leggy Jag X300 Cat C write off... Worth the risk?
Discussion
Greetings PH,
I recently and quite by chance stumbled headlong into a small pile of money (sadly I am not your average PHer, so by small I do mean pretty small), and felt that the most sensible option was to scratch the jaguar shaped itch ive had for a while now..
after much searching I have found a car that appears to tick all the boxes:
http://www.gumtree.com/p/cars-vans-motorbikes/coll...
I'm sure the eagle eyed and even marginally observant alike amongst you will have spotted the mileage and the fact its a Cat C repaired vehicle.
I know these cars can go on for a long time if looked after, but even if the big mechanicals are reasonably sound, am I likely to find things like dampers, dif, bushes, water pumps, various ancillaries etc are a bit past it after 190K miles?
and as for the write off, even if the car is mechanical safe and sound, how much will I get bent over by the insurance companies for the fact its Cat C (on top of the fact its going to cost me a lot as it is - 23 year male, 5 years NCB)?
Thanks chaps and chapesses,
Tom
I recently and quite by chance stumbled headlong into a small pile of money (sadly I am not your average PHer, so by small I do mean pretty small), and felt that the most sensible option was to scratch the jaguar shaped itch ive had for a while now..
after much searching I have found a car that appears to tick all the boxes:
http://www.gumtree.com/p/cars-vans-motorbikes/coll...
I'm sure the eagle eyed and even marginally observant alike amongst you will have spotted the mileage and the fact its a Cat C repaired vehicle.
I know these cars can go on for a long time if looked after, but even if the big mechanicals are reasonably sound, am I likely to find things like dampers, dif, bushes, water pumps, various ancillaries etc are a bit past it after 190K miles?
and as for the write off, even if the car is mechanical safe and sound, how much will I get bent over by the insurance companies for the fact its Cat C (on top of the fact its going to cost me a lot as it is - 23 year male, 5 years NCB)?
Thanks chaps and chapesses,
Tom
Your insurers won't charge you any more, as far as I'm aware.
It does look like a very nice example, so I would look into it and find out why it was written off - cars like this attract vandalism, for example, and if you can find evidence that it was something simple like that that caused the write-off, then no worries. Just bear in mind it'll be hard to sell on.
Must say that the interior looks absolutely pristine, mind.. Those seats don't look like they've had 190,000 miles of arse-wear, I'd be surprised if they're the original ones?
It does look like a very nice example, so I would look into it and find out why it was written off - cars like this attract vandalism, for example, and if you can find evidence that it was something simple like that that caused the write-off, then no worries. Just bear in mind it'll be hard to sell on.
Must say that the interior looks absolutely pristine, mind.. Those seats don't look like they've had 190,000 miles of arse-wear, I'd be surprised if they're the original ones?
sadly the car is 300 miles from me so to make the trek up there at all i would have to be 90% sure on getting it.
and i know there are many others, but none of them are quite right.
ive looked through probably a hundred adverts and this is the first black 4 litre XJ6 sport ive found that also looks in good condition. All the other ones in black are 3.2s, and all the other 4.0s are sovereigns in the wrong colour.
and i know there are many others, but none of them are quite right.
ive looked through probably a hundred adverts and this is the first black 4 litre XJ6 sport ive found that also looks in good condition. All the other ones in black are 3.2s, and all the other 4.0s are sovereigns in the wrong colour.
Caruso said:
deadslow said:
I'd say it was overpriced at the mileage, irrespective of the previous damage. You cannot give these cars away right now.
It's a nice colour combo, but yes it's overpriced unless it comes with it's original NCC-1701 plate. 
Caruso said:
unless it comes with it's original NCC-1701 plate.
hah, I feel slightly ashamed that I got that straight away :Pi know there are many others out there for less money, but like i said i have looked at loads and none of them tick all the boxes like this one does (biggest problem being that the vast majority are 3.2, not 4.0 like this one)
also this one comes from a dealer so there is something to fall back on if it does turn out to be a lemon.
McSam said:
find out why it was written off - cars like this attract vandalism, for example
funny you should say that.. if you look closely in the pictures you can see it has a 90's-tastic red strip down the nearside, but not on the offside. I wonder whether it was keyed and resprayed, or maybe side swiped and had to have some panel and paintwork repairs?i have sent the chap an email asking about why it was a Cat C, so hopefully I will know soon enough.
and yeah i agree that it does look amazingly clean for such a well used car. thoguh it does say its got full main dealer service history, so maybe its a pampered motorway slogger?
Sold our X300 for less than that with lower mileage and a cat D I think it was 2 years ago, and ours was the TWR tweaked version with the 4.0 engine and "sports suspension" oh who were they kidding it was still a f
king barge that didn't go around corners.
Too expensive, I wouldn't pay more than £400 for that as wrong as it sounds, 200k miles, Jag suspension is not cheap if any of it needs replacing, and it probably will with all that weight on it for 16 years.
Cheaper or better Jags out there in that price range.
king barge that didn't go around corners.Too expensive, I wouldn't pay more than £400 for that as wrong as it sounds, 200k miles, Jag suspension is not cheap if any of it needs replacing, and it probably will with all that weight on it for 16 years.
Cheaper or better Jags out there in that price range.
That's a lot of miles and a bit too much money IMO - but if it's been looked after properly then it should do more and as it's the colour and spec you really seem to want then why not try a sub £1000 offer?
Before you do the deal check front tyres for uneven wear and look for rust around front jacking points, rear wheel arches, front and rear screens and inner sills. Listen carefully for timing chain rattle and whirr when cold (just like the later X308 X300s also have timing chain and tensioner problems at very high mileage) make sure the engine comes up to temp reasonably quickly and the gauge reads in the middle of the scale. Make sure all the fluids are clean and there's no evidence of head gasket failure. Clock displays fail, immobilisers occasionally play up and at that mileage I'd be surprised if the 'diff is still quiet. Make sure all the electrics and heating/vents and a/c work properly. Apart from all that I'd need to know why it's got non standard wheels, what the tyres are like and what's the story behind the mismatched coachline.
The 4.0 is the better choice, especially if you do a lot of miles heavily laden or in hilly areas but they are rare compared with the 3.2.
The main thing when buying an older Jaguar - or any other old high mileage car for that matter is to buy the very best example you can find and that'll often mean a private sale from an enthusiast who has looked after the car really well rather than a slightly edgy example from a dealer who's interested in nothing more than makng money.
Before you do the deal check front tyres for uneven wear and look for rust around front jacking points, rear wheel arches, front and rear screens and inner sills. Listen carefully for timing chain rattle and whirr when cold (just like the later X308 X300s also have timing chain and tensioner problems at very high mileage) make sure the engine comes up to temp reasonably quickly and the gauge reads in the middle of the scale. Make sure all the fluids are clean and there's no evidence of head gasket failure. Clock displays fail, immobilisers occasionally play up and at that mileage I'd be surprised if the 'diff is still quiet. Make sure all the electrics and heating/vents and a/c work properly. Apart from all that I'd need to know why it's got non standard wheels, what the tyres are like and what's the story behind the mismatched coachline.
The 4.0 is the better choice, especially if you do a lot of miles heavily laden or in hilly areas but they are rare compared with the 3.2.
The main thing when buying an older Jaguar - or any other old high mileage car for that matter is to buy the very best example you can find and that'll often mean a private sale from an enthusiast who has looked after the car really well rather than a slightly edgy example from a dealer who's interested in nothing more than makng money.
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff