So, Jag XJS yay or nay?
Discussion
Yesterday on a thread somebody described the XJS as an 'ugly truck', which to be honest I fail to see, but each to their own.
But what do people think, as they've been a common sight on our roads since the mid-70s. Everybody loves the E-Type (well most people anyway), but its successor has never really felt the love as much, and to be honest I don't understand why not. The shape is gorgeous, especially the profile and nothiong has really looked like it since.
I had a 3.6 for a while and loved the thing, kind of like a budget Aston, and would have another in an instant before the prices rise too far, as they eventually will do. A car my missus really misses too, which is always good when it comes to getting another one.
.So what do people think of the XJS?
Edited by vixen1700 on Wednesday 25th May 09:51
I think jag design improves with age. I'm not sure if it's because they are ahead of their time, or if we get familiar with them, or maybe it's just because I am getting older, but I remember not feeling much love for the XK when they were new, and now they look sooooo right. I think the XJS falls into this category too, I think it has a surprisingly modern look to it, whilst at the same time being a design classic - you'd never mistake it for anything other than what it is.
A well cared for one (very discreetly) says 'I have good taste'.
The white one posted also reminds me of 'The Saint' (I am a child of the 70s)
Love them.
A well cared for one (very discreetly) says 'I have good taste'.
The white one posted also reminds me of 'The Saint' (I am a child of the 70s)
Love them.
vixen1700 said:
Yesterday on a thread somebody described the XJS as an 'ugly truck', which to be honest I fail to see, but each to their own.
But what do people think, as they've been a common sight on our roads since the mid-70s. Everybody loves the E-Type (well most people anyway), but its successor has never really felt the love as much, and to be honest I don't understand why not. The shape is gorgeous, especially the profile and nothiong has really looked like it since.
I had a 3.6 for a while and loved the thing, kind of like a budget Aston, and would have another in an instant before the prices rise too far, as they eventually will do. A car my missus really misses too, which is always good when it comes to getting another one.
.So what do people think of the XJS?
Edited by vixen1700 on Wednesday 25th May 09:51
At 19 I pestered my Dad loads and loads on how practical one would be. After a bit of searching I ended up with this for £700 (in 1999).
5.3 litre XJ-S HE V12 1982.
It was lovely. Easily quicker than any of my mates car, sumptuous inside and a joy to drive. Was fairly reliable too, I did have the gearbox rebuilt and the paint tidied up and a new air con compressor. But it wasn't silly money for any of it.
I sold it in 2005'ish as I'd bought another car to replace it.
But it sounded fab with the modified exhaust, I seen 156mph on the speedo and it was a lot of fun on a Jaguar World day at Santa Pod. It also did a lovely cross country journey to the Morgan factory and attended the XJS 25th Celebration at Castle Donnington.
Not sure I'd have another having been there and done that. But I'd certainly recommend them. Although I'd prefer a manual and there is no denying, while the V12 is probably the smoothest engine I've ever witnessed, it did like a drink.
A manual AJ16 4.0 litre with a supercharger on would make for an interesting XJS I reckon.
Fab motors.
koolchris99 said:
we have one..
spent 24 months in the garage so far, almost forgot we actually have it.
parts cost alot.
Which parts? Jaguar Heritage where very helpful when I had mine, lots of indi's and breakers too at the time. Personally never found parts that pricey, although I never really needed many.spent 24 months in the garage so far, almost forgot we actually have it.
parts cost alot.
If anyone's interested, I wrote and article on the XJ-S (never published, so this is its first public viewing - please be gentle).
Matt the Hatt said:
Jaguar XJS – PistonHead or PistonShed?
The jet engine one of the 20th Century’s greatest inventions, bringing New York as close to London as Liverpool. It is one of the defining points in human history over the past hundred years and a triumph of ingenuity and imagination. It, along with things like the television and the electric light bulb are all products of the British and their sheds.
We are a nation of shed industry, it’s where we tinker, develop and design some of the best inventions in recent human history. So, what is the point here?
Well, basically that sheds are not a bad thing, not by any stretch. And way back in 1975 a rather strange creature emerged from one such shed in the Midlands. It was the Jaguar XJ-S, gone where the curvy lines of its predecessor along with the chromed wire spoke wheels to be replaced with a masculine squared off grand tourer.
Was it as successful as the jet engine? Well in many ways yes. When Sir Frank Whittle first submitted his plans for his turbo-jet idea it was met with little enthusiasm and support, taking a further 11 years before his first prototype was produced. The XJS was also welcomed with equal support and enthusiasm, were the first couple of years resulted in Jaguar managing to sell some cars.
