1998 XKR Advice

[WEHGuy]

I made alot of cheeky bids on alot of cars on Ebay on Saturday and have actually won one of them. I got a 1998 Jaguar XKR at an amazing price. Any advice on what to look out for when picking it up? Thanks in advance.

[NormanD]

The could/will be rust beetle on the front floor pans, also if you can look behind the ally front cross member

Timeing chain tensioners are best to change before they go


What ever they say about gearbox seeled for life, change the oil before that goes Bang

Join the www.xkec.co.uk a lot of info there on their members only forum

[WEHGuy]

NormanD said:

The could/will be rust beetle on the front floor pans, also if you can look behind the ally front cross member

Timeing chain tensioners are best to change before they go


What ever they say about gearbox seeled for life, change the oil before that goes Bang

Join the www.xkec.co.uk a lot of info there on their members only forum

I just had a look at that site. It costs £45 to join! I just want some info on the car's weak points.

[XKRacer]

When you buy a car like an early XKR, they have a huge following and you can not go wrong joining a club, the information on that site could potentionally save you thousands, let alone all the club discounts you get even from some main stealers, so for the sake of £45, quit being so tight

[WEHGuy]

I never keep a car long and I never use a main stealers.

[williamp]

WEHGuy said:

NormanD said:

The could/will be rust beetle on the front floor pans, also if you can look behind the ally front cross member

Timeing chain tensioners are best to change before they go


What ever they say about gearbox seeled for life, change the oil before that goes Bang

Join the www.xkec.co.uk a lot of info there on their members only forum

I just had a look at that site. It costs £45 to join! I just want some info on the car's weak points.

Buying a £60k-odd car (when new) and worrying about spending £45 is a bit worrying. Nonetheless, for free you could stand in smiths as there are two magazines out which have buying guides in - one the jaguar magazine, one a collection of classic car buying articles. But get this- you might have to spend money! to take these home with you and read in comfort

[bobfrance]

WEHGuy said:

I made alot of cheeky bids on alot of cars on Ebay on Saturday and have actually won one of them. I got a 1998 Jaguar XKR at an amazing price. Any advice on what to look out for when picking it up? Thanks in advance.

Bit late for that seeing as you've already bought it don't you think.

[WEHGuy]

williamp said:

Buying a £60k-odd car (when new) and worrying about spending £45 is a bit worrying. Nonetheless, for free you could stand in smiths as there are two magazines out which have buying guides in - one the jaguar magazine, one a collection of classic car buying articles. But get this- you might have to spend money! to take these home with you and read in comfort

That's a bit different though. Spending £45 on something you can normally get for free is what I call stupid. I can get a proper inspection done for not much more than £45.

[NormanD]

Can't win then all



At least he won't have to read all my Rambleings

Or others how they made a good car into an even better car

[XKRacer]

Norman...... Are you saying I ramble

[designXKR]

WEHGuy said:

I just had a look at that site. It costs £45 to join! I just want some info on the car's weak points.

With the wealth of knowledge available on the XKEC forum £45 is a bargain.

[xkrGiles]

As your not going to join the "proper" club, and you wont keep it long, you only need worry about short term stuff.....

1. If it runs rough at start up & tickover, you could have nikasil issues but unlikely.
2. Front footwell floorpan square plates rust thru
3. If it runs rough, you could have knackered chain tensioners & its jumped a tooth, although this normally results in not running at all
4. Tyres are £200 a pop
5. Check the gearbox drives nice & smooth & changes correctly, particularly in sport
6. Rear wing bottoms rust from stone chips and open inner vents
7. With a heavy right foot, you'll get 13mpg
8. With a very very light right foot you'll get 24mpg in a straight line at 56

Mainly, drive it like you stole it & see what falls off, generally nothing as they are built really well.
Have fun
im gonna look on ebay

[xkrGiles]

If its the red one, it looks tidy for the price. Gearbox sorted, not much rust, not much wear on seats.

Standard interior needs a lift with some chrome !

You could of grabbed yourself a bargain there, just cos people cant afford the fuel at the moment

[NormanD]

XKRacer said:

Norman...... Are you saying I ramble

No, me

[WEHGuy]

xkrGiles said:

As your not going to join the "proper" club, and you wont keep it long, you only need worry about short term stuff.....

1. If it runs rough at start up & tickover, you could have nikasil issues but unlikely.
2. Front footwell floorpan square plates rust thru
3. If it runs rough, you could have knackered chain tensioners & its jumped a tooth, although this normally results in not running at all
4. Tyres are £200 a pop
5. Check the gearbox drives nice & smooth & changes correctly, particularly in sport
6. Rear wing bottoms rust from stone chips and open inner vents
7. With a heavy right foot, you'll get 13mpg
8. With a very very light right foot you'll get 24mpg in a straight line at 56

Mainly, drive it like you stole it & see what falls off, generally nothing as they are built really well.
Have fun
im gonna look on ebay

Thank you very much. I have an E46 M3 so, I am used to fuel and tyre prices.

PS. I will post up the advert once I have taken ownership so, nobody tries to offer the seller more cash.

[xkrGiles]

I would be very interested on your comparison opinion of the XKR vs the M3

The ONLY other car I would buy to fit my requirements would be the M3 or maybe MonaroVXR, anyway id appreciate your comparison

[WEHGuy]

UPDATE

Well the car I got was a 1998 XKR, 82k miles, long MOT, 4 owners, FSH with loads of paperwork, last service only a couple of thousand miles ago and HPI clear for the measley sum of £4100! The wheels could do with a refurb and if, I was being really picky, the bonnet could do with a respray.

I went and picked it up on Thursday and have done about 200 miles in it so far.

XKR vs M3

XKR

Probably faster in a straight line
Extremely more comfortable
More Refined
Classier
Rarer
It is worse on fuel but, will probably be better because I don't want to thrash it everywhere

M3

I prefer the aggressive looks more
Manual
More fun to drive. I always want to thrash it and it always takes it and asks for more.
More room for passengers
Makes me smile every time I drive it. I took it out today and it and I realised it has that excitement that the Jag doesn't have.

Overall I would say, I am only 25 and probably I'm too young for the Jag. I like every journey to be an event, which I don't think the Jag will be. The Jag is still an amazing car though, especially at that price.

Thanks to all the people who helped me out with the information.

[cardigankid]

I expect your insurance will be more than the car, but all the best anyway! I posted a couple of months back that if you wanted a terrific GT car for very little cash, a Jag XK was the way to go. I expect that petrol prices are helping.

Have you any pictures of the underside and the suspension? What kind of condition is it in? There is a lot more that can break than just the engine.

[xkrGiles]

You have to get the pulley upgraded (£200) and then the exhaust back boxes bypassed (£200) and it transforms the car.
Mine barks at M3's and makes them look like a mini-metro interior by comparison.

After driving some exotics and rally cars this weekend, I would probably buy a rare breed of Evo over the M3 now, but neither have the character of the XKR, so im keeping it.
Search youtube for my exhaust noise "XKR Exhaust" look for the silver one.

[markgregory1]

Further to some messages above we have today launched a brand new tier to our membership options, one of which concerns our forum and might interest some PH readers? See www.xkec.co.uk for further details

Edited by markgregory1 on Monday 5th September 16:29

Edited by markgregory1 on Monday 5th September 16:29

Edited by markgregory1 on Monday 5th September 16:54