Hello all. My name is Kevin, and I am new to the forums. I currently don't own a Jaguar although I am a big fan of these cars and figured this would be a good place to go for some advice.

I am very desperate for a new vehicle and the past few months I've had my eye on this 99 XJ8 parked at a used car dealership on my commute to work. It was sort of hidden away and it didn't have a price tag on it so I figured something was wrong with it. I finally asked the dealer about it today and this is what I was told.

Apparently the dealer had been driving the car around for awhile until someone bought it. They had a long drive and on the way the car started to overheat. They called the dealer, who told them to pull over and check the fluids, but the new owners continued to drive it until it stopped running. He suspects the engine is shot, but he said it's possible it could be a head gasket. Now as a used car dealer he may not be being 100% truthful with me, but if the car already has a bad motor in it there's not much else he has to lie about. He says there's 105k on the rest of the vehicle and he is willing to sell it as is for $800.

Does this sound worth it? Would a compatible engine be easy to find? What is the price range? Is it difficult/expensive for a mechanic to swap a jaguar engine? Or should I leave it and wait for another jaguar to turn up that actually runs? I really appreciate any feedback.

 

Welcome to the forum vanlaz0r,

I've moved your question from Jaguar Forums Advice / Feedback & Suggestion Center to X308 forum. Members here with the model you are considering will be able to help.

When you get a minute, please follow this link New Member Area - Intro a MUST - Jaguar Forums - Jaguar Enthusiasts Forum to the New Member Area - Intro a MUST forum and post some info about yourself and your vehicle for all members to see.

In return you'll get a proper welcome and some useful advice about posting to the forum.

Graham

 

The value depend son the cosmetic condition of the rest of the car. Remember, any used car dealer worth his salt will know several "mechanics" who give them wholesale rates- so he is fully aware of the cost to fix that car. Engines are just less than $2k on fleabay, and a "mechanic" (with the quotes ) will put it in for about $1k. So, is the car worth $3,800 with the risk that something else might be wrong? Probably not, unless it is pristine.

Now, if you are going to do the work yourself, have tools, and a place to work on it, the equation changes.

 

Do it.
The engine is not worth saving if it was driven till it dropped (most likely) but if you can drop a motor in it yourself, you have an XJ8r for not too much $.

Find the motor first, that avoids the frustration of getting impatient and buying any old motor, I would also give him a lower offer and see if he bites while you look for the engine.

 

I wish there were "mechanics" here that would swap engines for only $1K. Here in the SF Bay area I don't think it could be found for less than $3K+ for the labor alone.

 

"Value" is a moving target. I can tell you that your car, in "very good" condition is worth about $3100 according to KBB. (I know because I've got one too!) But my car, as a - mostly - reliable, classy means of daily transportation is worth more to me than that. If that's what you're looking for, I'd save my money for finding just the right specimen. If you're looking for a project to work on yourself, as Ross said, then $800 is a small price to pay; but you're going to get no return on investment. And you stand to get a whole lot of heartbreak. That will almost certainly be true if you have to pay someone else to do all the work.

I'd pass.

Cheers,
Scott

 

Well Vanlaz0r I can tell you this... that car @4100LBS is worth $512.50 over my scales at current market price which you are in my area so that price should hold true for you also and the dealer probably knows this too. So I would offer him $600 at the most... That's just me tho.

On another tip I have a 1998 XJ8 that I currently drive which came over my scales with a blown head gasket that drove off my tow truck. I bought the car from some snowbirds for about $480 almost a year ago. I didn't replace the motor I ended up rebuilding the heads and in the end it cost me $2000 not including what I bought the car for. With a KBB value of $3100 and the time and money I have invested in to this car I wouldn't let it go for anything under $4K personally.

After saying all this... it would be a nice project as others have suggested and if your in to that kind of thing.

 

kevin the shop labor book gives 9.3-9.5 hrs to swap motors. wish you were in my area. i could swap yours out with a 2000 motor (101000 miles) up dated chains and tensioners for 3k. or you could fly to memphis and buy the car for 2k and drive home and swap it yourself. you can ck on labor rates in your area and see what they charge. most small shops like mine get 70-100 an hr. there're a pain but i love mine.

 

Then this is not the car for you.

 

$2,600 for a used motor. and $1,500 to install. Unless the rest of the car is pristine pass on it. XK8 motors work too.

 

Honestly If you're going to spend $2000+ on a engine and labor, I would just get a 95-97 XJR6. The engine is more solid and reliable compared to the 98-03 in my personal opinion. Majority of the X308 models just suffer with cooling problems or had cooling problems in the past.

 

The dealer's story raises a lot of questions. I would suspect that a car with a "blown" engine has had all its other systems neglected too, so you could easily swap in an engine only to discover that the gearbox, differential, suspension, electricals, etc. all needed potentially-expensive attention.

I agree with all the advice you've received here to look for a clean running Jaguar, even an earlier one like a '95-97 XJ6. Find the best deal you can on the cleanest, lowest-mileage car you can afford that comes with a good service history. You'll still get plenty of personal satisfaction from all the maintenance and occasional repairs you'll have to do. :-)

Cheers,

Don

 

I totally agree, it is highly, highly unlikely that it is only the engine that has faults. You would be buying a problem car.

Best to wait for a better car.

 

And for the archives, I respectfully disagree with Eric. His experience may be different, but not all X-308s have "cooling problems". Some might leak a little antifreeze, but they are all simple fixes. Neglect a coolant leak long enough and you will have a problem.