To some amazement or maybe just misguided judgement at Jaguar the model continued in production, and almost unchanged in its 21 year production run. Initially you had a choice of a 5.3 litre V12 or a 5.3 litre V12. The only difference being the gearbox, manual 4 speed or 3 speed auto and the amount of fuel it used from poor to dreadful, 9mpg being no joke especially in the middle of the fuel crisis. Performance on the other hand was rather good with Ferrari challenging acceleration and top speed.
The de-chromed exterior mated with a non wood laden interior also seemed to disagree with potential buyers of the day. Strange, how some, 30 years later such styling is now very much a norm. Optimists among you would say the XJ-S was just ahead of its time, the realists would simply state Jaguar got it wrong. So in the 80’s it saw the introduction of some wood and shiny bits, this, boosted sales from some to a few. The new improved HE or High Efficiency V12 also made impacts, not only with the extra ponies it offered up but the massive leap to 12mpg being a huge improvement over the old.
Sadly for many the manual gearbox was left at the wayside along with bell bottom flared trousers and lurid corduroy. A new 6 cylinder straight 6 was also offered and went on to be the mainstay of the XJS line-up until production ended in 1996. Although strangely enough Jaguar never saw fit to install the 333bhp 4.0 litre supercharged variant from the X300 XJR6? Maybe their marketing department had determined high horse power levels and brutal acceleration was not a thing someone wanted from a continental crossing GT?
Which is odd, because that is exactly the sort of thing the Jag was best at. It cosseted you and made you feel good as you wafted down the road at a zillion miles per hour leaving peasants in your wake. Fun, no - refined. You don’t drink vintage wines for a jolly up with the lads, and that’s the same with the XJS. It’s designed to get you from point A to point B as fast as you can in supreme comfort while looking good. And it does this extremely well, even by today’s modern standards, the V12 engine is supremely smooth and quiet, the ride so sumptuous you could eat grapes off the belly of some exotic dancer while setting the cruise control at 120mph.
A shed? Yes, most defiantly, in the finest British tradition.
The jet engine one of the 20th Century’s greatest inventions, bringing New York as close to London as Liverpool. It is one of the defining points in human history over the past hundred years and a triumph of ingenuity and imagination. It, along with things like the television and the electric light bulb are all products of the British and their sheds.
We are a nation of shed industry, it’s where we tinker, develop and design some of the best inventions in recent human history. So, what is the point here?
Well, basically that sheds are not a bad thing, not by any stretch. And way back in 1975 a rather strange creature emerged from one such shed in the Midlands. It was the Jaguar XJ-S, gone where the curvy lines of its predecessor along with the chromed wire spoke wheels to be replaced with a masculine squared off grand tourer.
Was it as successful as the jet engine? Well in many ways yes. When Sir Frank Whittle first submitted his plans for his turbo-jet idea it was met with little enthusiasm and support, taking a further 11 years before his first prototype was produced. The XJS was also welcomed with equal support and enthusiasm, were the first couple of years resulted in Jaguar managing to sell some cars.
To some amazement or maybe just misguided judgement at Jaguar the model continued in production, and almost unchanged in its 21 year production run. Initially you had a choice of a 5.3 litre V12 or a 5.3 litre V12. The only difference being the gearbox, manual 4 speed or 3 speed auto and the amount of fuel it used from poor to dreadful, 9mpg being no joke especially in the middle of the fuel crisis. Performance on the other hand was rather good with Ferrari challenging acceleration and top speed.
The de-chromed exterior mated with a non wood laden interior also seemed to disagree with potential buyers of the day. Strange, how some, 30 years later such styling is now very much a norm. Optimists among you would say the XJ-S was just ahead of its time, the realists would simply state Jaguar got it wrong. So in the 80’s it saw the introduction of some wood and shiny bits, this, boosted sales from some to a few. The new improved HE or High Efficiency V12 also made impacts, not only with the extra ponies it offered up but the massive leap to 12mpg being a huge improvement over the old.
Sadly for many the manual gearbox was left at the wayside along with bell bottom flared trousers and lurid corduroy. A new 6 cylinder straight 6 was also offered and went on to be the mainstay of the XJS line-up until production ended in 1996. Although strangely enough Jaguar never saw fit to install the 333bhp 4.0 litre supercharged variant from the X300 XJR6? Maybe their marketing department had determined high horse power levels and brutal acceleration was not a thing someone wanted from a continental crossing GT?
