Sorry, I've been away for a while. I did have a question about insurance rates for an XJS in the United States. Is it normally a car that'll break the bank insurance wise?
Bearing in mind I'm in my 40's, clean driving record, have had two cars insured by the same company for years (never made a claim). They started paying me a bonus last year. Or does the prestige of the car outweigh that? Does it help or hurt to register it with collector plates in Wisconsin?

 

It's all so different state to state. Better to listen to the locals. They will know WI's particular ins and outs.

 

Comp and collision insurance on my 3 Jags, including the old XJS, has been consistantly less expensive than insurance for my family Chevys, Hondas, etc. Go figure.

Cheers
DD

 

In the UK the rating of an XJS was pretty high when the cars were new but the minumum age of an XJS must surely be around 15 years. For such older cars in the UK we can get "Classic Car" insurance, generally for 10 year+ old cars, whereby you commit to less than a certain mileage, (say 5000). This is then proven via the annual test certificate (MOT), although I never, ever, had anyone check it. I suppose they would have checked it if I made a claim !!

I don't know how car insurance works in the US, but it must be based on the driver's record first off, and then the cost of the car repairs. Clearly for new/recent cars this will be a lot. For older cars most times if the driver is good the rate will be low, as they will just write the car off at market value if the repairs come to too much. The market value of an XJS is surely not going to be very high.

 

If you go the Classic route, it should be very affordable but may have mileage, use, and storage restrictions. I use Hagerty for other classic cars, they cover based on agreed value, not book value. In my case, I have full coverage on a 1950 model, but can't drive it for regular commuting and it must be stored in my garage when not in use. Full coverage costs just over $100 a year, and they are great to deal with. Other companies have different rules...

Matt