Hi guys, a while back there was someone selling off bare new bodyshells for x300 & 308. We considered buying one at the time but never did in the end. After having a look under the 308 today, it is completely rotten. It is too much work to be nice again. So it looks like it will be broken & power my Capri.
Not one to take killing a car lightly, my last thought is whether it can be re shelled and saved. Are new shells still available? Does anyone have info. Forgot to add this is a question for people in UK.
Thanks. Will

 

You are kidding, right?
X308s are near worthless here in the states and I guess even less expensive over there.
Take it from someone who has dismantled and re-assembled (far simpler)cars to the last nut and bolt. It is a STAGGERING amount of labor. If someone gave me a new body shell I wouldn't bother.

 

thanks for the advice, however i love a challenge.
if a new shell was still available i would certainly rebuild, keep me busy in the evenings
as said there was someone in the UK who had 5 or 6 brand new shells which were being advertised for £150 ish, which i think was little more than scrap value.
i have stripped and rebuilt much older cars, although i think they would be very easy compared.

 

He's got a point. For the cost of a shell, you could just go buy a super nice condition, very low mile XJR. Also as he said, you don't really realize just how complicated a car is until you do a complete teardown and rebuild of one. Like ross1, I've completely torn down and rebuilt much simpler cars than the X308, and it is weeks worth of work. I would never want to do it on something as complex as an X308, at least not when I can simply pick up a better one so cheaply to avoid all that work.

 

Having reshelled a few cars over the years, it would not be the complexity of a 308 that would worry me, its the " I cant put this rusty/dirty part on my nice freshly painted shell " factor that would concern me. Replace one rubber bush, and all the other previously good looking bushes now look ancient and not worthy. That's where it gets time consuming and expensive. Not to mention tracking down all the little plastic trim fixings that broke on disassembly, replacing all the nuts, bolts and other fasteners that are not 100%.

 

One member on here has done just that, look up Sean B. His car is beautiful, I've assisted with his build & driven the finished product.
As for prices, any x308 bought now is an investment as the good ones are creeping up slowly in price as they become rarer.

 

I admire your courage.
Andrew makes an excellent point. This is a project destined to become a very expensive one.
God bless you. I hope this doesn't end up being huge pile of parts.


For whatever the US equivalent of 150 pounds is I'd love to have one of those shells to paint up and hang on the wall

 

Will,

I recall a limited number of bodyshells "in white" being offered some time ago although I don't remember who was advertising them.

They are listed by Jaguar Classic Parts:

Bodyshell - Parts For XJ Series from (V)812317 to (V)F59525 (X308) | Jaguar Classic Parts UK

No prices given but I don't expect they have a queue of eager buyers so you could get a nice surprise.

Graham

 

Black Country Jaguar had them

 

The last shell available on ebay was a LWB with sunroof if I remember well. Sean B bought one when he rebuilds his XJR100 but I don't know the source. It worth asking both Black Country Jag and Sean about that.

 

Black Country Jag, that rings a bell. in fact i do see that i saved the advertisement on ebay.
Will try and contact.

For everyone else, you do make a very good point. It is very pointless just to completely re-shell the car without replacing bushes and tired suspension.
I know how hard it is to strip and rebuld a car from scratch although i must admit i have only done on old classic jaguars and fords etc.
I know exactly what you mean about broken clips and bolts/screws going missing or being a pain to remove, however i think it could be worth the effort to me. I would never got to the same effort for selling it on or for someone else. It would not be viable.
If no shells are available at a sensible price then, she will definetely be broken and live on to supply spares for countless other Jags & a Ford

 

You would have to take lots of photos, because it would make a fascinating thread.

 

While you do that, you can correct all the deficits too! Timing chains, wiring issues, rattles, chassis improvements, stiffening etc. I personally think it would be fun and rewarding if I had the time and space.

Most likely I would make it appear factory but have a blown Ford(coyote or cobra) with a stick.

Chris