XJ6 manual as first car
Discussion
Someone I work with has recently passed his driving test. He's about 25. While he's not a car enthusiast, he would appreciate and like something a bit different than your usual M-reg Corsa 1.2 as his first car. He was looking at old MGs...
I have been amusing myself by making ridiculous suggestions like pink modified Fiat puntos off ebay, £500 Porsche 924s, and the aforementioned XJ6. The XJ6 seems almost viable though as a comedy, not sensible first car. Insurance quotes are better than the Porsche. We're looking at cars in the £1500 region (but the cheaper the better, as less money lost when it dies), and it would have to be manual so he doesn't forget how to drive a manual gearbox! I was thinking XJ40, but there are one or two cheap manual X300s about. He would run it as a bit of a banger, not spending a lot on it. People say the XJs are unreliable but I think the major bits should be solid enough?? Is my confidence valid? Things like broken a/c or electric windows aren't a worry, but breaking down on the M5 is. The idea is very tempting for him, but the greatest problem is whether it would be reliable or blow up in 2 days and be a waste of £1500. It would be nice if it lasted a minimum of 6 months, ideally more, without dying or going expensively wrong. I merely like Jags and would like to see someone run an old one! What sort of price point is the 'break point' for acceptable cars?
Please tell me good things! Just imagine how great would it be to have a proper British Jag as your first car...
Samples:
£550
http://atsearch.autotrader.co.uk/www/
£1275
http://atsearch.autotrader.co.uk/www/
£1750
http://atsearch.autotrader.co.uk/www/
I have been amusing myself by making ridiculous suggestions like pink modified Fiat puntos off ebay, £500 Porsche 924s, and the aforementioned XJ6. The XJ6 seems almost viable though as a comedy, not sensible first car. Insurance quotes are better than the Porsche. We're looking at cars in the £1500 region (but the cheaper the better, as less money lost when it dies), and it would have to be manual so he doesn't forget how to drive a manual gearbox! I was thinking XJ40, but there are one or two cheap manual X300s about. He would run it as a bit of a banger, not spending a lot on it. People say the XJs are unreliable but I think the major bits should be solid enough?? Is my confidence valid? Things like broken a/c or electric windows aren't a worry, but breaking down on the M5 is. The idea is very tempting for him, but the greatest problem is whether it would be reliable or blow up in 2 days and be a waste of £1500. It would be nice if it lasted a minimum of 6 months, ideally more, without dying or going expensively wrong. I merely like Jags and would like to see someone run an old one! What sort of price point is the 'break point' for acceptable cars?
Please tell me good things! Just imagine how great would it be to have a proper British Jag as your first car...
Samples:
http://atsearch.autotrader.co.uk/www/
http://atsearch.autotrader.co.uk/www/
http://atsearch.autotrader.co.uk/www/
Edited by pentoman on Tuesday 27th March 11:31
I can't speak for XJ40s but X300s should be extreamly reliable.
If you are buying a cheap one then you need to make sure that the car is all OK as I'm sure they are as much susceptible to abuse as any car and remember that they might only be costing you ~£1500 but it's a ~£40,000 car when it comes to replacing broken bits.
I think Jaguar World magazine did a buyers guide to the X300 a while ago.
The engine in the X300 has a reputation for being bullet proof. It's the last of the line of inline 6s dating back to 1948. In the 50 years I guess they'd worked out how to really do this.
3.2L are more common than 4Ls, autos are far more common than manuals. When they were newer the autos commanded a big premium over the manuals. Not sure what the case would be now.
The only problems I can see with having one as a first car are:
1) learning to park the thing. They are big for UK roads and lots of car park spaces aren't designed for anything much bigger than an Escort.
2) He'll get spoilt. Once you've owned one where would you go next. Everything else will be a disappointment. I bought mine almost 12 years ago and I'm still to find a car that tempts me to "upgrade". The very latest ones (not diesel) are a little bit better, they are a little more serene, they ride a little better over rough surfaces, but they don't look as good. But I don't think they a ~£50K better.
Mine has been very cheap to own.
