I've been offered a very cheap parts car by a friend of a friend. It's a 1993 4-litre, and mine's a 1992 V12. Not much engine stuff of use, of course, but would it be worth about $1,000 (what he'll get from the breaker) for it? Obviously a very vague question, really. The ski-slope won't transfer across (S/N setting), though the dash wood shood (would should?). It'll come with recent brake discs, I believe. I suspect it's cloth seats, so that's a non-starter.

Considering it's clearly in bad enough condition to be sold to a wrecker rather than be repaired and sold, I'm not entirely sure how much would be salvageable (he said that the cylinder head was damaged, and then something major brake-wise that required a rare part and it wouldn't be cost-effective). The instrument cluster might be nice to pull (my speedo's cracked), and appears to have the "zone" temperature gauge rather than the line markings, which might help with my peace of mind....

It's about 2.5 hours drive away so I can't check it out immediately. Anyway, I'd be grateful for any opinions on how useful parts cars with a different engine are for someone who doesn't really have a car needing restoration....

 

Certainly things like suspension components should transfer across. Although I'm not sure when the transition was made to the outboard rear brakes from inboard. My 94 has outboard. If your car is a facelift model the interior dash wood will be the same.

Do you have a place to keep it if you decide to buy it and part it out? I understood that parking and space to keep a car was at a premium in Japan.

 

I think the inboard-outboard change was '94. And the dash wood is tempting. Suspension was the same for the heavier V12? It's got the five-spoke wheels, not the lattices, which would have been tempting.

Parking would be provided free by the mutual friend, who owns a farmhouse about 30-40 mins drive away. Not wonderfully close, but a generous offer.

 

Springs and shocks are different, but otherwise the same. Depending on the model ( sportpack or non sportpack) the anti roll bar dimensions could be different. Or could be the same!

Climate control parts should be the same I think. Is the interior colour the same as your car?

 

Climate control could be nice if it transfers easily - as I mentioned a while back, there's a vacuum issue with mine which the garage reckons is an expensive dash-off fix (aircon works fine, so not remotely urgent). I suspect that the expense there is labour rather than parts, however. As the transmission, I believe, has sports mode, it might be a sport pack, and I think the seats are cloth so there's not a lot to use in there either. Though if I can replace the lumbar support pads easily that would be nice.

 

This is the car I've been offered for parts. About US$1200. Probably worth that for the wheels alone....
https://mykyotojaguar.wordpress.com/blog/about/
The side wood's the V12 stuff. Easy swap. Ski-slope's no good - sports button makes it too long, and the wood's in worse shape than mine.

 

Can't resist spending 2cents . . . presently have 4 different models; 3 being pristine and only the XJ-S warrants not a donor, but a ground-up restoration. Having fallen for this trap of a donor too often in past, I often found that the part I wanted was either missing from the donor, inferior, or slightly different. Add to this the cost of garaging (unless you want to end up with a pile of rust), an unusable powertrain (I6 vs V12), and sub-standard trim (even usable bits may not match) . . . and you are left with few benefits, if any.

My Plan B was no better . . . good quality XJ donor that I parted out. Used racks for doors, boot, bonnet, and about 12 tea-chests of cleaned parts, mostly electrical or sub-systems. Then I paid for dead engine, bodyshell, wheels etc to be taken away. Kept and refurbed both the a/t and rear end. Years later, I had used less than half a dozen parts - one was power aerial (good) and several switches (not good, coz several then failed just as they had in my car!). Ended up selling the a/t and rear end, and swapped or gave away remainder.

Mention of woodwork reminds me that unless every piece warrants using in yours, any piecemeal replacement that fails to match the grain and patina of yours is sure-fire and glaring evidence of non originality.

I am not against a cache of quality spares. But, let's take a not unreasonable "to do list" . . . replace front sway bar and suspension bushes; re-build steering rack; replace brake rotors, caliper piston kits and pads . . . and since we are there, we find a few engine bottom end gaskets and seals that need attention. What benefit your donor car? Zilch!!! IMHO, your $1000 is better spent on new parts that, by DIY, will offer a more pleasant and reliable drive.

My last word? If you have room for a donor . . . spend extra bucks and get a second, good Jaguar . . . better still, one that is even better than your present car. Plenty of models to choose from . . . I know! (LOL).

Cheers,

Ken

 

The photos show the lattice wheel, not 5 spoke. What's wrong with it that makes it worth breaking up rather than fixing?

 

The guy said that the cylinder head was damaged, and then something major brake-wise that required a rare part. He was asking about $15,000 for it initially, before it broke.

Ken: I'm starting to lean that way myself - especially as I'd then be stuck with having to pay to get rid of whatever remained. At the moment I think it would be more sensible to go to where the car is now and take the parts I want (wheels, radio (aftermarket), wood trim maybe (looks similar to mine), gear knob (wood!), and carpets and other easily removed things.

