RE: SOTW: Jaguar XJS V12

RE: SOTW: Jaguar XJS V12

Friday 8th June 2012

SOTW: Jaguar XJS V12

Well, nearly - this is the Shed that got away, but we just had to write about it even so


The Jag that got away was the price of this tired one...
The Jag that got away was the price of this tired one...
On the face of it a Jaguar XJS does not seem like the ideal Shed of the Week. After all, a fearsome reputation for unreliability, a dauntingly complex - and expensive to fix - V12 and the likelihood of frilly bodywork are not the best combination for budget motoring.

...but closer to this in condition...
...but closer to this in condition...
But, as has been said many times before, Shed isn't necessarily about making rational choices - it would be a thoroughly boring weekly feature if it was. Which is why the idea of 5.3 litres and 12 cylinders of majestic Jaguar coupe for £995 is such an appealing prospect.

Sure, it's definitely-not-an-E-Type looks aren't the prettiest of lines, but there's an undeniable grace and presence to the XJS shape that makes it stand out from the crowd - it's aged distinctively if not necessarily well, shall we say.

Unfortunately, the car ad we had targeted as Today's SOTW - spotted by PHer RP1 - is no longer live, so we presume that some lucky/brave punter has already snatched it up. And it's a measure of how rare it is to find a clean, cheap V12 XJS HE (this one had tax and ticket, old MoTs, some history and looked clean, despite the seller admitting to a few rust blisters) that a thorough rummage around the UK's classifieds turned up nothing to remotely compare with it.

...from the sound of things at least...
...from the sound of things at least...
The best we could come up with was this 1986 V12 which, apart from the colour and the absence of cross-spoke wheels is pretty much identical to that mythical near-miss car that originally caught our eye on Gumtree. Except that the seller of this Jersey-registered car (actually the one we've used in most of the pictures) wants a full thousand pounds more.

In fact, the only V12 XJS we found that was comparable on price was this distinctly ratty F-plate example with neither tax nor MoT, up for £790, curiously - and we suspect erroneously - described in the advert headline as 'supercharged'.

So what's the moral of the story? (I didn't know SOTW had to have a moral - Ed.) Well, we suppose it's that you can find shed-price V12 Jaguar XJSes out there, but boy are they rare. And boy do they get snapped up quickly. Although given the model's potential to become a money pit, perhaps it's a good thing they don't come along all that often...


Advert for the original find is reproduced below

11 MONTHS MOT, 6 MONTHS TAX, NICE GENUINE CAR, SOME SERVICE HISTORY, ALL PREVIOUS MOTS, HANDBOOKS, ENGINE AND GEAR BOX BOTH GOOD, BODYWORK GOOD FEW BLISTERS,

LEATHER INTERIOR, CROSS SPOKE ALLOY WHEELS,ELECTRIC WINDOWS, CENTRAL LOCKING, POWERED STEERING,

DRIVES SPOT ON

Author
Discussion

B'stard Child

Original Poster:

28,320 posts

245 months

Friday 8th June 2012
quotequote all
What could possibly go wrong biggrin

Riggers

1,859 posts

177 months

Friday 8th June 2012
quotequote all
B'stard Child said:
What could possibly go wrong biggrin
Ha! well, since none of us can buy it, I guess we've been saved the ignominy and financial pain of finding out hehe

heppers75

3,135 posts

216 months

Friday 8th June 2012
quotequote all
Top shedding... Then I would have to say that...

I spent nearly 3 years looking for a very good one and they can go for silly money, I was fortunate to get mine for a few times the shed limit but not too many and I have managed to get a very good one.

Around the £1k-£2k there are some comedy examples about but that one seemed nice for that money.

Limpet

6,292 posts

160 months

Friday 8th June 2012
quotequote all
Drive it until something catastrophic inevitably breaks, then remove the engine, drain it of fluids, clean it up, and have it as a static display in your lounge.

Double kicking from the other half, but it would be worth it. smile

J4CKO

41,279 posts

199 months

Friday 8th June 2012
quotequote all
I like these, but will give it a miss thanks, will try something less risky, something like Crack, Free Climbing, Base Jumping or telling the missus her arse looks big in that skirt...

RP1

252 posts

149 months

Friday 8th June 2012
quotequote all
I did think it would go pretty quick when i saw it. Fortunately i didn't have £995 to hand so saved a whole heap of financial ruin there!

B'stard Child

Original Poster:

28,320 posts

245 months

Friday 8th June 2012
quotequote all
Limpet said:
Drive it until something catastrophic inevitably breaks, then remove the engine, drain it of fluids, clean it up, and have it as a static display in your lounge.