Good luck
If you are buying a cheap one then you need to make sure that the car is all OK as I'm sure they are as much susceptible to abuse as any car and remember that they might only be costing you ~£1500 but it's a ~£40,000 car when it comes to replacing broken bits.
I think Jaguar World magazine did a buyers guide to the X300 a while ago.
The engine in the X300 has a reputation for being bullet proof. It's the last of the line of inline 6s dating back to 1948. In the 50 years I guess they'd worked out how to really do this.
3.2L are more common than 4Ls, autos are far more common than manuals. When they were newer the autos commanded a big premium over the manuals. Not sure what the case would be now.
The only problems I can see with having one as a first car are:
1) learning to park the thing. They are big for UK roads and lots of car park spaces aren't designed for anything much bigger than an Escort.
2) He'll get spoilt. Once you've owned one where would you go next. Everything else will be a disappointment. I bought mine almost 12 years ago and I'm still to find a car that tempts me to "upgrade". The very latest ones (not diesel) are a little bit better, they are a little more serene, they ride a little better over rough surfaces, but they don't look as good. But I don't think they a ~£50K better.
Mine has been very cheap to own.
Good luck
Don't dismiss the diesel, I have an XJR and test drove an XJ diesel for a few days and was very impressed, still can't decide whether to upgrade to another "R" or do a sensible one and have a diesel.
The one thing I do know is that there isn't much else out there as a repalcement once you've owned a Jag
The one thing I do know is that there isn't much else out there as a repalcement once you've owned a Jag
dnwilliams said:
Don't dismiss the diesel, I have an XJR and test drove an XJ diesel for a few days and was very impressed, still can't decide whether to upgrade to another "R" or do a sensible one and have a diesel.
The one thing I do know is that there isn't much else out there as a repalcement once you've owned a Jag
The one thing I do know is that there isn't much else out there as a repalcement once you've owned a Jag
I had a rather shorter, bit less than an hour drive in one a week ago and didn't find it filled my expectation of of what being a Jaguar was all about. If makes a fine motorway cruiser but...
theaxe said:
I don't think he'd get a diesel XJ for under £1,500...
No, but could get a diesel XJS for £1500!! www.carandclassic.com/car/C12598
It's on ebay too... think it has the diesel out of a range rover?
Kieran - where did you get that insurance? It's very good.
Russell
Why a manual XJ? My suspicions are that a manual XJ40 or X300 will have been owned over the years by people who think a manual is really important to get the most out of a car and is therefore likely to have had a harder life than an auto one. Both models go very well indeed in auto form and the auto boxes are very realiable.
Prof Beard said:
Why a manual XJ? My suspicions are that a manual XJ40 or X300 will have been owned over the years by people who think a manual is really important to get the most out of a car and is therefore likely to have had a harder life than an auto one. Both models go very well indeed in auto form and the auto boxes are very realiable.
Simple - because he's just passed his test and wants a manual car!
He says if he can get insurance ridiculously cheap like the £200 quoted above (i.e. classic) he'll get a Jag, but at the moment he's talking about a 1995 Nissan Micra
Found another:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Jaguar-XJ6-GRAB
Only 57k miles?
I also suggested this combo Micra-Jag, which seems perfect for him!
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/REPLICA-JAGUAR-
pentoman said:
Prof Beard said:
Why a manual XJ? My suspicions are that a manual XJ40 or X300 will have been owned over the years by people who think a manual is really important to get the most out of a car and is therefore likely to have had a harder life than an auto one. Both models go very well indeed in auto form and the auto boxes are very realiable.
Simple - because he's just passed his test and wants a manual car!
I also suggested this combo Micra-Jag, which seems perfect for him!
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/REPLICA-JAGUAR-
Er - have another look - it's an auto!!!
(My concern was that a manual Jag might be troublesome...)
Prof Beard said:
pentoman said:
I also suggested this combo Micra-Jag, which seems perfect for him!
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/REPLICA-JAGUAR-
Er - have another look - it's an auto!!!
Damn. Oh well it's not as if that was the only thing stopping him from buying it....
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