Hi Jon,

Who ever gets your car assuming you will sell it will get a jewel of a car. Like you, I stole my S-Type in 2009 and had it for around six years. I sometimes wish I still had it since it was a real good handling car. My XJ8 though is a different animal. More of a long distance highway car than a back road burner. I have seen as much as 580 miles to empty on my trip computer. It also has quite a bit more luxury features like bluetooth and navigation. The best though are the heated seats and steering wheel. This morning it was 15 degrees out and I really appreciated them. Best of luck on whatever you decide to do.

Mike

 

Ah, now that sounds like my STR (sat nav, heated seats - oh and heated windshield plus of course headlamp powerwash).

(Though the STR has more power and I don't even look at its range as I'd never drive so far between fill ups.)

 

Mike,

Good to hear from you....

You made the right move when you upgraded from your S-Type 3.0 to your XJ8L. As much as I have enjoyed my S-Type 3.0, I know I would enjoy the extra headroom and legroom in your XJ8L even more, along with the 4.2 engine (the same engine in my wife's 2006 XK8)....

I have decided not to donate my S-Type to charity for the 2017 tax deduction. It simply remains too good of a vehicle for me to do that just yet. So I will continue to enjoy driving it while it remains available to the right buyer if he or she ever materializes....

 

Well, same for me.

After 4.75 years of S-Type ownership I just traded my 4.2 for a '17 XF 3.0 AWD Protfolio with 17K miles and 2+ years left on the warranty.

Price was $35K but they, effectively, gave me $7K trade on the S-Type. So I'm feel'n OK $-wise.

I, however, expect the experience of driving the XF to be very different from the S-Type, although the 340HP V6 seems like a fair trade for the 300HP V8. Biggest difference may be that the XF is a lot heavier than the S-Type, it's about 4200 lbs...

But, I've been kind of second guessing myself for the last week. Particularly since they have been repair a tire that wasn't holding air, but hopefully that will be a straight forward fix.

But the S-Type was really nice and I've enjoyed it very much.

So, we'll see about the XF.

Anyway, cheers all, and I'll see you over on the X250 list.
==================================================
Jaguar: Grace, Pace, and Space - Sir William Lyons
Current: '15 XF (X250) AWD 3.0
Past B: '08 S-Type 4.2 "Satin Edition" (250.06 whp / 259.67 torque)
Past A: '05 X-Type 3.0/auto Jaguar Racing Green

 

Sounds like X260 if you meant '17

hmm, looks like you meant '15 and then it depends on the VIN which it is (X250 or X260), I think.

 

>Sounds like X260 if you meant '17

Sorry, you're correct, I hit 7 when I meant 5.

But no, it's an XF Version 1, not the new Version 2.

I've got lots of wood inside... ;-)
================================================
Jaguar - it's not an automobile, it's a Motorcar
Current: '15 XF (X250) AWD 3.0
Past B: '08 S-Type 4.2 "Satin Edition" (250.06 whp / 259.67 torque)
Past A: '05 X-Type 3.0/auto Jaguar Racing Green

 

I am seriously considering replacing my 2005 S-Type with a stunningly gorgeous, supremely comfortable, absolutely flawless 2014 Mercedes-Benz CLS550 with just 20,000 miles on the clock and 8 months of remaining factory warranty. A twin-turbo 4.6-litre V8 rated at 402 hp that provides effortless power yet still is capable of 25 mpg as a highway cruiser. Four brand-new Continental Extreme Contact DWS 06 tires. It was a Florida car just off a three-year corporate lease. I can grab it for less than half of its original sticker price right now, but I am attempting to negotiate an even better deal. If I indeed spring for it, my trusty S-Type definitely has to find another home. Stay tuned....

 

So the same power but less mpg than an STR. Much newer and I guess a lot more expensive (certainly hugely so over here).

If you have the $$$ and feel like it, why not...

 

"Why not?" I will tell you why not....

Reasons include vehicle acquisition cost, annual insurance costs, annual property tax costs, long-term maintenance costs, and having to start all over again on DIY service education. The Mercedes-Benz forums I have found do not lean towards owners who want to service their vehicles themselves. Also, our S-Types are not worth much when we go to sell them due to their age, general obsolescence, and lack of demand for them....

There are pros and cons with any vehicle swap. My task at hand is to determine if the pros outweigh the cons....

 

Ohh.... well, yes, those are very good points.

I've been on a few car forums and they're almost all very UN-DIY. Much more about adding bling or how to spread lease (or the like) costs.

I really really wish Jaguar still made any car I'd want to own at roughly a cost I could justify, but they don't. Is that the same for you?

