1991 Daimler Sovereign, what to look out for?

[Geekman]

My dad's just told me he's going to look at a 1991 daimler sovereign tomorrow, which is up for £1500. It all sounds pretty good, FSH, plenty of receipts and low miles, but is there anything in particular he should look out for? Slightly concerned about it being an utter shed and him not realising!

[Hooli]

Have a look on XJ40.com I think I saw a buyers guide somewhere.

The main thing I can recall is wet footwells as the inner wings & floor seams are a common rot point.

£1500 sounds quite strong for one, it's three times the price of my '93 3.2S and mine isn't too bad.

[dbdb]

Geekman said:

My dad's just told me he's going to look at a 1991 daimler sovereign tomorrow, which is up for £1500. It all sounds pretty good, FSH, plenty of receipts and low miles, but is there anything in particular he should look out for? Slightly concerned about it being an utter shed and him not realising!

I don't think £1500 is excessive if it is a nice one - excellent cars can go for quite a bit more.

1991 will be a 4 litre analogue dash car - so it is likely to have much better electrics than the early cars. This is a Daimler thus top of the range. There is a lot of electrical equipment: electric windows, electric seats, etc. Make sure it all works.

Check there are no strange warrning lights. By 1991, the XJ40 no longer had all the problems with electrical systems, but any car can have problems. When you switch on the ignition all the lights should illuminate. I would want to know the explanation for any missing bulbs. A lightning bolt warning is a blown fuse. A bulb with a cross over it is a bulb failure warning. False warnings are not generally a problem for the 1991MY, but if it is illuminated, find out why.

The mechanical parts are strong - the engine and gearbox really last. The engine has chain driven cams, so there is no cam belt to worry about. It isn't prone to overheating. Check for the obvious things nevertheless.

A small puff of smoke from the exhausts when it starts is generally OK - most will do it, since most XJ40s have some valve stem seal wear. Any more than this could be a concern though - as with any car.

The gearbox should be reasonably smooth - particularly on part throttle changes. It isn't quite as imperceptible as a very modern 'box, but there should be no jerking between gears.

The XJ40 is slightly prone to differential wear. This is rarely terminal, but can be noisy. Listen for any disconcerting whines from the diff.

The XJ40 is a very heavy car and can be hard on suspension bushes. The car should ride smoothly but with control and without any creaks, knocks or bangs. It should not feel loose.

The A/C often doesn't work.

By far the main thing to look for is rust. Rust is the XJ40's achilles heel - marring an otherwise very durable car.

Check for rust everywhere, but particularly in the following areas:

On the front edge of the bonnet.

Round the windscreen aperture.

Under the bonnet - on the tops of the front wings.

Under the bonnet - along the bulkhead. This mostly affects cars built later (1993/4).

The sill ends on both sides.

The sill to floor pan join on both sides, all along the bottom of the car. This rusts on other side of the long rail which runs the length of the car - you will need to stoop low to see it.

The fronts of the driver's and passenger's floor.

The rear of the sill, infront of the rear wheel.

Round the petrol filler flap.

The rear pillar, under the chrome trim.

The rear edge of the boot lid.

The sunroof panel - if it has one.

Sounds a long list, but a good XJ40 is a lovely old thing and a marvellous buy. I love mine!

[Geekman]

Thanks for those posts, much appreciated and proved extremely useful. I ended up going with my dad to take a look, and was reasonably impressed, so we'll be taking it for a test drive next week.
It had 59k on the clock, which appeared to be genuine as the interior was in extremely good condition. It also had a years MOT and full jaguar service history, but no tax. I had a look in all the areas of potential rust and there was only a few tiny bubbles appearing on the bottom of the sills - you really had to go up close to see. However, there were several small holes in the bulkhead, which was quite concerning.

Overall got quite a good feeling about the car and the seller, but until I've driven it (or at least been driven in it!) there's not a lot more I can say. Will update this next week, and if anyone has anything further to add please do!