XKR 4.2 Should I?

[chazwozza]

Afternoon all, having just sold my 2001 XJ Sovereign as fancied a change, i'm looking at the 4.2 X150 XKR, will probably end up being used 70% of the time over my Octavia vRS, what should I be looking for? Is the convertible a good option/buy? (As much as a s/c 4.2 V8 daily can be lol)

Hoping to look at some later this week..

Cheers

Chaz

[Simpo Two]

I had an XK 4.2 convertible and it was an excellent all-rounder. Good enough to take to shows, and fairly practical for normal stuff and long journeys, if you don't need to take tons of luggage.

The 5.0 is a later, better-built car with shinier buttons. (That said, the one I bought by mail order went bang after only a week and was duly returned!)

Edited by Simpo Two on Sunday 6th September 18:50

[chazwozza]

Thanks for the input, think i'm leaning to a coupe just for the extra room, it will be used for road trips and with a (small) dog, the cabrio could just be a little tight.
Hopefully i'll have news by the end of the week!

[Simpo Two]

Although... with a coupe you have to wrestle stuff into the back seat through the small gap between the seat and the B-pillar. With a convertible you just drop it in from above - very handy for big bags of bark mulch as I discovered

Note that the convertible has two boot sizes depending on whether the roof is up or down. With the roof up you can get about 30% more in.

[Man of gas]

I have a 5.0 Xkr convertible with the optional tyre inflator kit. As a result the area where the spare wheel went is carpeted and you can remove the boot floor cover which really increases the practicality and volume of the boot. You can get several large bags/ suitcase in there

[chazwozza]

Well it's not gone well, first 3 cars in the spec I liked were sold within minutes of being advertised and a 4th is not available to view until next week. Will keep updating if I take the plunge!

[robinh73]

Watching this with interest as I am considering an XKR coupe. Also in the running is a Mercedes Benz SL 500, but the Jag keeps calling me as I think they look incredible.

[Doesitdrive]

A friend has had a convertible for a goid few years now, used maybe 1 or two weekends a month, odd run out on a weekday evening.

Been the most reliable and trouble free car he has owned. Can't see him ever parting with it.

[Simpo Two]

chazwozza said:

Well it's not gone well, first 3 cars in the spec I liked were sold within minutes of being advertised

It's worth following up if you really want it - not every sale completes.

Good to hear that three cars in the right spec came up so quickly; it must be popular and more will follow.

[v8notbrave]

I have 2 twenty year old cars, buy with your head and not heart, check for lots and lots of bills and if private try and understand real reason seller is moving on

Could be wonderful! Great cars, great exhaust, great value (but could easily have thousands of bills pending)

[ric p]

I have a 5.0 xkr bought nearly 3 years ago. Couple of £400 services and a voluntary £400 gearbox oil change as at 11 years and 50k miles and it has been faultless and epic.

The only remedial work was headlamp washer replacement, done under warranty and probably due to bing gunge-ed up through lack of use.

Can’t comment on the 4.2 but it can’t be hugely different. So I would highly recommend them, worry and trouble free for the performance you get. And much less needy than some of my previous toys. I have no plans to move it on. I bet the coupe’s see even better (did briefly consider buying one in exactly the same spec as my convertible but decided that would be seen as a bit eccentric/odd/mad)

[robinh73]

ric p said:

I have a 5.0 xkr bought nearly 3 years ago. Couple of £400 services and a voluntary £400 gearbox oil change as at 11 years and 50k miles and it has been faultless and epic.

The only remedial work was headlamp washer replacement, done under warranty and probably due to bing gunge-ed up through lack of use.

Can t comment on the 4.2 but it can t be hugely different. So I would highly recommend them, worry and trouble free for the performance you get. And much less needy than some of my previous toys. I have no plans to move it on. I bet the coupe s see even better (did briefly consider buying one in exactly the same spec as my convertible but decided that would be seen as a bit eccentric/odd/mad)

That is a stunning colour! I would be looking at a 5.0 too and in coupe form. The more I look and hear about them, the less appealing the Mercedes SL is.

[ric p]

That 5 litre supercharged engine very impressive. Sounds like Thor’s hammer being dropped on his toes at full chat. Thunderous.

And easily more power (like it’s needed) according to the nice chaps at Swallows.

I’m biased but I’d be betting the maintenance is cheaper than the Merc.

[robinh73]

The more I read the better they get it would seem. Reliability is one thing that I had initial concerns over but the majority of feedback is very positive in this respect.

[cliffords]

I have one near 20 years old . They are very well built and in the 3 years I have had it. Jinxing myself now ,it's been perfect. It's a keeper for me and that's unusual.

[robinh73]

cliffords said:

I have one near 20 years old . They are very well built and in the 3 years I have had it. Jinxing myself now ,it's been perfect. It's a keeper for me and that's unusual.

Wow, just wow. What a stunner. An XKR coupe in British Racing Green would be pretty much prefect.