Hi there
I am in the market for a XJS V12 and have been reading quiet a bit on the forums and also the e-book by Kirby Palm. The ownership of such a car both excite me and scare me a bit.

I have come to the conclusion that it will be best to buy a car that had a owner who loves and understand the specific V12 engine cars. This kind of car is a bit more expensive but I think for piece of mind this is the way I would like to go. I have two options at the moment, one is a '84 XJS with plus minus 60k miles on the clock $11 500, one owner which is about $2000 more expensive than a '90 with plus minus 110k miles on the clock. The more expensive car belongs to a Jaguar collector and is one of a few cars the guy want to sell, the second cheaper car is at a dealer with no history of previous owners at all.

While reading about the cars I have not come across any diagnostic software mentioning? Is there a way to plug a laptop in the car and read the software/fault codes, diagnostics etc?

Cheers

 

Kirby's book, though magnificent, tends to paint an overly bleak picture. But there's no getting around the fact that the XJS is a quirky car that can be challenging to sort out. If you're a fairly capable and willing DIYer, though, XJS ownership can be very rewarding.







I've long preached that stepping up to a premium example will usually save money in the long run. For the prices you've mentioned, though, the candidates ought to be exceptional.






The Marelli cars (mid-89 model year in USA terms) have a rudimentary self diagnostic capability via the on-board trip computer display. Pre-Marelli cars have no such capability at all.

To do what you're suggesting would require a 95/96 car with OBD II diagnostics.

Cheers
DD