Double kicking from the other half, but it would be worth it. smile
Depends on how tolerant your other half is.... Mine pinched my used up slicks to grow spuds in towers and is very keen to have my soon to be discarded six pot block from tme Monza placed in the garden to grow mint in the bores (apparently it needs to be restricted to stop it spreading and a block is perfect..... )

Fizgig

68 posts

210 months

Friday 8th June 2012
quotequote all
Where would life be without the "will i make it or won't i" everytime you set off on a journey..

Great Shed !

leon9191

752 posts

192 months

Friday 8th June 2012
quotequote all
I think the xjs with a good set of wheels is one of the best looking cars ever, to be honest even better than an e-type in an 80's kind of way. I would love one.

Strawman

6,463 posts

206 months

Friday 8th June 2012
quotequote all
Apart from being very thirsty are these much worse than other V12 engined cars for reliability? I know they used some cheap electrical connectors in the build which means switches have a habit of not working, but leaving that aside, aren't they quite a reasonable proposition to own.

Itsallicanafford

2,759 posts

158 months

Friday 8th June 2012
quotequote all
...An old XJS was once used in an episode of Casualty, the Unscrupulous owner did not bother to MOT it and later in the story tried to drive it only for the whole back axle to fall off, he ended up crashing and on the ward for treatment..it was totally ridiculous

smash

2,062 posts

227 months

Friday 8th June 2012
quotequote all
Good basis for a cobra rep tongue out

rix

2,776 posts

189 months

Friday 8th June 2012
quotequote all
A V12 XJS has to represent the ultimate definition of the sotw principals!

It always makes me smile to recall that the HE stands for High Efficiency!

Uncle John

4,269 posts

190 months

Friday 8th June 2012
quotequote all
V12? Under a grand?

Welcome to a whole world of pain.


SmartVenom

462 posts

168 months

Friday 8th June 2012
quotequote all
My brother had one of these for quite a few years (mostly sat on the driveway not moving), body was actually in great shape, unfortunately it had gearbox issues. Eventually sold it to some dodgy scrap dealers. They came assuming it needed towing yet it started and drove away fine. Think my brother was a little gutted at that!

Interior was lovely and the car got a few admiring looks, biggest problem was its immense thirst. If they were pre-73 I'd be tempted to keep one for a few 100 miles each year, but just can't justify the cost of tax for a car I'd only do 500 miles in!

Owlwood

251 posts

155 months

Friday 8th June 2012
quotequote all
Love risky sheds. This is for the bravest of the brave. Fair play to whoever went for it!

Greg 172

233 posts

200 months

Friday 8th June 2012
quotequote all
Itsallicanafford said:
...An old XJS was once used in an episode of Casualty, the Unscrupulous owner did not bother to MOT it and later in the story tried to drive it only for the whole back axle to fall off, he ended up crashing and on the ward for treatment..it was totally ridiculous
Ha! Was it one of those proper old Casulty episodes, where you could tell he was in trouble right at the beginning because he left the house saying "Nah, it'll be fine love, don't you worry about me..."?

300bhp/ton

41,030 posts

189 months

Friday 8th June 2012
quotequote all
Been here done this. At the tender age of 19 (1999) and a Uni student I bought this for £700




Bloody brilliant it was, 295hp, silky smooth, lovely sounding and faster than anything any of my mates had with ease.

Did a lot of miles in it and it was mostly reliable, easy to work on for the large part and didn't cost much to run (apart from fuel!)


fantastic slice of British GT/muscle cars at their best IMO.


They sound pretty good to biggrin

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PuIphvFo8Ug
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GNcQ54p23Iw

Martin 480 Turbo

601 posts

186 months

Friday 8th June 2012
quotequote all
You just have to give Riggers some cuddos for
being able to write an article on a subject that
already has evaporated, and a nice one at that...

Could go into politics, couldn't he?


V12 Migaloo

805 posts

145 months

Friday 8th June 2012
quotequote all
Not wanting to go agaist the grain but I have to say that These V12's are reliable, if you drive them regularly and service them as and when needed. The problem is that people spend 800 quid on a motor that costs nearly a grand to have it serviced and maintained properly. They drive a few hundred miles, then sorn it for 6 months and then expect it to run like a dream afterwards... I have had one for 10 years now, I drive about 7k a year and it costs me about a grand in maintanance, expensive ?? Perhaps but cheaper then any other V12 out there... but hey thats what you have to expect with a V12 as it aint a push rod 4 cylinder..... of course the ancillaries can go, but generally a good one is bullet proof, if
A) you let it warm up everytime you start it (otherwise the plugs will get clogged)
B) make sure you have a clean coolant system
C) change the fluids every 10k.
These are great cars honestly, Im doing Lemans Classic in mine and cant wait. Go on do it, spoil yourselves, buy a V12, you know you want too.....