I started driving MG's many years ago (TF-MGA-MGB) and moved to Jags when the MG's did their job of attracting the girls who then attracted (or contracted) KIDS. Two seats is not enough.
It was normal to acknowledge other MG oncoming drivers with a raised finger or two usually from the hand holding the steering wheel (not the bird)!
This courtesy continued into the Jaguar era (MK1 & 11 420G and MK10)
Was/is this an Australian thing or did other countries do it too? I notice that older Jag drivers still do this "I'm in the club" thing but not the younger drivers.
Other car makes of which I have never owned may do this too??

 

Never seen it in the Jag, but in my Land Rovers (1973 and 1984) it's the norm between old Series and Defenders, and off-road prepped Discos, but not the newer Defenders. It's more an acknowledgement of "we must both be mad" than anything else perhaps.

 

Sure! Over here many jag-drivers acknowledge each other. But those who drive the newer ones (XF, and the later XK and XJ) almost never does. Perhaps they'll learn eventually.

I have an Alfa too and I'd say the greeting-percentage is as high as 65 % compared to approximately 45 % in the Jag.

But then, both Jaguars and Alfas are pretty rare cars where I live.

BR
C

 

Not so much in my XJ8. I "think" is an unacknowledged nod of appreciation in the other owner's head that I am driving an Jag such as him or herself. Either that or he is thinking "I wonder if he too has problems with . . . . "

The BEST car for acknowledging others were BMW 2002s. For most of the 80's I drove a 76 2002 and other owners would flash lights, roll down the window and scream, etc. Even their passengers would get excited.

On the other-hand it was rare that a driver of a 320i (or any BMW later than 1977) would acknowledge.

I will say that I have a 1989 BMW 635 CSi and we acknowledge with great enthusiasm. Problem is that I hardly ever see one. We have a Southeastern "Sharkfest" (nickname for 6ers) once a year and we get 50-60 cars. Now THAT is one enthusiastic group.

 

Not here in CA. I haven't seen it yet.
When I was driving my tricked out Wrangler, all Wrangler drivers would wave.

 

That is a definite yes for me. But my cars are an unusual color too, blue zircon.

 

Unusual color? Hey, mine is Zircon, never thought of it as unusual! LOL

I spend most of my time in South Florida where people tend to be snooty and aloof, but have experienced several nods and slight waves of acknowledgement from other Jag owners, especially if I initiate the exchange.

I also spend time in the cold, frozen tundra of Wisconsin -- not too many Jaguars here, but once in a while I'll see one and the exchange of nods and waves is few and far between. I think the reason might be because of the lack of Jaguars in this area, other Jaguar owners just aren't in the "club" frame of mind.

I have a Miata (ok, stop laughing) that I drive in Wisconsin when the weather is nice (yes, that does limit me to a day or two in the "summer") and the acknowledgement from other Miata owners is somewhat commonplace, but only among us who drive older Miatas.

 

Nope, never seen it. X308s and Jaguars in general don't seem all that rare here (possibly because we have a Jaguar dealer here in town). I see another Jaguar or two or three every day. Now I also have a 69 Corvette and other Corvette owners do sometimes wave back. The older the Corvette, the more likely the driver is to wave back. Most people driving newer Corvettes though just seem to be embarrassed, like "Am I supposed to know that guy from somewhere?"

To 99.9% of the population, a car is just an appliance or tool to get them from point A to point B. Maybe they picked a Jaguar because it was pretty, comfortable and they could afford it, but the thought of socializing with other people on the basis of owning the same car just never crossed their mind. I think we are actually the weird minority. In my younger years, I drove a 1985 Toyota Supra daily and I used to double back and chase down other Supra owners to see if they were "in the club" but they rarely were interested. Thank goodness for the internet to bring us together. Otherwise think how awkward you would be approaching 999 strangers at a gas pump before you found one who actually wanted to talk to you about their car.

 

I always initiate, but drivers of Jaguar convertibles with the
roofs down always wave back. XFs never respond. X308/X300
owners never respond, except if you drive next to them for
a long time.

 

In every other special interest marque ... yes.

Supra Mk3, definitely.

Jaguars ... no.

 

I've heard it said that if you drive a car that is worth driving, then owners of the same model car will always acknowledge you. I have a 1979 Spitfire and it holds true for that.

In my XJR I ALWAYS flash other XJRs, I USUALLY flash other XJs, and I NEVER acknowledge any of the lesser Jaguars. When I flash or wave I do usually get a response, and then a warm fuzzy feeling of belonging....nice.

Happy Motoring.

 

A couple months ago in West Palm Beach, I was waiting to turn right onto a busy road (Okeechobee) when a nice Sea Foam Green (is that what the color is called?) X308 driven by a nice looking blonde woman turned left in front of me (she had the arrow) and waved as she went passed. I instinctively waved back. A few minutes later I saw the same car on the interstate, the woman appeared to make a near reckless move to wind up next to me, she waved again - and smiled! I waved back. This time my 50-something ego kicked in and I decided that she wanted me! I followed her (not in a stalking fashion) until she exited the freeway at which time she again smiled and waved!

I have never seen her again -- wish everyone in the "club" were that friendly! LOL

 

Last time that happened to me, I ended up spending the night with a pretty young blonde!

We raced down that freeway from Newport to Cherry Valley, and couldn't wait to get to the bed. She drove like a pro,....my VDP was chasing that XJ for many miles. Sometimes I passed her, and she would skillfully maneuver around the traffic, and use any openings to get in front of me. She waved every time, and I saw her laughing too. Pure fun.

Later that evening.......well, you can imagine the rest!

The next morning, we realized that after a year and a half of being married, we're still on the honeymoon!

 

It depends... LA is a tough gig. Usually if its a younger driver, he (more than she) will acknowledge and blink back. I ride bikes and the cycle crowd is very good at acknowledging each other on the road. There's a special hand signal (tapping top of the helmet) to warn of the law up ahead. Stick our feet out to let others know if there're rocks or debris on the road, etc. The only group that tends to snob everyone else are the Harley riders...

 

"and I NEVER acknowledge any of the lesser Jaguars" ? Good onya,what is a lesser Jag Munro? Got me laughing thinking of another post on here recently.

 

I find that I get little respect from other Jag drivers. I look about 10 years younger then I am, so that does not help out either. I do get respect from other makes. I find that with the Jag people let me in when I signal, smile as I drive by, and complement it when I park. I used to primarily drive a BMW and when I signaled, people used to speed up and try to stop me merging. You get respect in a Jag as the car has presence, just not from other Jag owners.