Are Jaguar "E" types overpriced?
Discussion
I remember back around 79/80 a magazine called Old Motor published a comprehensive buyers guide to old cars. This was just before any old car became regarded as a classic automatically.
Even then it was noticeable that some cars seemed much better value than others, and I thought at the time a canny buyer should be snapping them up. Instead it's the ones that seemed expensive even at the time such as Ferrari Dinos and Astons DB4/5/6 that have gone up massively. The ones that seemed relatively cheap (such as old XJ6s) often still seem cheap now.
Then it was:
I dream of a Ferrari 246.
I'd settle for an E type
I can afford an MGB or maybe a Stag.
Now it's:
I dream of an E type
I'd settle for a Stag.
I can still afford an MGB.
Even then it was noticeable that some cars seemed much better value than others, and I thought at the time a canny buyer should be snapping them up. Instead it's the ones that seemed expensive even at the time such as Ferrari Dinos and Astons DB4/5/6 that have gone up massively. The ones that seemed relatively cheap (such as old XJ6s) often still seem cheap now.
Then it was:
I dream of a Ferrari 246.
I'd settle for an E type
I can afford an MGB or maybe a Stag.
Now it's:
I dream of an E type
I'd settle for a Stag.
I can still afford an MGB.
Dr Jekyll said:
I remember back around 79/80 a magazine called Old Motor published a comprehensive buyers guide to old cars. This was just before any old car became regarded as a classic automatically.
Even then it was noticeable that some cars seemed much better value than others, and I thought at the time a canny buyer should be snapping them up. Instead it's the ones that seemed expensive even at the time such as Ferrari Dinos and Astons DB4/5/6 that have gone up massively. The ones that seemed relatively cheap (such as old XJ6s) often still seem cheap now.
Then it was:
I dream of a Ferrari 246.
I'd settle for an E type
I can afford an MGB or maybe a Stag.
Now it's:
I dream of an E type
I'd settle for a Stag.
I can still afford an MGB.
This is a very well illustrated point. Even then it was noticeable that some cars seemed much better value than others, and I thought at the time a canny buyer should be snapping them up. Instead it's the ones that seemed expensive even at the time such as Ferrari Dinos and Astons DB4/5/6 that have gone up massively. The ones that seemed relatively cheap (such as old XJ6s) often still seem cheap now.
Then it was:
I dream of a Ferrari 246.
I'd settle for an E type
I can afford an MGB or maybe a Stag.
Now it's:
I dream of an E type
I'd settle for a Stag.
I can still afford an MGB.
groomi said:
One is a good looking, comfortable saloon of it's day. The other is arguably the best looking, most iconic, sexiest sportscar of all time.
You're not comparing apples with apples...
E Types are alright but there are still so many of them around. They're quite pretty in a slightly under wheeled flying saucer sort of way but they do nothing for me and I'd rather have a 308GTB or a 911 to be honest. Or a 1963 Corvette Stingray. Or..........You're not comparing apples with apples...
But if you have one and you like it, great. The only one I'd consider is a Series III V12 FHC in Unfashionable Maroon (Regency red?) with chrome steels and the 3 speed auto.
The Series 1 XJ6 is criminally undervalued. This was Jaguar's high water mark, a car that made all the German stuff as well as the Silver Shadow look like the overpriced under achievers that they were. One of the most beautiful saloons ever made - I can't think of a saloon that outdoes it. The 4.2 Series 1 should by rights be as valuable if not more so than a Mark II 3.8. The original XJ12 was just remarkable, and it took Ze Germans such a very long time to build something conclusively better.
Edited by iSore on Friday 25th May 21:40
Dr Jekyll said:
I remember back around 79/80 a magazine called Old Motor published a comprehensive buyers guide to old cars. This was just before any old car became regarded as a classic automatically.
Even then it was noticeable that some cars seemed much better value than others, and I thought at the time a canny buyer should be snapping them up. Instead it's the ones that seemed expensive even at the time such as Ferrari Dinos and Astons DB4/5/6 that have gone up massively. The ones that seemed relatively cheap (such as old XJ6s) often still seem cheap now.
