My last Jaguar was a Series 3 VDP and I loved it. I am now looking for a stablemate for my X100 convertible. Should I be looking for X308 or X350?

 

Brian: I've owned both the x308 and x350 VDPs. I currently drive a 308 because a tree crushed the 350 (red '06 VDP) five years ago. Totally different beasts. Personally, I have been trying of late to get back into the 358 line because the seating position is higher. I'm now almost 76 and getting down into and up out of the 308 along with being so low among higher cars/SUVs and the seating position is getting annoying. If I raise the seat cushion my forward view starts to narrow! I think you'll find that the 350/358 line may go through front-end components a tad faster and -- of course -- has the air suspension issue that will have to dealt with sooner rather than later. But the coil-over solution is easy and relatively inexpensive.

Visually, obviously they're different beasts. I know some folks think the 350/358 was a radical departure from the traditional Jaguar lines and hence is a stepchild to be looked down at. I'm not a purist. It's a Jag-looking Jag and not one of those awful 351s. It's a darn sight more comfortable (for me) and a smoother ride. I will say the 4.2/6-speed combination of the 350 line is head-and-shoulders above the 4.0/5-speed gear of the 308, at least to me. Fuel economy is amazingly good. I once got 32+ on a 600-mile run mostly without the AC running, just the fan. The trunk is far larger because of moving the fuel tank to a saddle tank under the back seats.

I just lost out on a consistently and perfectly maintained '09 358 VDP (with well-functioning air suspension) only because when the owner got it back from some minor body work that was done perfectly and got some super tires rebalanced it was so quiet that at highway speeds all he could hear was some engine noise. He fell back in love with the car. It didn't hurt that a restaurant with valet parking asked if he could leave the car in front of the place to fancy-up their entry way. I was really hoping to get that car, but I think I arranged a right-of-first-refusal if the owner falls out of love with it.

I don't do any maintenance myself any more because of age/inflexibility and no garage, so I leave more mechanical comments to those with proper experience.

Eliot

 

I suspect (almost) everyone on the forum has a particular preference to the X308.
That said, there are many who recognize the advantages of owning a later model.
For myself, and many others, there is absolutely no substitute for the streamlined
beauty and grace of the X308. They are in a class by themselves offering a classic
Jaguar look and "feel" while maintaining a truly remarkable driving experience.

 

I prefer the X308 because used parts are easy to deal with as opposed to the VID block cars module configuring.
They are the last Jaguars with a fairly simple network.

Most modules can be installed and the car is back on the road. (except the ECM)
A VID block car module replacement is a 'different kettle-of-fish'.

 

You can get a 20k mile turd X308 and a 100k mile gem X350/358. It all boils down to how the car lived prior to you looking at it. I will always highly suggest getting a PREpurchase inspection PRIOR TO handing over the payment. No surprises (hopefully).

 

Agree. X350 higher belt line and back looks like a Crown Victoria.

 

Thanks for all of this Elliot. That was very informative.
I am also quite ancient, at 72 yrs, but still can handle getting in and out of my X100.
I am curious about the 4.0 XJ's as they seem to have continued the 4.0 past the date of X100 change to the 4.2. Do the 2002 and later 4.0 engines continue to have the cam drive issues with chains and tensioners failing?

 

Latest generation tensioners fixing issue I believe build date in August 2002. There are posts on exact date.

 

If I’m not mistaken, I believe it’s August of 2001 4.0’s onwards that has the Morse style main chains. The secondary chains are still rollers just like in the 4.2’s up until the end. So yes, it is a short run for the 4.0 Morse and stout guides/tensioners.

 

My bad. August of 2001 correct.

 

and if I recall, that's the date of the engine manufacture, something like Aug. 13th, 2001 at midnight, not the final vehicle assembly date because of the lag between building the engine and getting it into the assembly line. If it becomes an issue, there are posts about where to look on the engine block to find the manufacture date of the engine itself. the code is a time/date stamp.

 

No worries! I’ve been wrong on here before. It’s kinda like 2 sets of eyes is better than one. But sometimes 3+ pairs of eyes can get convoluted. 😂

 

Well...the main thing is we have enough eyes...to get it right and not enough
to spoil the soup.