Next car: should I buy a Jaguar XK???

[thatguy11]

So for some reason I've gone a bit mad and decided I really fancy a first-gen Jag XK sometime relatively soon, most likely an XK8 rather than an XKR. Decent XK8s are down to about £5k and I'm seriously tempted to get one, hopefully soon.

Does anyone know how ruinous these things are to run or are they surprisingly cost-effective for what they are? I've always loved the XK, I just hope it's not too catastrophically expensive to keep them in good nick!

[anonymous-user]

I wanted one from the day they came out, and when I finally got to drive one I was so totally, utterly disappointed They look nice but that is about it really. A bit firmer but no better to drive than an X308, engine not really very powerful by modern standards, autobox not really very good, cabin very cramped and poor quality and they are starting to look seriously dated. The convertible roof in particular looks like a real lash up.

My (at the time) wife put it best when comparing the interior in particular to my X300 Sovereign "That looks and feels like it was once a very expensive car, this really doesn't".

My advice would be to arrange a couple of test drives. I did find the later 4.2 litre cars felt a lot more up to date to drive.

Also they can have serious rust issues, so tread carefully.

[unpc]

I had a 4.2 XKR for a few years and it wasn't ruinously expensive but tyres (20") and brakes (Brembo) weren't that cheap. The later 4.2s addressed a lot of the issues with the earlier cars but it was never a sports car, more of a GT. There's a lot of buying guides on line. Read them thoroughly and go in with your eyes wide open.