Hello,

New member here! I do not currently own a Jaguar, but I am actively looking to purchase one. I am interested mostly in 95-97 XJRs. I would also consider a nice VDP.

I am primarily a fan of American cars, but I have always liked Jaguars.

I recently finished a 2-year restoration of my 1967 Mercury Cougar (pictured).
There are actually a few correlations between early Cougars and Jaguars:
1. We refer to our cars as “Cats” too.
2. Mercury wanted to target import luxury car buyers with the original Cougar. Therefore, several Jaguar design elements were borrowed (i.e. XR-7 wood dash).
3. Jaguar sued Lincoln-Mercury in the 1960s over the use of the cat emblem.
4. Car and Driver did a comparison test pairing a 67 Cougar against a Jaguar 420.

The Cougar is my weekend cruiser. I currently have a 98 Lincoln Town Car Cartier as my daily commuter. I have had it for almost 5 years, and I would like to upgrade. I consider Lincoln/Cadillac as a premium nameplate. I consider Jaguar a proper luxury car. Jags have an unmatched degree of beauty and class. I appreciate the traditional styling of the x300. It appears to be one of the most reliable series as well.

I have a passion for cars, and I enjoy working on them. I have many tools and have adequate tinkering time/funds. I am not scared by the extra TLC Jaguars can require.

I look forward to reading the archives, and asking questions as I continue my search.

Thanks,
Joe

 

Welcome, X300s can be considered one of the most reliable and solid Jaguars ever made
Jaguar is a different car and you feel quality just there

 

Welcome to the forums - Gilbert is HOT, HOT, HOT this time of year, I hear.

I concur with Cadillac - the X300 is a very nice car and probably Jaguar's best inline 6.

Best,

 

Welcome to the forums Joe. You don't need to currently own a Jaguar to get along just fine around here.

An XJR, good choice.

 

Thanks for all the welcomes.

Yes, very HOT. I have a 5,000 cfm cooler which makes working in he garage a little more bearable.

 

Hi Azcat

As a Brit, (I live in a railway town in Cheshire, England), I think you will find a Jaguar will fit very well alongside that immaculate Cougar of yours. Like your Cougar, the Jaguar is the kind of car that when you park up and walk away, you cannot help turning round to look at it.

Be aware that the engineers at Jaguar were British and so have a very different take to Detroit on what needs to be done to make a nice car. The models you have mentioned, (called the X300 series), are generally considered the best of the recent models. The curves were put back in and reliability added on in 1994. I saw early factory testers in that year in Leamington Spa, a town south of Coventry, the home of Jaguar until very recently The straight six AJ16 engine is probably the best engine Jaguar ever made. Almost all of the mechanical and chassis assembly is identical to the previous model, the XJ40 series, and parts are not a problem.

Obviously with ageing, (the youngest car is 13 years old), you will find there are a few jobs you will need to do, but almost everything is DIYable.

 

A hello from me, a little farther east, and just a tad cooler!

 

Nice set-up with your garage - Also, perfect "future" spot there for an X300 to take up residence

 

Now you're talkin' with that AC. Cool looking car guy garage! I've an X300 in my garage too. You'll not be disappointed with it if that is your choice.

 

welcome to the site AZ....Nice Cougar
The garage looks great and a nice spacde left there for the Cat if / when you decide to get one.
enjoy the site

 

Nice Garage! Man, that is super clean! Great looking Cougar too!

Welcome AZcat!

 

Thanks. I need some British memorabilia for the garage...
The closest thing I have is my Airedale which occasionally accompanies me while I work on the cars.

Anyone know the production numbers for left hand drive XJRs? There does not appear to be many for sale.
Edit: Old post indicates about 6,500 total XJR6 were produced, and about half exported to USA.

 

Howdy Joe

That's a nice cougar! Pair it up with another kind of kitty. Welcome to the forum!

 

Hello Joe and Welcome. I think pretty much the same as you in that if it's broke I'll just fix it. Love my 99 VDP. Great Cougar BTW.

 

We've got a lot in common. I'm in Phoenix as well, and in fact in my earlier days I drove a 1967 Cougar! It was actually my mothers highschool graduation present. (Hmmm come to think of it, I didn't get a car when I graduated highschool) In fact I remember the day it hit 122 degrees here in the Valley of the Sun(stroke), I was driving that cat up Pima Rd with no AC at three in the afternoon. Nothing like the feel of sizzling black vinyl! Things are much more comfy in my new kitty (XJ8 Vanden Plas) but oh how I miss the turn signals on the Cougar. Thanks for posting the picss as it was nice stroll down memory lane.

 

Thanks.

Nice to hear from some of the local Jag owners as well. Please let me know if you know of any local 95-97 XJRs for sale. The nearest one I found is in California...

 

Welcome to the forums, nice Cougar... I just moved to Colorado from Tempe about a year and a half ago, it's nice to get out of that hell hole (as in hot), although it seems that I must have brought some of that heat up here with me. It's been in the mid 90s (no AC in this area) which is really hot for this area and time of year. Anyway, hope your stay is pleasant.