Which is odd, because that is exactly the sort of thing the Jag was best at. It cosseted you and made you feel good as you wafted down the road at a zillion miles per hour leaving peasants in your wake. Fun, no - refined. You don’t drink vintage wines for a jolly up with the lads, and that’s the same with the XJS. It’s designed to get you from point A to point B as fast as you can in supreme comfort while looking good. And it does this extremely well, even by today’s modern standards, the V12 engine is supremely smooth and quiet, the ride so sumptuous you could eat grapes off the belly of some exotic dancer while setting the cruise control at 120mph.
A shed? Yes, most defiantly, in the finest British tradition.
This is a timely thread! I have been poor for the last 3 years after buying a plot of land and building a house (which we have just had an offer on), during which time I have been driving my partners Smart Fortwo and a VW Fox. The only light relief in between was an S Type which I bought from my OH brother the day before he emigrated but later sold to pay for some roof tiles 
Now that I am soon to have some cash again, I thought about buying a Fiat 500 as a runaround (and to advertise my business) and buy a sorted late model XJS 4.0 for weekends and trips. I love the XJS and for sheer presence its hard to beat for the money they are now making. I am quite handy with a spanner and love fettling so hopefully costs could be kept under control. Would welcome any advice from people on here with a late 4.0.
I also love the idea of owning a classic for a long time - it's difficult to explain but my uncle owned a Scimitar GTC for years (right up until he died) and the car was almost like an extension of his personality and he really cherished it.
Now that I am soon to have some cash again, I thought about buying a Fiat 500 as a runaround (and to advertise my business) and buy a sorted late model XJS 4.0 for weekends and trips. I love the XJS and for sheer presence its hard to beat for the money they are now making. I am quite handy with a spanner and love fettling so hopefully costs could be kept under control. Would welcome any advice from people on here with a late 4.0.
I also love the idea of owning a classic for a long time - it's difficult to explain but my uncle owned a Scimitar GTC for years (right up until he died) and the car was almost like an extension of his personality and he really cherished it.
Mate of mine bought a gold V12 one for a grand about 15 years ago. One radiator hose or other bit of cooling somewhere was split, so it kept overheating. I seem to remember it being almost an engine out job to replace the pipe. Failed its MOT with terminal rust (none of which you could see from the outside).
Another mate had a 4 litre HE, which was pretty well sorted and his main daily runner. Think his was one of the good ones! Even if it was brown.
Lovely lovely cars - I'm also a child of the 70s. Suffers from the same flaws as other 70s/80s supercars / luxury GTs with rust. Jaguars used to compete in the same market as BMW / Maserati / big Fiats / Mercedes etc and they all rust to some degree and cost money to maintain.
I'm more likely to buy an XJR or an XK convertible than an XJS tbh
Another mate had a 4 litre HE, which was pretty well sorted and his main daily runner. Think his was one of the good ones! Even if it was brown.
Lovely lovely cars - I'm also a child of the 70s. Suffers from the same flaws as other 70s/80s supercars / luxury GTs with rust. Jaguars used to compete in the same market as BMW / Maserati / big Fiats / Mercedes etc and they all rust to some degree and cost money to maintain.
I'm more likely to buy an XJR or an XK convertible than an XJS tbh
I had a STUNNING Ice blue 4.0 AJ16 Celebration car.....
It was the best car i have ever owned, just stunning in pretty much every way and it was built just as well as my old mans E32 7 series.
My advice is search hard and buy the latest example you can. Mine had a full service history and 130 odd on the clock but was as tight as a drum and had NO rust and NO welding. Good ones do exist and they are very special cars imho.
It was the best car i have ever owned, just stunning in pretty much every way and it was built just as well as my old mans E32 7 series.
My advice is search hard and buy the latest example you can. Mine had a full service history and 130 odd on the clock but was as tight as a drum and had NO rust and NO welding. Good ones do exist and they are very special cars imho.
tim0409 said:
This is a timely thread! I have been poor for the last 3 years after buying a plot of land and building a house (which we have just had an offer on), during which time I have been driving my partners Smart Fortwo and a VW Fox. The only light relief in between was an S Type which I bought from my OH brother the day before he emigrated but later sold to pay for some roof tiles http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/xforums/imgs/8.gif
Now that I am soon to have some cash again, I thought about buying a Fiat 500 as a roundaround (and to advertise my business) and buy a sorted late model XJS 4.0 for weekends and trips. I love the XJS and for sheer presence its hard to beat for the money they are now making. I am quite handy with a spanner and love fettling so hopefully costs could be kept under control. Would welcome any advice from people on here with a late 4.0.
