Just on the cusp pf pulling the trigger on my first Jag. She's a '13 XJ SWB Portfolio with 29K miles. She's out of warranty, so I'm looking for anything to watch/listen for on my next test drive. I was too overwhelmed by the power on the first go 'round.

It's not a Jaguar USA Dealer, but a private company that does a lot of restorations (E-Types, etc). Salesman said he'd replace tires, so looking for recommendations on those and anything else that may be a cause for concern.

Thank you!

 

Bucknaked2k, as for the car, when it comes to tires, I have had the Pirelli PZero Nero's and Continental DWS tires on my car. I have to say that I like the DWS tires more overall (better traction), but the Nero's got me better mileage. Keep in mind that I have the 5.0L NA motor.

The big thing is to take the car for a test drive and find a road that is a little bumpy and then drive over the bumps slowly to let the car get twisted up some. Then you are going to be listening for some popping sounds coming from above your head. If the car is quiet, then you are good. Otherwise, you have a loosening sun roof and will occasionally pop during normal driving.

The other thing is whether you are getting the 5.0L supercharged engine or the 3.0L supercharged engine. The 3.0L seems to be pretty bullet proof. The 5.0L needs to have the water pump inspected to make sure that it is not leaking.

Otherwise, you are going to be pretty good. Most of the problems that you are going to run into are going to be pretty obvious ones.

 

How much is it? In my research, 12-13's through 15s are around the same price but with later you'd get the warranty. Plenty of low mileage examples out there. My 2014 had under 12k miles for $43k last year. Check carfax as well lots of these are wrecked and rebuilt. Get the 5.0 if you can swing it. Worth the little bit of extra!

 

It's a single-owner car with a clean CARFAX. It's a 3.0 SC AWD, but it's also a Portfolio Edition which are (supposedly) rare on the SWB variant. First pencil was in the neighborhood of $40K.

 

I've read a good deal about this issue here, and elsewhere. Is there a particular model year where this was fixed? I know the 2010-2012 models were plagued with this. Just wondering if it had been corrected in the design at some point. Thanks.

 

I think that is WAY too much for an out of warranty base XJ. I would not buy it at all since it is out of warranty. But if you are confident it is a decent car, probably no more than $30k-$35k. Who cares about it being a "Portfolio" - you can get an XJL Portfolio newer for around that same price still under warranty. This is not a car you want out of warranty!

 

Thanks JagGate....sent a PM.

 

For price comps look at local Jaguar dealer's websites. $40k gets a lot of used Jag. Jump to $45k and pretty much every variant is available in some form.

I've had my 2011 since 2013 as a Select Edition CPO and its been out of warranty for a while now. I have had some bad luck issues (hit a pothole that cracked wheel and did some other damage) but the car has been very reliable.

 

I've got to agree and heavily, heavily warn you on the whole "XJ out of warranty" deal.


Since March, this is what my car has been in for:
In 60 days, I've had $9,800.94 worth of repairs done. The car is in the shop and I'm waiting to get it back and it should ride butter smooth. The total cost to me was $150 as I have a $50 deductible with a 3rd party warranty called Easy Care using their Total Care package that was given to me when I bought the car. I think the warranty was slightly under $4000 for 3 years/36k miles but the dealership I bought the car from sold it to me as a CPO when it wasn't and they also sold it with a bad water pump which failed the day after I bought it. I demanded a warranty for compensation, they agreed, and I got some cash. A year and a half down the line that "free" warranty based on their screw up has paid out nearly $11,000.

Long story short. Do not buy this car without a warranty.

 

SK - Your post is the stuff of horror movies. You've talked me off the ledge!

I am very happy for you that you were able to get the $4,000 warranty for free. Imagine paying an additional 25% of the vehicle's purchase price on repairs during the first year-and-a-half.

These cars a works of art to be sure. But sometimes I wonder if they are better suited as museum pieces rather than being out on the road.

 

Don't be too frightened off. These are great cars and I have enjoyed my Jaguar ownership experience immensely. So much so, I have two of them.

Yes SovietKitsch experience has been horrific....

Find a good, clean, well maintained example (and many examples exist) and either a CPO car (off a Jaguar lot) or something with a 3rd party warranty - and live a little.

No it's not a Hyundai.... but that's the point!

 

I'd agree. Despite this last hefty, hefty repair bill I've worked out that the car has cost me around $15,000 over the course of the last year.

(I'd also like to throw in I live in NYC and nearly DD the car. The roads and constant abuse the car takes here is going to be a lot worse than CT.)

The breakdown of that:
The dealership I bought it from paid to repair things that were broken right off the bat of me buying the car that I discovered driving it from Florida to New York City. This included the water pump, dead speaker, broken glass arm for the drivers side.
Total - $~2400

The warranty has paid out ~$11,000, including the above. The first year I had it I had around $1000 worth of nuisance stuff fixed. Cigarette lighter in the front, heated steering wheel not getting hot enough. Like I said, I have a $50 deductible, so my actual cost was $289.27 for all of the above.

I've also replaced tires $~800 and brakes and rotors $~1000.

When you break it down, even with tires, brakes, and my warranty deductible, I'm at around $110 per month to keep/maintain the car. That's really good for a six year old $75,000 car in my eyes.

I am in no way talking you away from an XJ, I am in absolute love with mine. My friend literally told me one night that he's jealous of the relationship I have with my car. I'm known in certain circles as "The guy with the Jag." When the car is parked outside somewhere people come in and ask about it.

I've driven a lot of cars, a lot of high end stuff too. Nothing quite feels like the XJ. Nothing touches the interior for me. This is a very, very, special car for the people who own them.

Just make sure you have a warranty!