OK. This post isn't entirely serious. I just pulled out my 1988 XJS and drove it in the snow. Half my life is over and half the year is almost winter, winter and still winter in Minnesota. So only driving my Jaguars in the summer is not an option. I can't drive boring cars for six months straight. Sorry Saturn.

Did anyone own a Jaguar XJS long enough to know how fast it rusts out? In the 1980s my dad owned a new Talbot Simca 1308 GLS that rusted out in three years. When you stood next to it quietly, you could hear it rust. My old 2001 Dodge Neon on the other hand had the exact same rust spots for four years and they hardly grew at all.

I would like to get at least ten years of fun out of my salvage title XJS before the driver seat falls through. I bought it as my winter Jaguar so my other Jaguars could remain summer cars. On days when it actually snows and the salt trucks are out I will still drive my Saturn.

 

Wouldn't hurt to try protecting it with some cavity wax and under seal etc rather than give in

 

Keep it below freezing. A warm garage just melts the snow and makes the road crude into a salt water bath.
Keep the floor mats handy to prevent mud from splashing your pant legs.

 

You're doing the right thing by driving the car. Hosing off her underside on a regular basis should help a lot, from what I gather. But do keep us informed of what she's like to drive in winter.

 

You really are asking "how long is a piece of string?". Salt is THE killer for XJSs, and whether it has been put down recently or not does not make too much difference. The front of the sills and the 3D corner into the toes boards and the floorpan, and the external strengthener plate under the heels are the first paces to go; swiftly followed by the anchorages on the big end of the rear axle radius arms. When they go is down to luck. All I know is that no amount of wax applied AFTER rust and salt has been on the underneath makes any difference at all, so do not waste your money. Ditto rinsing the car off. It is just impossible to get all the nook sand crannies de-salted.


Also, some steel is definitely more resistant than other, even though it is all nominally the same grade stuff. I reckon you can count on 5 years, and could be luckier than that. After the winter when you are not going to use it for a while, a really good steam cleaning underneath would probably be worth doing, but in reality will at most give you a couple more years than without it. Really effective rustproofing, as I found out the hard way, means a bare shell, AquaSteel, something like Rust Bullet or zinc chromate paint on top of that, and then wax on top of the lot. Layers are the key, and it has to be done inside and out of the floorpan, all box sections, and chassis rails .

 

Given that this is a winter beater, it would be interesting to see the progress of rust. Take plenty of photos each year, and only try to keep one side really clean so we can compare rust rates.

 

Got to agree with you Greg. I have spent the last 12 months repairing all of those areas and some besides. As on my 4.0 I have stripped the under seal off then after repairing and treating any areas with rust killer everything has been painted with epoxy mastic paint. I will spray with stonechip next 2 or 3 coats. I use Bilthamber cavity wax in the box sections flooding them to give a good double sided protection. The final thing I will do to help protect it is not take it out when there's salt on the road.

 

My 1977 had a quite large body rebuild in 1989. New doors, new sills, new lower rear fender and surely also some patches, so 12 years could be an answer. First ten years were done in northern Germany, the last two in Denmark. Both places have some snow, salt on roads and high humidity in winter.

 

It started "rusting on the show room floor" ie: Garth Coomer Jaguar World Mag. This subject has been brought up from time to time. All you have to do is check some old editions of the restoration/repair editions of JWM. The floors (what was left) and suspension were a mess at best. IMO XJ-S bodies are a shade better than an 55 to 57 Chevy or the XKE in regard to rust undercoated or not.
One way to answer your question is fine someone who has used their XJS in Minneapolis winters and go from there. You my be lucky & it will look like a Texas car after 5 winters of use.

 

some pix of my XJS 1978 spent winters around Kent UK for 8/9 years!

when it came to USA 1986, pix of what needed to be done !

nothing left of floors or body sides, NEW 2 of everything right and left, sills , floors , front /rear valances, all 4 lower corner pieces, even hood/bonnet was rusted thru, wiper motor box, and metal lower door panels, with custom lower door frames. redone radius body mounts, and bushes

note; door rear corners round, heaven knows what else!

also complete rebuild of Pre-HE engine, transmission 700R4, front & rear suspensions, brake upgrades.

all cavities sprayed with Wax Oyl twice.

now little off topic; the A pillar posts were stuffed with foam,(guess what happens from temperature changes and condensation over time ,it NEVER DRYS OUT,) so i cleaned them out also,( i'd rather air flow thru them than have them rust thru).

 

did i mention new fuel tank, hi-impact plastic, all lines and fittings,ETC.

pic today ,23 years ago (NO rust any where), always been in Florida & TEXAS.

 

Mind you, we're also talking more than two decades of production. Post-facelifts are supposed to be less vulnerable, and the final galvanized ones less still. Less vulnerable, not invulnerable, of course. Would a 1988 car be less rust-prone than a 1978 car?

 

Yes someday , of course the newer car should be of more value, especially after FORD quality control took over Jaguar,6.0L etc.

but lately an early XJS in good condition ,prices are going up, mainly because there are few left!

plus some time around 1990/1992 USA government mandated all vehicles sheet metal will by electroplated or galvanized for rust deterant.

also some debate that because Jaguar financial situation(BL), they bought low cost sheet metals, that was inferior quality, that rusted easily,(all hush/hush about it tho!)

 

I will document the slow deterioration of my 1988 XJS over the years as well as any attempts to slow it down. However, my 1975 and 1976 XJS T.I.* models will never see any rain. So we might never know.

* The opposite of H.E. is Terribly Inefficient :-)

 

My initially very rusty XJS happily sits outside for the past ~5 years(rainy UK) and doesn't seem to dissolve as bad as I thought it would. Initially all the floors, sills, wings, arches, doors etc were completely gone with massive holes, I've cut out all the rot, welded it all up and painted with Vactan and then whatever paint I had at the time and its still fine today. I don't drive it obviously, only done 10 miles since I bought it, there are even some unprotected mild steel plates underneath that even though completely covered in surface rust now, that's about it, they are still solid and will be fine with a quick clean with a wire brush .
Only things left to sort out are rear window channel and one of the radius arm boxes but rust overall is certainly not progressing anywhere anymore. Even underneath the rear seat where I used to have a massive pool(for a year or more) its not bad at all. Will clean up nicely.





I think as far as you actually protect it with some rust converter and then paint over with whatever you can get your hands on and dont let the rust spread it should be ok for many years.

By the way, I must have tested 20+ different paints on this XJS to see which one actually protects best and I can highly recommend Vactan. Its the only thing that seem to last so well combined with other paint on top of it on this car.

 

WD40 and spray liberally everywhere, I grew up on the beach so salt was always an issue and my fathers cars rusted in a few years until he started regularly spraying with WD40.

 

Seems to me all the oil front to back is good rust proofing

 

That's called Pommy rust proofing...................

 

WD40 works for almost anything. But it tastes horrible. ;-)

 

We have a saying down under " if it moves and shouldn't Duct Tape and if doesn't move and should WD40"

WD40 is great stuff its only down side is that it goes gummy in time.