I also love the idea of owning a classic for a long time - it's difficult to explain but my uncle owned a Scimitar GTC for years (right up until he died) and the car was almost like an extension of his personality and he really cherished it.
There's a dead nice 4.0 for sale in this week's Classic Car Weekly, they did a test of it and thought it was a lovely example for £6995. Think it had about 50k on the clock from memory and a full history. Now that I am soon to have some cash again, I thought about buying a Fiat 500 as a roundaround (and to advertise my business) and buy a sorted late model XJS 4.0 for weekends and trips. I love the XJS and for sheer presence its hard to beat for the money they are now making. I am quite handy with a spanner and love fettling so hopefully costs could be kept under control. Would welcome any advice from people on here with a late 4.0.
I also love the idea of owning a classic for a long time - it's difficult to explain but my uncle owned a Scimitar GTC for years (right up until he died) and the car was almost like an extension of his personality and he really cherished it.
Been there, done that. never again .. well, unless it was one of the late ones with the straight 6... or a lister
certain practicalities were annoying - that longgggg bonnet, and the overall length of the car. I parked as far into a space as I could and there would still be a foot hanging out the back of the space!
Also without a doubt one of the hardest cars to polish and dry effectively. Underbonnet temps were high hours after parking causing it to dry / go off too fast. By the time you'd done one bit the rest of the car would be long since dry. It was massive!
certain practicalities were annoying - that longgggg bonnet, and the overall length of the car. I parked as far into a space as I could and there would still be a foot hanging out the back of the space!
Also without a doubt one of the hardest cars to polish and dry effectively. Underbonnet temps were high hours after parking causing it to dry / go off too fast. By the time you'd done one bit the rest of the car would be long since dry. It was massive!
I think they're great looking cars.
I've heard they're not especially sharp as standard and it takes a fair amount of work to tighten up the handling(?) but the idea of one with all new bushes, dampers etc. with a fruitier exhaust and a manual box quite appeals. A modified example turned up at the Ace Cafe a while back and it sounded great.
I've heard they're not especially sharp as standard and it takes a fair amount of work to tighten up the handling(?) but the idea of one with all new bushes, dampers etc. with a fruitier exhaust and a manual box quite appeals. A modified example turned up at the Ace Cafe a while back and it sounded great.
I've thought often about an XJ-S and have already decided that my next car will be a Jag, but I've decided on an early XJ6 (Series 1, preferably).
I think the XJ-S will always be one of those "never got round to it" cars for me as there always seems to be something I'd buy before an XJ-S!
I think the XJ-S will always be one of those "never got round to it" cars for me as there always seems to be something I'd buy before an XJ-S!
Chris71 said:
I think they're great looking cars.
I've heard they're not especially sharp as standard and it takes a fair amount of work to tighten up the handling(?) but the idea of one with all new bushes, dampers etc. with a fruitier exhaust and a manual box quite appeals. A modified example turned up at the Ace Cafe a while back and it sounded great.
They are certainly more GT than sports car. Although I wouldn't say they are dreadful standard. But they do cosset you quite well. I much preferred the way my XJ-S drove over a friends SL500 Merc (89 plate).I've heard they're not especially sharp as standard and it takes a fair amount of work to tighten up the handling(?) but the idea of one with all new bushes, dampers etc. with a fruitier exhaust and a manual box quite appeals. A modified example turned up at the Ace Cafe a while back and it sounded great.
I used to borrow my mums 3.6 manual XJS on the many occasions when my old GT turbo was off the road.
I hated it at the time, found it very boaty to drive and very uneconomical for the performance,
but that was driving it down country lanes to work where the GT turbo was a lot of fun and thats not really what XJS's are intended for.
I'd however love to own a Lister XJS as some point.
I hated it at the time, found it very boaty to drive and very uneconomical for the performance,
but that was driving it down country lanes to work where the GT turbo was a lot of fun and thats not really what XJS's are intended for.
I'd however love to own a Lister XJS as some point.
vixen1700 said:
There's a dead nice 4.0 for sale in this week's Classic Car Weekly, they did a test of it and thought it was a lovely example for £6995. Think it had about 50k on the clock from memory and a full history.
At that money, I think I'd be tempted to go for an early XK instead.Or a Merc SEC or CL (hangs head in shame for suggesting this on a Jag thread)
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