I am looking to buy a 2000 XJ8. It has 109,000 miles on it. The battery is dead on it so we jumped it off to ride drove about 30 miles and when we got close to the owners house the battery died. We jumped it off and drove 4 miles homes without any issue but the battery during when we pulled in the yard.
Outside of stalling when the battery died, it had two codes in the dash. One was low brake fluid and the other was asc not available. I read a few forums that suggested checking all the abs sensors and wires and I saw one person that successfully fixed the problem.

......this jaguar is the 2000 xj8 vande plaus. The owner was selling it for $4,500. But after it stalled, i offered him A tow BC the system was locked. However, we didn't need it because his friend pulled up and it jumped off perfectly first try. He didnt know too much about the car because i was telling him things about it. But after, i was nice to him and offered him a free tow he offered me the car for $2,600 bc his wife wanted something newer and smaller....he told me that was what he paid for it and he never had that to happen. But the car was sitting for 3 or 4 months before the test drive.

So here is the question should I buy this jaguar with a low brake fluid and ask not available alerts? It also has an orange and red light on the dash. I know that you guys aren't here but it drives great until the battery dies. The guy said he isn't getting a battery. This is first time it happened and he isn't going to try to fix. He is just going to sell it as it. Im thinking about grabbing a battery and going back by there to test drive it again. If the battery or alternator fixes the stall, would you suggest buying a 1998 vande plaus jaguar for $2,600 with a low brake fluid and ask not available alert?

 

There's an old saying 'There's nothing more expensive than a cheap Jaguar'. Without a full description of the car including inspection for rust, collision damage, engine and transmission condition etc. it's anybody's guess as to whether the car is worth buying.

 

This.

You need to put a good battery in it & drive for an extended time. During that time I'd go to an Auto Zone,Advance Auto or the likes & have the codes pulled. Also run the VIN w/ Car Fax if you haven't done so already.

 

Thanks. I will keep that in mind. However, how do you feel about get parts rebuilt instead of replaced???

 

Good Deal. What do you think the chances are of running into a jaguar owner that " doesn't know what he has?"

 

Considering even in your first post you said he didn't know much about the car and you were having to tell HIM things about it, I'd say there's a bigger chance than normal.

I'd also be curious if the alternator isn't working properly. Definitely more testing needed though, since it's hard to say if the battery is just that bad that it won't even take a charge, or if there's something else that's not allowing it to charge properly to stay running. Were you able to check out the rest of the car beyond the obvious issues that came up? It's easy to overlook other things when there are more glaring things happening. I could easily see that with the battery and warning lights coming on that it might distract you from giving the car a complete look-over.

Might be worth seeing about getting it to a mechanic for a look just as a precaution. His original price sounds too high to me, for the mileage and issues - even without the battery things happening. And then he cut it almost in half, so that raises a flag to me too. But I'm also a pessimist sometimes.

 

"But the car was sitting for 3 or 4 months before the test drive. "

No one lets a car sit for that long unless there is something serious or expensive to fix wrong with it.

Also, no one who really cares sells a car with a dead battery.

All bad signs here, I would run away to a car that doesn't have so many potentially expensive problems.

If you pay $3000 for a $4000 car and put $3000 into it, now you have $6000 in a $4000 car. Does that make sense?
Vector

 

Which parts why and when?

 

To answer the original question: no.

 

I'm thinking the same thing. He was asking $4500 and then immediately came down $1900 when during the test drive it stalled. That mostly likely means that he already has a pretty good idea what its going to cost to fix it and its around $1900. If by fixing it, he could sell it for a few hundred dollars more net return, then wouldn't he do it? I would. But then again, recent news says that most Americans would have trouble coming up with $400 for an emergency. Maybe that's his issue, but you just don't know. Are you a DIY'er? Maybe he isn't and that's the dealer or Jag indy estimate. Are you a risk taker? If you're up to the task, it could be a great deal or....

Even if you have it inspected and confirm whats wrong, even if you put a battery in it and drive an hour without issue, there's an increased risk because of its "recent" history. Lemons are typically the cars that have random, recurring errors that defy diagnosis. If you want a trouble-free Jaguar, buy one with maintenance records, get it inspected and be sure that part of that inspection confirms that the codes have not recently been reset. You want one that appears to have been at least a couple of months since having the battery disconnected or otherwise resetting of codes. Lemons are most typically passed on to unsuspecting buyers during those intermittent periods when they seem to run just fine.

 

Sounds like an alternator issue to me.