles on & have to say other than consumable items it has been utterly reliable - the complete opposite to the article/comments on here.
I have to agree they are very colour sensitive. Mine is Grey with Red leather & no chrome which makes it a little less 'old boy' spec - it could do with some bigger wheels though.
As for value I agree with people on here if I had to replace it tomorrow I wouldn't know what with without spending a lot more money.
The petrols appear to be a much safer bet than the diesel. My 2004 2.7d had two new turbos and two new EGR valves to make it to 3 years old and 100k miles. Then it ate it's torque converter which shed bits into the rest of the gearbox and killed that too. fI have to agree they are very colour sensitive. Mine is Grey with Red leather & no chrome which makes it a little less 'old boy' spec - it could do with some bigger wheels though.
As for value I agree with people on here if I had to replace it tomorrow I wouldn't know what with without spending a lot more money.
king thing averaged 32mpg and felt at least 50bhp short of where it needed to be. Impressively refined for a diesel with quite a nice 6 cylinder snarl to it though.There were plenty of niggles with climate control sensors, washer pumps, and anything else with a FoMoCo stamp on it but it never actually failed to proceed.
I have one of these (1999 3 litre auto), a £1,200 shed I bought to tide me over. Mine is a one-owner, FJSH car with 110k miles on it, that was 3 years/30k miles ago. Good points: Easy to see out of and nice, light, slop-free controls make it very easy to drive. Fantastic engine (240bhp @ 6,800rpm makes it more powerful than contemporary Mercedes/BMW engines, even the 3.2 Porsche flat-six in the Boxster S only makes 260bhp) makes it more-than fast enough. On the down side the 5-speed gearbox in my car is very unsure of itself, seemingly always in the wrong gear and with a habit of changing up on the way into a corner. On road or track you should be able to use the 'J' gate, but it doesn't stop the 'box downshifting and it just starts ignoring you after a while. While the engine is great, a heavy body and that auto box means you have to really commit to get the performance, it's not the effortless shove you expect from a Jaguar, and the car has an irrational fear of apexes, the nose always seems to shy away from your choosen turn-in point, on road or track. Mine has been reliable except for an easily-replaced steering rack. As is mine, the pre-facelift model in the advert has a conventional hand brake, not the troublesome(?) electronic version. Interior is a bit crap, with a very poor stereo, but climate control is great and everything even still works on mine. The worst thing is the fuel economy, 25mpg on my daily commute, with 35ish on the motorway. If the car was a bit more exciting and fun to drive I could live with it but I'm going to use it's recent MOT failure (on a track-rod end) as an excuse to replace it with a BMW 3 series although I am struggling to find one for reasonable money and haven't sent 'your nice old Jag' to the scrap just yet...
As long as you accept it's a barge the S type is great value for money and a really good '1st car' if you have something a but more exciting for the weekend.
Post-facelift 4.2 V8 gives very similar fuel economy to mine with (hopefully) a bit more drama, a better gearbox and revised interior/suspension. The 2.7 diesel has the same performance as my petrol but should average around 35mpg. I did drive an S-Type-R once and wasn't too impressed, I'm not really sure what it was trying to be. I have driven a few E39 5 series' and they are much more fun to drive, with more responsive handling.
As long as you accept it's a barge the S type is great value for money and a really good '1st car' if you have something a but more exciting for the weekend.
Post-facelift 4.2 V8 gives very similar fuel economy to mine with (hopefully) a bit more drama, a better gearbox and revised interior/suspension. The 2.7 diesel has the same performance as my petrol but should average around 35mpg. I did drive an S-Type-R once and wasn't too impressed, I'm not really sure what it was trying to be. I have driven a few E39 5 series' and they are much more fun to drive, with more responsive handling.
Edited by varsas on Friday 17th February 16:08
I had a 3 litre V6 petrol S-Type as a company car for a bit (a month or so).
It was one of the most horrible cars I've driven.
It was quite astonishing, though, the effect it had on neighbours (and mums at the school, when my wife drove the kids in it once - We lived close so usually walked) - It was like we'd bought a new Rolls Royce!
Some of my former colleagues were really impressed (women mostly) and mocked the Skoda Octavia vRS I bought myself when I opted out of the company car scheme (because I couldn't face 18 months in the Jag!), but the Skoda was 100 times better to drive than the S-Type.
I assume Pizzonia felt the same and took the first opportunity to pile it into the barrier, rather than driving it!
Lest you think I'm a Jaguar-hater, I considered an X-Type when I bought the Skoda and am seriously considering an XF, but that's a far different car to the frankly rather rubbish, S-Type!
M
PS ETA Most reviews I've read suggest an XF is a match (or better) in terms of reliability for an Audi, Merc or BMW - Apparently, only the Lexus GS is better in class.
It was one of the most horrible cars I've driven.
It was quite astonishing, though, the effect it had on neighbours (and mums at the school, when my wife drove the kids in it once - We lived close so usually walked) - It was like we'd bought a new Rolls Royce!
Some of my former colleagues were really impressed (women mostly) and mocked the Skoda Octavia vRS I bought myself when I opted out of the company car scheme (because I couldn't face 18 months in the Jag!), but the Skoda was 100 times better to drive than the S-Type.
I assume Pizzonia felt the same and took the first opportunity to pile it into the barrier, rather than driving it!
Lest you think I'm a Jaguar-hater, I considered an X-Type when I bought the Skoda and am seriously considering an XF, but that's a far different car to the frankly rather rubbish, S-Type!
M
PS ETA Most reviews I've read suggest an XF is a match (or better) in terms of reliability for an Audi, Merc or BMW - Apparently, only the Lexus GS is better in class.
Edited by marcosgt on Friday 17th February 17:08
new_bloke said:
I hate it when people nail a leaper to the bonnet of a modern(ish) Jag.
There's someone round our way who has put one on the bonnet of his (very old) Hyundai/Kia in the very mistaken belief it makes it look like an XJ...Edited by new_bloke on Friday 17th February 09:32
rtz62 said:
My good friend, with whom i've bought more than a few cars, has had 3-4 of these, one of which was a V8, and none of which cost any more than £750. And yes, they were tidy, with plenty of MOT. Not my cup of tea, but a better barge than the repulsive X-type (which is an 'inverse-TARDIS'; smaller on the inside than it looks on the outside).
I seem to remember that the arches and sills of his S-Types were curiously free from tin worm, which is more than can be said for a couple of XJ8's he swanned about in, which did passable impressions of paper doileys....
Yeah, seen a few cheaper XJs of the same era kicking around with the back bumpers hanging from the rust. Only X-Type if consider would be a 3-litre estate AWD, which I doubt would be under a grand. Just think they look less awkward than the saloon and I could ski behind one I seem to remember that the arches and sills of his S-Types were curiously free from tin worm, which is more than can be said for a couple of XJ8's he swanned about in, which did passable impressions of paper doileys....
Only v8 S I saw was about £2.5k but did look pretty well looked after. All v6s locally with a few diesels sprinkled in for variety. Could be a random barge purchase in the future but I'd still be more tempted unto an e39.
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