A Merc would never be affordable (on a DIY or whatever the right term is basis) here. (OK, maybe a very old one - don't know.)

I think a Merc (MB) would be in the "I just have to figure all maintenance, servicing & repairs out myself without any affordable access to workshop manual etc" category. Yuck.

I suspect this applies to a heck of a lot of cars post-S-Type

 

I've had my 05, 4.2 S-Type now for about 11 months, after my XJ8L was totaled. My intention was to just keep it for an interim, until I could find another big Jag, because this S-Type had 101000+ miles on it, but I've enjoyed it so much, the bigger Jag has been placed on the back burner, for as long as the S-Type keeps purring.

This is the first car I have ever owned---even the brand new ones---that every thing on the car works as it should, to even a small snow flak that appears on the instrument panel when the temp drops real low. (when I first noticed it, I had to get the book out to see what it meant) It indicates very low outside temp. I haven't had much problem in the past knowing when the outside temp was very low. Ha!

It now has a little over 104000 on it and with the exception of taking a little time to get use to the choppier ride (its a sport model) its very quick and responsive and I basically just love the car. If I ever get in the mood for another car, one with 100,000 will not turn me away.

Cheers

 

JagV8,

To answer your question, no, the current Tata-owned Jaguars do not appeal to us. None of them. We much prefer the heritage lines with the beautiful woodgrain interiors that were essentially being phased out when Tata took ownership....

The Mercedes-Benz CLS class has appealed to me for about a decade now. Sort of the performance of the S class with some of the beauty of the SL class. There is not much else on the market that competes with it. A niche vehicle in multiple ways. Is it practical? Not at all. But it is gorgeous, fast, luxurious, and as smooth a highway cruiser as I have driven. The air suspension concerns me, as does the direct injection. If a generous benefactor was willing to give me this car, I would take it in a heartbeat and commit to learning to maintain it. But buying it with my own funds is an entirely different set of circumstances. My wife wants to add it to our stable but it would be my daily driver, not hers, so the decision on what to do ultimately rests with me. Time, more research, and more negotiations will tell....

 

The same for me. There isn't a current model Jaguar I'd consider buying.

In seeking their "new" market with appeal to the "younger buyer", Jaguar have ditched everything that made Jaguar a unique and immediately identifiable product. Time will tell if they have also made it a less aspirational one.

Graham

 

I'll throw in with Jon, John, and Graham on having zero desire or use for the Jag offerings from Tata.

 

>Jaguar have ditched everything that made Jaguar a unique and immediately identifiable product.

Yes, that's exactly why I jumped at the '15 X250 XF. It still has wood and leather inside.
==================================================
Jaguar: Grace, Pace, and Space - Sir William Lyons
Current: '15 XF (X250) AWD 3.0
Past B: '08 S-Type 4.2 "Satin Edition" (250.06 whp / 259.67 torque)
Past A: '05 X-Type 3.0/auto Jaguar Racing Green

 

Now 18 years of S Type ownership for me and I still feel the love for it. It has been very reliable and I have taken it for many cross country trips. The only unusual issue I have had has been window regulator failures ( 5 ). It still runs great and keeps averaging over 26 mpg. My wife thinks I should get a newer car but I still enjoy it too much to exchange it for the pittance it would command in the used car market.
This forum has been great, thanks again to its many friendly and helpful members.

 

VMV,

Great to hear you are still pleased after so many years of ownership. How many miles are on your S-Type?

Yeah, those window regulators were a pain on the early models. I assume they share those parts with the Lincoln LS of the same vintage....

 

Well I had a 2003 Lincoln LS too (Great car and it lead me to the S Type!).

Yes the window regulators were a problem. After I had changed 3 I could do it in less than 30 minutes from start to finish. Remember the motor almost never goes out so you can save a bit by reusing it.
.
.
.

 

I got mine at the end of 2007 so heading for 11 years now.
Fortunately it trashed the torque convertor and AC evaporator while it was still under warranty so the dealer took care of that and did the IMT rings at the same time.
I've just changed the valve cover gaskets and passenger side coils due to a misfire caused by oil in the plug wells, the coils may well have been fine but the manifold was off and I'm in SC so it seemed a good idea. :-)
Starting to think about a replacement now, but I'll miss it when it goes not for a little while yet though unless it throws the dummy out the pram for some reason.
There may be another regulator in my future also, the memsahib rolled the passenger window down with one of those stick on sunshades on it and it's not happy now.

 

Hi Jon, 137K miles . Yes, the window regulators are the same as the Lincoln LS's so replacement parts were not expensive. I became quite proficient in repairing window failures.