Hey guys,


I'm a semi-active member at the XK Forums.. I have an XKR-S and am very happy with Jaguar.. This is my second XK, both of which were dearly loved.


A week or so ago, our dealer sent me a V8S F-Type demo which stayed with me for two days. I liked it a lot, drive was fascinating, handling was superb and the exhaust note as we all know was intoxicating. I initially thought of trading the R-S on a Coupe R but decided I liked the XK more.. It just felt more unique and special (not to say the F-Type isn't - it was just my personal feelings/opinion).


On a side note, I would love to get one as a second car to replacing my aging convertible (2010 Lexus SC430).. I would however be interested in a V6S since critics have called it the sweetspot of the line up with launch control and the mechanical LSD.. I just did not want to dish out the dealer's asking price and place an order.


I looked into the pre-owned market and came across the perfect car for a steal of a price... $49,500; average resale currently is $71,000, and the price new is $108,250 before any applicable discounts.. So yea its a great deal; almost too good to be true which got me to put on my detective hat and initiate an investigation.


This turns out to be the deal; The car is a 2014 with around 9k miles on the clock, it was purchased new 9 months ago. Turns out the PO check out a pavement and damaged the front, passenger side wheel, tire, and both upper and lower control arms (sounds like it took quite a hit). However, the body was untouched, not even the side skirt.


Here is the catch, the car is marked by Jaguar Middle East as a total loss. Turns out the reason is the PO sent it to the dealership to get a quotation on repair and was quoted $20,000, they were going to replace all four front control arms, all 4 coilovers and bunch of misc items here and there when in reality, all the car needed was what infact got replaced. The gentleman took the vehicle to another bodyshop, bought the items from Jaguar, got them installed and the vehicle re-aligned. All went well.


I got the VIN and sent Corporate Jag a request of warrantee reinstatement. Not getting my hopes up on an approval but am still kind of thinking about biting the bullet, afterall the vehicle will only be driven 2-3k miles a year. I'm just a little worried something else got affected, or that I will not find anyone to take it off me when I'm ready to sell.


What do you guys think especially real world owners.. Is it worth the risk or shall I pass? I am still not sure if im able to get the warrantee reinstated but assuming the worst (hoping for the best) the vehicle is sold as is.


Your thoughts...

 

I'm just finishing up a project with a Salvage 2008 A3 I got for around $13K. (I'm willing to risk $13K, $50K would make me sweat a bit). It really does depend on the quality of the work. I doubt Jaguar will reinstate the warranty but if they do they won't warrant anything that was already damaged. In my case the mechanic I had look at the car must have been blind and most of the repairs had to be redone, not too costly on the A3 but on an F-Type that could be a nightmare.


For me that's too much money to risk on a salvage car but it could be a steal. If I were to do it, I'd make sure someone I could trust looked at the repairs that were made.


If anything looks dicey just walk away you are risking $50K to save $25 and you want to make sure it is a good deal. On resale if it has a salvage title (and it should) you'll likely take a big hit. Don't buy this as an investment, buy it to drive and you might get lucky at the end.

 

To each his own but I would pass at that price. I don't think it is worth the risk. You could get lucky or it could be a total disaster. Either way you are going to take a bath in any re-sale situation.

Did they tell you it was salvage or did you have to find out yourself? If it wasn't disclosed you know what kind of seller you are dealing with...

If Jaguar reinstated your warranty that might sway me but I still wouldn't be jumping all over it. You could always try to lowball them and offer $35k - $40k...

 

Thanks for the reply gents.. What actually got me interested was the seller's honesty and ease of working with. He told me abc from the first phone call and is open to having it inspected by anyone i designate. I am going to send the vehicle to the dealership to get the service done, have it inspected by jaguar and providing me with a report, and having three software updates done (as requested by Corporate Jag).

I just found out exactly why the insurance was written off. As i mentioned earlier, the dealership quoted $20000 for the repair when the PO knew he could repair it for a lot less without affecting his insurance premium so he sent it to another workshop who charged $4000 for parts, labor, and alignment. When this happened and the insurance company pulled the vehicle out of the dealership, it was automatically marked as total loss since it was not repaired at the dealership who stated it was 'bought back' by the customer.

I'm really considering taking the risk, worst case scenario of they're not willing to reinstate the warantee, i'll just buy an external warantee plan from AAA or something and hope for the best. I will however hold my horses until the vehicle is inspected at Jaguar and a health check is provided, i agreed with the PO to pay for the service + checking.. it only sounds fair

 

Maldweik,
Just curious...what happened with the car? Have you bought it or passed on? I heard from friends that the F-Type is a pretty solid car with very little problems (so far) and a bullet-proof gearbox.

I think I saw the same car still for sale on dubizzle.com a few weeks ago. Is it the same one? I believe it was offered for 199,000 Dirhams, but that slightly more than the $49,500 USD you mentioned in your post.

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Hey man, I eventually passed on the deal because I was worried that I might face some issues... Dug deeper and the car was indeed marked as a total loss by the insurance company, AAA offered me a warrantee for 6k aed (1700$) but the owner wouldn't work with me on pricing.. He did state 199 last but I was going to pick it up for 180. I presume it's sold since it's off dubizzle but I wasn't the buyer

Now I got the damn F-Type in my mind and am seriously considering buying another.. The dealer gave me an awesome deal on a new 2014 V6 base but I'm having second thoughts picking that up. I'm worried it will feel too basic and underpowered especially when compared to my XKR-S

 

Alright guys i've gotten the F-Type in my head by i do not want to part with the XKR-S.. I think i may be taking a terrible financial decision soon and i would like to do it properly.

