i am considering purchasing a classic xj6 but dont know much about them. i have a 1986 that i would like to check out but i have no idea what i should be looking for...what are some pros and cons? what's bad about them? what's good about them? i guess you could call me shallow...i just love the way she looks. i understand an older car will need maintenance, maybe restoration...what am i getting myself into here?
thanks

 

I am sure lots of folks smarter than me will help. But these cars are proned to electrical problems. Check everything electrical. Wipers, gauges, lights, windows work, etc. Also check a/c and heat. A whole lot of Jaguars out there without air conditioning. After you buy one you will be hooked for life .... or decide it is not for you. I bought my 1st 3 years ago and am now looking for my 3rd. Good luck!

 

Oh, and one more thing, you will have lots of help here from very knowledgeable people from all over the world.

 

my 20c worth, re things to look for (items that take a significant investment of $ or time to fix, or may trigger bad things)

1. Rust (especially up there in snow land) front windscreen lower corners, rear windscreen, around jacking point pegs

2. Cooling system. Does it hold pressure/hold temperature ? try to avoid overheating events

3. Check the state of rubbers and rear brake calipers in the rear IRS. Dropping this is a largish job and leads to the do everything while you are there thing (brakes, bushes, suspension, universals, maybe even exhaust and diff)

Good and bad, very subjective.

Look great, comfortable, handle and brake well for big cars

Prone to rust, need TLC to be reliable like most 30 year old cars

 

The second topic down in this forum is a “sticky” marked How-to Quick Links. Click on that and one of the resources is a buyer’s guide. That should give you a great introduction to these cars.
Good luck,
Andrew.

 

The big question is.... will you be working on it yourself or farming it out? For example, most electrical gremlins can be fixes by simply taking apart and cleaning, good connections etc, easy enough to do most in your garage in ypur free time, but taking to a shop for thoae same.gremlins can cost a bundle!!!!

Has the car beem maintained well?
Are there rust bubbles by windaheild or back glass? (They arent just surface bubbles, but the tip of the iceberg) . What about underneath where suspension mounts.to body? Remember, its a 30 year old car, its very unlikely it will be trouble free!

good luck!

 

thank you for mentioning the 'sticky' - i scanned them but honestly did not look that closely so i missed the buyers guide...that should help a lot
i expect to do most of the work myself. a couple of years ago i treated myself to an 18 month course in auto tech so ive taken plenty of stuff apart and putting it back together. as a female i was tired of getting ripped off when i needed something fixed on my car. the only thing i would have an issue with is being able to get it on a rack if need be...is there a lot of maintenance that needs to be done from under? i think im going to buy a haynes manual for the series 3 since that's what i'm thinking about buying...

 

I am fairly new here as Well,
i will pass on advice given me.
"pick a model you like and buy the absolute best example you can afford" which in these cars can pay off big with patience.

P.S. I don't have lift and I have both suspension assembly's out just using jackstands and a floor jack

good luck
Rusty

 

PDFs of the factory manuals are in the sticky at the top of the forum--really helpful.

 

I've owned by XJ6 about 4 years and have done most of my own work, despite limited mechanical experience and no lift. Very rewarding and these cars are not overly difficult to work on imho.

The Haynes manual is generally considered to be inadequate. You're better off looking for the pdf files of the Jag manual that people have uploaded here and/or looking for a used Jaguar service manual on ebay or such. Or the CD Rom with the parts and service manuals is also available.

My 2 cents is don't rush, and look for a good one, preferably one that has been driven regularly over the last few years. Many available examples will have been sitting for years or driven very sparingly.

Replacing the rear rotors and calipers generally requires dropping the rear suspension, so if you find one what has had that work done in the last few years, it's a bonus. Another common trouble spot is rusty fuel tanks if the car has been sitting. Not a quick or super easy fix, but many forum members have done it.

But whatever issues you have to address, there is plenty of info on the forum and most replacement or spare parts are not hard to find. Good luck.

 

Yeah, I thought I found gold when I saw the Haynes at the local parts place. There is good information in it. But, so poorly organized so as to confuse me more than I already was. I still have it, but unused.


Over decades I have gathered much better lore.


Welcome and enjoy. You are not the only gal here. ElinorB. and her NIX have blazed many trails to benefit all of us. Ably assisted by "Husband" in the back ground.


Welcome, it is a lot of fun...


Carl.


