First off, sorry if this is posted in the wrong spot, I am new here and to Jaguars in general. Any opinions on buying this xjs? It almost seems too good to be true to me.
1989 Jaguar XJS

Thanks

 

Certainly not too good to be true. I see a mismatched set of wheels, discolored wood and black carpets suggests a water leak, and possible rust. Runs and drives means different things to different people. Even a car with a leaky rack, blown head gasket and bad transmission could run and drive. Looks like a solid 500$ to 800$ parts car to me depending on what you need. Even if the V12 and the transmission were ok, the maintenance it appears to need plus the cost to refresh could quickly exceed the cars retail value. Not worth the gamble if you want a running and driving car. If you've got a lot of spare time, money to burn and are looking for the satisfaction of the challenge...you've found it!

 

I would run a mile from this one unless have way too much spare time.

 

That is one to pass up...

 

Looks like a good parts car to me. Pass on this one.

 

You can find a decent XJS for next to nothing nowadays. The fact is, indulgent (large, but only room for 2, thirsty) old coupes are not in fashion at the moment. Go take a look. Drive it for at least half an hour. Check the operation of everything electrical. Do some hard stops and cornering. Watch the temperature gauge.

The interior doesn't look too bad - wood replacements are cheap.

The exterior - correct me if I'm wrong - the red may not have a clear coat and may possible to be polished back to a decent state?

The thing that concerns me the most is the vegetation on the intake runners - how long has this thing been sitting?

Get some more details and post them here. Show them $500, you'll probably get it. But only if you're willing to put some work into it.

[edit] Also, I bet the automatic seat belts don't work. Free repair if you can actually get the dealer to do it.

 

I appreciate the input guys. It was exactly the info I was looking for. I plan to most likely pass it up, I did email her and ask her about rust and how well it runs and drives out of curiosity. It will be interesting to hear back.

 

Avoid it like the plague! I've broken up a scrapper in better condition than that and so I wouldn't even buy that one for spares!

You will never stop spending your money on a Car like that, so I would leave it well alone and spend a bit more money on a nice one.