The Coupe R is out of the question at this point because i do not want to deal with two Jag coupes at the same time. I am thinking a convertible and leaning towards a V6S having done all my research, it really seems like the sweetspot out of the bunch. I am generally a big fan of V8 engines and raw power but with the F-Type, i'm genuinely feeling the V6s is the one to buy.

Now i am offered a practically new V8s at the dealer for the price of a brand new V6s. Plus the V6 needs to be special ordered. What do you guys think? I'd like real world owner reviews and people who have been well acquainted with both versions.

I'm also open to people talking me out of the whole ordeal haha. I hate when i have something stick in my mind like this!

Thank you.

 

Zero regrets here with the V6S. Waiting sucks, but why not order one just the way you want it? Guessing the dealer will still deal some on it.

 

I am totally satisfied with the base V6, and I say this having owned many high-powered V8s including the 505HP, C6 Z06. I certainly do not have the feeling that I'm either underpowered or driving a "stripped-down" model. The power is more than ample, and with 8 speeds to choose from, you're can always be in the sweet spot of the power band (90% of my driving is in dynamic and sport mode with the paddle shifters). Moreover, the base model has the advantage of being the lightest member of the F-Type family by a nice margin without all the extras that come with the V6S, and the difference in power, particularly torque, is not terribly significant.

 

I think every owner of an F-type, whether it's a V6, V6S, V8S or R, thinks he/she got the right model, so I don't think you can go wrong!

 

Just my humble opinion after driving all 3 (coupes). I was planning on getting the base... until I drove it. I was underwhelmed with the power and the ride. I know I'm in the minority there. The S was going to be my choice. It definitely feels more nimble than the R, and has plenty of oomph, and a good exhaust note (with active exhaust). But then I found a used R for the same price as a well loaded S, so I bought the R. ZERO regrets. For me, getting an R with 2000 miles on it for the same price as the S was a no brainer. Had almost everything I wanted on it. If it didn't, I would have waited for the S and ordered it as I liked.

The R is more a sense of occasion when you drive. But from a pure handling perspective, the S is probably a tad bit better. Spec the S up to the R level of kit, however, and the prices start to converge...

 

Absolutely love the v8s. Was planning on buying the 6s based on reviews and comments, but after driving both felt the v8s was well worth the differential in price.

As another person commented, once the options are loaded up the dif is less than 10%, and it feels like much more car.

 

Thank you for the posts and advice guys.. Each and every one of you makes perfect sence which makes my life harder and harder haha.

I spoke to the dealer last night, he sold out both remaining V6 base vehicles availble in stock. As previously mentioned, the V6s will need to be a customer order and will cost similar to a V8s.

I doubt that getting into a v8s will have me thinking oh boy i wish i stuck to a v6s.. I'm sure its going to be enough of an occasion. The vehicle i'm offered is a great deal and practically new (less than 2k miles) but the color combo is not what i was hoping for. Exterior is Salsa Red with Red Leather Performance seat, red headliner and softop with a carbon fiber package and wheels. Its not too bad in person but i feel on the long run it will be overkill.

I'll try to get some pics up. I need to make a decision this week if i want this car, or just hold off until i get the option of picking up another.

I also breifly thought about trading the R-S onto coupe R but i really feel like i will be regretting so down the road.

 

Interesting point about the the V6 models: the output is pretty much identical up to 5000rpm (and you'll need to be using plenty of throttle to notice), so the difference in acceleration has to be down to the ratio of the differentials (3.15 vs. 3.31).

 

Yep, and thanks. I can't imagine anyone actually perceiving a noticeable difference in power between the two V6s during a test drive. Of course, there are other differences that may make the 6S the right choice for you.

After missing my beloved Lotus Elise for several years now, I was attracted to the lightest of the F-Types, with the fewest gadgets possible, and I've tired of 500 HP vehicles with power I can basically never use. When I had both a Lotus and Z06 in the garage, I found myself taking the Lotus out more often

To each his own, and don't be surprised if your preferences change over the years.

 

It is an interesting point, because I had read about the fact that the HP for the 2 V6's were the same almost all the way up the graph. So I was pretty surprised when I drove them back to back. To me, it's not even close. The base doesn't feel NEARLY as quick as the S when you get after it. The S felt closer to the R than the base felt to the S, at least to my butt...

 

Oh, I ordered the base V6 (coupe). Visibility and Parking Packs and that's it.

What do you think of the damping btw?

 

The original base V6 convertible didn't have dynamic mode - no idea how they set up the throttle response, but in the V6S vert with dynamic mode off, it's pretty unresponsive. But the base V6 has dynamic mode since last year sometime, I think.

 

F-Typical,

I prefer a very firm ride, and the damping ratio in the base car is just right in my view. The average person would likely consider it to be too firm, and by comparison, it's more so than my E92 M3, but less so than the Lotus. I find the base suspension to be very well sorted and right up there with the best I've driven.

I live in the Washington, DC metro area, which is notorious for crumbling pavement, and it handles those conditions very well. Given the roads, I also prefer the 18" tires with a little more sidewall, and I don't think that grip suffers at all.

DJS,

My September 2013-built V6 base convertible has dynamic mode, and it is on 90% of the time. I agree that it is a different car with a far more aggressive throttle response when dynamic mode is engaged.

Now that you mention that, I'm now wondering whether the poster who found the V6 base and S so dramatically different may have had dynamic mode off in the base car he drove.