Then it was:
I dream of a Ferrari 246.
I'd settle for an E type
I can afford an MGB or maybe a Stag.
Now it's:
I dream of an E type
I'd settle for a Stag.
I can still afford an MGB.
As an ex Stag owner on and off since the mid 80s I remember how the prices for Stag's rocketed in the late 80s boom but this time around it's only recently the prices have started to rise. The only thing I could think of that kept the Stag undervalued in this current classic car boom was that the internet with sites like ebay you realise how many Stag's are still around. Saying that TR6's are not in short supply and they've always been expensive.Even then it was noticeable that some cars seemed much better value than others, and I thought at the time a canny buyer should be snapping them up. Instead it's the ones that seemed expensive even at the time such as Ferrari Dinos and Astons DB4/5/6 that have gone up massively. The ones that seemed relatively cheap (such as old XJ6s) often still seem cheap now.
Then it was:
I dream of a Ferrari 246.
I'd settle for an E type
I can afford an MGB or maybe a Stag.
Now it's:
I dream of an E type
I'd settle for a Stag.
I can still afford an MGB.
iSore said:
E Types are alright but there are still so many of them around. They're quite pretty in a slightly under wheeled flying saucer sort of way but they do nothing for me and I'd rather have a 308GTB or a 911 to be honest. Or a 1963 Corvette Stingray. Or..........
But if you have one and you like it, great. The only one I'd consider is a Series III V12 FHC in Unfashionable Maroon (Regency red?) with chrome steels and the 3 speed auto.
Prefers a Corvette to an E Type, only E Type of interest is a Series III with a sludge box........But if you have one and you like it, great. The only one I'd consider is a Series III V12 FHC in Unfashionable Maroon (Regency red?) with chrome steels and the 3 speed auto.
Dr Jekyll said:
But how much are other cars costing £5000 in 1973 worth now?
Our Jensen was a shade under £10k when new in 1974, and is now £100k, so has only appreciated at half the rate of the E-Type. That's no real surprise though, given the cult status of the E-Type.In 2012, only six years ago, a Lamborghini 400 GT 2+2 was 'only' around £250k, now they're all £450k - which isn't a bad gain in six years.
A 250 GTO in 1963 was £6,900. Now go from there. I bought my E-type in 1982 for peanuts. Now go further. A Ford Edsel new in 1963 was $3,800 and now is $8,600. Some cars become icons, some don't, The E-type wins every time that the surveys come around. Yes, there are a lot around; compared to 37 (or was it 39?) GTO's built there were 72,000 E-types of which we estimate that 60% exist. Most if not all of the GTO's exist, not that that means a hill of beans, as they say over the pond. Have a look at this:-
Sold as a wreck about 15 years back for £65,000, now worth, fully restored, about £350,000
Some cars are loved some aren't. I think that Sunbeam Tigers are undervalued when compared to the E-type, a Triumph Vitesse 2 lire convertible is still under £10,000, chicken feed really. I remember falling in love with an Invicta Low Chassis some years back when it was £80,000 and that was way out of reach. More so these days since if one came on the market I guess it would be nearer £1 million. One can go on. E-type prices have eased slightly recently so fill your boots. A good 1961 roadster will only be £175,000 now.
Sold as a wreck about 15 years back for £65,000, now worth, fully restored, about £350,000
Some cars are loved some aren't. I think that Sunbeam Tigers are undervalued when compared to the E-type, a Triumph Vitesse 2 lire convertible is still under £10,000, chicken feed really. I remember falling in love with an Invicta Low Chassis some years back when it was £80,000 and that was way out of reach. More so these days since if one came on the market I guess it would be nearer £1 million. One can go on. E-type prices have eased slightly recently so fill your boots. A good 1961 roadster will only be £175,000 now.
williamp said:
People buying classics as assets really annoy me it means you dont see then anymore, as use and mileage might..you know....
in fairness, if people used them regularly they would die / rust away and then there wouldnt be any left. id say that anything 80’s or older has only survived because they have been used sparingly and in fair weather. 
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