Remember the last Jaguar XJ, the one before this? While lovely to drive, the 'X350' XJ could hardly have looked more old-fashioned if it came with wire wheels and a tape deck. Even in the mid-2000s, it looked staid, safe and overly traditional. With cars like the Bangle 7 Series on sale at the same time, that XJ did nothing for Jaguar's old man image.
But this one did. When the X351 made its debut a decade ago, it was a real bolt from the blue for Jaguar - here, at last, was a contemporary, stylish, modern, flagship, one that replaced a really stoic predecessor. That it was lovely to drive, with a vastly improved interior, made for a genuinely competitive and attractive big Jag saloon. That it still looks good 10 years on says a lot, too.
Now, however, the X351 XJ's time has come: production will end at Castle Bromwich on July 5th, with 120,000 made. Truth be told, many aspects of the XJ are no longer competitive, and haven't been for a while, with an electric replacement for the car due in 2020. So in the same way this XJ was unlike any previous iterations, its replacement looks like reinventing the name once more.
As staunch fans of the current XJ, its confident good looks and assured dynamics, we're sad to see the car going, even with its solid nine-year innings. Early diesel cars are now priced from around £16k, though the most interesting sub-£20k XJ to be found at the moment is this 5.0-litre V8 car, once said to be transport for the Queen, available at £18k with 80,000 miles. With a higher budget, this BRG XJ is one of very few cars that uses the supercharged V6 that replaced the big V8; with cream leather and acres of wood, it's a more traditional take on the XJ spec, but interesting nonetheless.
Naturally of most interest in this XJ range is the XJR, either in original 550hp form or as the later 575; high mileage cars are less than £30k, though this 2016 example looks scandalously good value at £40k with just over 20,000 miles. For those who must have the extra 25hp, this XJR 575 has already plummeted from its £93,710 list price to less than £60k. Which looks jolly tempting, truth be told. For delivering something so different, and so much more desirable, than what went before it, the X351 XJ really deserves to be remembered as one of Jag's greats, despite its flaws. Given how much the next version looks likely to change the formula, don't be surprised to see its stock rise even further in the coming years.
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