Carl

 

I 100% agree with all the above. I use a floor jack and put jackstands under the factory jacking points (little posts at the front and back of the rocker panels). The best old cars are the ones that were driven sparingly and regularly. There is a saying amoung jaguar enthusiasts that an old jaguar's worst enemy is thoughtless previous owners. If you can find a car owned by a knowledgeable person, then they probably maintained it well and have already fixed the major problems.

 

I have a 1984 Nashville XJ-6. No rust. They hardly use salt in Tennessee, only in really bad winters. I've owned it since 1989, 2nd owner. Best and most reliable car I ever had.

unless the electrics have been messed with or butchered, the Series 3 XJ-6, made from 1979 to 1987, is the most electrically-reliable XJ-6 and most "developed".

As long as it is a Tennessee car, and not an import from Northern or North Eastern states, you should be fine. Just try to track the owner history to see if the car was originally sold at Thoroughbred Motors in Franklin Road.

also take it to J.D.'s British Cars in Nashville and ask him to check it out for you to see if it is worth buying. He's on 12th Ave., off Broadway.

 

These Series 3 XJ6 saloons can be maintained in virtually all aspects by the owner provided care is taken to read up and study the job beforehand. There are no complex, (and pesky) electronics to deal with. A 1986 car will have the slotted engine block which is better than the previous one that cracked and made the engine virtually scrap, (hence why there are so many 'lumped' cars). The main problem which can overwhelm an owner is rust. These cars can rust seriously and an '86 is now over 30 years old; plenty of time for the rust bug to take hold, so this needs checking out most carefully.

I had a 1980 for 14 years and managed to run it as my daily driver, although I didn't drive to work in it. I did have to do a lot of work on it though over the years.

Other thing to mention is the fuel injection system. This is an analogue system called L-Jetronic and is reliable provided it is set up correctly, and all the various wiring connections are good.

The Guru on these cars on this forum is Doug Dwyer, BTW.

 

all USA Series 3 XJ-6 will show rust at the bottom corners of the front and rear windshields. If it has bubbling in those areas, and the paint is the original factory paint, and the bubbling isn't horrendous, and there is no other rust in the body, then it might not be such a bad thing, and it might just be needing a temporary repair of the area, because if you want a complete repair, both windshields have to be removed to get behind the area, cutting metal and re-welding new pieces. A Serious job which can cause glass breakage or damage to the chrome trim over the rubber seals while removing it, and damage to the paint and possibly the dash, the rear parcel shelf, the headlining, in other words, it will require a total and complete dismantling job of the interior if you want a like-new body and paint job. Just sand off the exterior bubbling areas, but protecting the rubber seals, chrome and paint, then paint with primer, flatten it smoth, then repaint the entire cowl area. You can get paint made at different auto body paint shops in spray cans.

Take pictures of these areas and let us tell you how bad it is. Again, if there is rust in those areas, and is not horrendous, and there is no other rust in the car, and it is a Nashville car, (sold in Nashville, and lived in Nashville all its life), then it might be a good car. I know Jaguars in Nashville, lived there 28 years.

also have a friend in Franklin to who you can take the car for evaluation. He owns two Series 3 XJ-6 and a Series 2 XJ-12. Very knowledgeable guy about these cars.

 

Here's my Nashville XJ-6 and my Pebble Beach S type. The S type is fun to drive, the XJ-6 is the serious one.

Tennessee climate is very good on Jags.

 

Regards to rust: yes, most all have a little bit of bubbling at the base of the windshield (the rubber seals failed long ago and let water seep in). Mine has a little but I never drive it when there is precipitation so it should be stable forever. If it doesn't have bubbling it is a precious car and priced accordingly. Or ..... it has been Bondo repaired. Avoid the later like the plague. A little is ok, just be careful. Definitely seek Jose's friends advice. Expert eyes are a wonderful thing.

 

learn about the XJ-6 Series Production since 1968. The XJ-40 is un-oficially the Series 4, ad so on.

 

Possibly a bag of snakes....or equally possible a really enjoyable experience. The Series IIIs are great cars, the most modern of all antique automobiles.

Others have covered the bases well, and there's the buyers guide as well, as mentioned.

If cosmetics are important to you'll save money by seeking out (and paying for!) the quality you want up-front. Paint, leather, wood, and chrome on a ratty example will cost a fortune to have redone properly. Most mechanical repairs, though, can be done relatively inexpensively, assuming DIY labor, so a beautiful car with a few mechanical faults will often be the better buy.

Cheers
DD