Actually, in my car the ski slope definitely doesn't match the dash wood, but the ski slope is such a lovely colour - almost reddish - that I can live with it.

 

If the body panels, doors and glass are the same (ie all facelift of the same generation) and the interior and instruments are too, then it is a good LONGTERM thing to have; but a waste of money if you are going to sell the car in a year of three. If the interior is good, that is a real plus, as seats' mechanisms etc and other things can be used, and even leather re-dyed to match quite easily.
Apart from the engine, gearbox, and engine and gearbox looms, just about everything else is useable, body, interior and mechanics. You will find over the years that all sorts of little trim items will be useful too. Lights are another important plus.
BUT, big BUT, the parts car MUST be stored in a 100% dry place, and you MUST wax and treat the body panels against rust and moisture, be supported on its suspension by blocks, wheels off, and have a mains rodent scarer connected up. If not, in a few years you will go back and find the car is a wreck full of rodent eaten leather and looms holding together rusty unusable body panels!
Plus, you must be able to remove the parts yourself, so a full toolkit will be needed, including jacks, etc etc. A lot to think about! The alternative is to get the car and pay someone to strip it apart for you and store all the individual pieces separately, a lot of work now, but then all the bits are accessible and can be taken to your repairer as required.
Greg

 

It's the same 1992 facelift, only a 4L. But I take your point about the longterm thing. While I hope to keep Lady Mary for the indefinite future, I'm not so attached to her that I won't trade her in for, say, a Daimler Super V8. Grabbing the headlights could be an idea as well. But your point about storage condition is noted. The only place I would be able to keep the spare is outside, and that, plus the fact that the spare's done more than twice the distance of mine, makes it a very dicey proposition indeed. As someone mentioned on another thread, spare parts from the early nineties are by no means guaranteed to be in as-new condition....

It's really tempting to want to be able to think "Oh, I dinged the door? Grab the spare!" but in the end, the more I think about it, the less sensible the idea appears. Go down soon, grab a few key parts (small and easily stored), and let her get taken to the breakers.

Seems like such a waste, however. From photos, she's a real beauty, and I have to wonder just how much fixing the cylinder head and brakes would cost that the owner's chosen to toss her....

 

Sensible attitude, you have to be realistic with these cars.
BUT, once, and if, you get shot of your V12 XJS for a Daimler saloon, you will never, ever, stop regretting it, so be warned! You will be changing a piece of magic for a valueless modern gadget, and your soul will pine.
Greg

 

I think the magic is retained up to the X308 series myself, at least in terms of looks. Now, if I'd suggested a modern XJ or, worse, an XF, well then, that's a bland bit of badge engineering. My line is drawn at the X350's awkward bulking up of the classic lines. A SIII Daimler DD6 would be ideal (actually I would LOVE a Mark IX), but they are getting very expensive now. Never having driven a Daimler of any sort, or in fact any other Jag other than mine, I can't really compare, however.
There is, however, a lot to be said for the luxury aspects of peace of mind....

 

I wouldn't say that, the later Daimlers are very nice places to be, with a lot more performance than the V12 XJS.

 

Do you know anyone who could buy one at auction for you? Much cheaper than through a dealer. At auction in Tokyo is where I got my Daimler, but it was exported so not sure of there are different rules to buy at auction for domestic buyers. I could ask my broker if you're interested in buying a car. Looks like prices for a good one are between 700,000-1M yen.

 

A quick check on Car Sensor shows prices for DD6s hovering around the three million mark (with a couple lower). If a good one at auction is really about two million less I would be (a) very surprised, and (b) very tempted (Super V8s are half the price). But right now I've had my XJS for less than two months (of actual time she's not been in the shop), so it's not urgent. So thanks, but not right now. And I actually do know someone who can buy at trade auctions.

 

This is site I use for a quick check on auction results: Japanese Used Cars Auction Online

I go under "Find data by" then "full list" - go to Other for maker, then under model scroll down to Daimler. Ideally, you want a grade 4 car, those are the best value.

 

Some tempting prices there. Though there's still a lot of difference even among the same nominal grade, so there must be quite a few other factors at work as well.

 

It can depend on which city it's being auctioned in, particular features of the car, and more importantly who is there to buy that day! The data is a consolidation of about the last 8 weeks sales data.

I bought my Daimler DS420 in July (a few years ago) and it was right before the week holidays that followed - not sure what it is called. There wasn't many buyers and I got it for about 1/3 of what they usually sell for. I can't complain, it was one of the very few LHD cars made. I just got lucky.

 

O-Bon is the holidays you're thinking of. Yeah, I guess who's there makes a huge difference.
You have a DS420? What's that like? I've heard that it's not that good in front where the chauffeur sits (cramped), but obviously the rear is a very nice place to be. You do a lot of riding in back? (I mean, you could even buy a non-runner and just use the rear as a private study, I guess....)