Hi all! I'm new here in the Jaguar forum and I thought it wouldn't hurt to ask some advice. I'm looking right now at a '98 XJR. The photos from the dealership make it look great, and they claim it has a clean history which either means 1) nothing was ever done to the car which is going to leave me to do all of it or 2) they're lying.

I have yet to see it in person, but in the pictures it looks really great! It has 157k miles, and they're asking $4,450 for it. But of course, my life experience has been nothing but with GM J-bodies, and I just have a new found love for this generation of the XJR, so I really have no clue what to look for. Would an XJR with this many miles be near the end of its life? Is it one of those things where its hard to tell?

Here's the link to the car. Used 1998 Jaguar XJR for sale in Hamilton, OH | Used Cars Cincinnati | Used Cars Hamilton OH | Used Car Dealership | International Auto Outlet If I go through with this I will definitely have it inspected, but first I figured some advice on used XJR buying could be useful.

Thank you all muches!!!!

-Rion J.

 

I'm no expert, but I would run a CarFax of my own to see if reported servicing has been done on a regular basis. It's a cheap way to help decide.

My experience with buying a 2000 XJR was relatively painless. I did my research. Drove the car. Crawled under the car. Checked that everything worked. Sniffed the oil and asked the dealer's mechanic what he honestly thought of the vehicle. So far (knock on wood) my Jag has been more reliable than my 11 year newer VW.

Good luck!

 

[QUOTE=rmjames1837;1037210]Hi all! I'm new here in the Jaguar forum and I thought it wouldn't hurt to ask some advice. I'm looking right now at a '98 XJR. The photos from the dealership make it look great, and they claim it has a clean history which either means 1) nothing was ever done to the car which is going to leave me to do all of it or 2) they're lying.

I have yet to see it in person, but in the pictures it looks really great! It has 157k miles, and they're asking $4,450 for it. But of course, my life experience has been nothing but with GM J-bodies, and I just have a new found love for this generation of the XJR, so I really have no clue what to look for. Would an XJR with this many miles be near the end of its life? Is it one of those things where its hard to tell?

Here's the link to the car. Used 1998 Jaguar XJR for sale in Hamilton, OH | Used Cars Cincinnati | Used Cars Hamilton OH | Used Car Dealership | International Auto Outlet If I go through with this I will definitely have it inspected, but first I figured some advice on used XJR buying could be useful.

Thank you all muches!!!!


The car looks very clean and very nice. I, too, have a 98 XJR, but not as nice as this one. As everyone will tell you - check it out thoroughly !

 

Some things:

-It's a 98, so Nikasil engine. But, it's gone this far, and usually if they're going to have a problem, it's already happened.
-Find out about the secondary timing chain tensioners. If they haven't been replaced, it's a time bomb and they need to be done IMMEDIATELY.
-Really put the transmission through its paces and check for odd behavior.
-If the bushings haven't been replaced, especially in the front, it's going to need a LOT of bushings.

But in general, even though it appears very clean, that's a lot of miles and it's still $4500. $7000 will buy you an 01-03 (all the bugs worked out) with half that mileage. I'd wait for a better buy when these top out at $10k for a perfect specimen.

 

Looks very nice in the pictures, but spotted what looks like a sagging headlining, the front arm rest cup holder is missing / broken, and that rear view mirror looks wrong ??

 

I own one of these beast. Highly recommend you get a Carfax and find out the service record. That is of utmost importance. Also noticed tires were changed and the wrong type of wheel balances were used on rim. ....take vin to any Jag dealer and see what they have on it. Get a service history first

Eon

 

Thank you thank you thank you for all of your insight! Like I said, I'm an avid J-body enthusiast, so the only thing we have to look for is rust... everything else takes some sweat and a wrench. I figured an XJR to be much more complicated.

I've found another XJR. This one newer and with fewer miles. (Cars for Sale: 2002 Jaguar XJR in Atlanta, GA 30327: Sedan Details - 374426225 - AutoTrader.com) It has a clean inspection included, and AutoCheck says "Engine Serviced" and "Suspension Serviced" about 7 years ago, and it had one failed emissions test approx. 2 years ago. Being an Ohioan, I don't recall much of the emissions check days, so being the failure was 2 years ago, it doesn't really concern me.

I'll pull a (maybe more detailed) Carfax on this new one and come back to y'all, but I am willing to spend the extra $1,500 seeing how this one is much cleaner, has a history report for free, and an inspection, and comes from a not as shady place as my initial suggestion.

And in regards to service history, do I just take the VIN to a Jaguar dealer and they'll tell me everything? (Or just what they have their hands on?)

-RJ

 

I agree with getting your own carfax. A good 40.00 investment. What mine puller up was 2 pages of service records all completed at the local Jaguar dealer. Nothing major.

 

Recommend you go with second choice. Based on surrounding pictures and carfax info it seems owner has knowledge of owning and maintaining Jags. Go for it. Also they we some great improvement made for that year...

Eon

 

Hi
I like the last car you show us. Go for it. Try to negotiate a little A thousand less will be nice.
Best regards
Gabriel

 

Maybe I'm missing something. That red one looks like it's hammered, rode hard and put away wet. The leather looks wrecked, the trunk lid doesn't look like it fits right and mission lugs and center caps along with that hanging exhaust makes it look like NOTHING has been addressed for a long time. . All that bs emblems on the seats and gear shifter look terrible too.

IMO the black one looks considerable better and in much nicer condition.

Chris