On the face of it you would need to have a screw loose!

Guys over the pond please look away now as in the UK we are paying around £6 per gallon!

As such my V12 XJS is horrendously expensive to run, considering I only get about 16 mpg unless I drive it in my carpet slippers!

I very, very, rarely see another one on the road and in fact these days you seldom see a sports car.

Q. So why do I love it as much as I do?

A. It makes you better looking

So what's your excuse?

 

I heartily agree that it makes me better looking. Anything that takes the emphysis off my face is a good thing!

I think of mine as a toy. I wouldn't drive it in snow or rain (convertibe top leaks) but ohhhh on sunny warm weather days I just want to cruise around all day long!

 

My XJS has totally seduced me.
I never saw many on the roads in Ontario and didn't like the model's looks in photographs.
But then I was always an XK120/Mk II kind of guy.
When I spotted an ad for the new 5-speed 4.0 XJS in the Globe & Mail in 1992, I knew that it was the perfect Jag for me despite what I thought of its looks. It was the first non-autobox Jag to be sold in Canada since 1974 for cryin' out loud.
Nineteen years later, I bought mine, only the fourth I'd seen for sale in all those years.
Approaching it, keys in hand, is exciting every time. What the photos don't capture is the life exuding from this car. You don't just see its shape, you feel its presence.

 

Also my XJS is cheaper to run and repair than my 2005 Tacoma.

 

Hi Mkii250

Presence! That is the perfect description, I just feel so self conscious when I go and get some gas and swing that big long bonnet into the garage.

You can seem to feel their eyes boring into you and even though you try and play it down, you know that some are thinking what a flash little 'git' while others must be thinking lucky b@#*&#%d.

You can cut the envious looks with a chainsaw!

What is so ironic is that most of their 'Tin Boxes' and assorted 'Jelly Molds' cost far more than I paid for my Jag, but what irks them is they can't afford to run it.

Neither could I if I did what they do and spend every night down the pub but they just don't seem to get it!

I am not a Millionaire, I'm not even very well off but on a nice day with the roof down, I wouldn't swop places with anyone on the planet.

 

When people stare at the car when you are at a stoplight. Then a person driving a Mustang pulls up challenge you to a race.

 

I hate both of mine at the moment.
But I'm sure I'll get over it.
Again.

 

For me, it's the styling, the awesome V12, and especially the looks I get from people, when parked, people will come over to comment, I've been in a store, come out to see people around the car waiting to ask questions or comment. In my 'neck of the woods' there is only one other XJS within 50 miles, so they are a rarity.
The great ride, power, convertible, and something that is not just a 'cookie-cutter' multi branded econobox wannabe tuner, I could go onnnnn.

 

It's always been emotional for me:

- when I park and walk to my destination, I always feel the need to turn back and cast a loving glance at my baby.

- when returning from my business, I anticipate rounding the corner to see it waiting for me.

- those buttresses

- that hood (bonnet)

- the smell of Connolly leather that still greets me every time I open the door after 20+ years.

- the satisfaction of knowing there's a V12 under hood.

 

"It is, simply, the epitomy of motoring excellence.”
(Kellow-Falkiner advertisement)

 

Lots of good comments that I agree with.

There IS a special feeling when driving an XJS. Largely, I suppose, because it IS unusual and draws attention. And apparently it makes an imposing sight in a rearview mirror, too, because there were several times on the highway other drivers would yield the lane to me as I approached from behind.....no headlight flashing or tailgating antics on my part....the other drivers just got out of my way! Add to that the V12 engine and, yeah, I'll admit to having a "I'm king of the road" feeling. And I'll admit to liking it

I also liked to secure feeling when driving. Good steering, roadholding, and brakes. And the highway speed (legal and illegal) stabilty was very comforting...much greter feeling of safety than my XJR or XJ6. I suppose the "low slung" aspect of the car enters in here.

An XJS isn't always an easy car to own. But...the most rewarding things in life are seldom easy, are they?

My only disappointment is that the long-legged XJS never had the strong acceleration I've had in other cars. If I ever own another, and I'd like to one day, I'll address that issue.

Cheers
DD

 

You chaps are honing in on something though I feel the opposite: I do not feel conspicuous driving the XJS. When I had a white Daimler V8 250 I felt like I was walking around in a wedding dress--everyone paid attention, kids came running when I parked (they loved the red seat belts). But I'm not an attention seeker in that way so I felt I had to duck behind the steering wheel and escape.

The XJS allows me to feel anonymous, perhaps because it is so small (low) next to today's cars, and because the cabin is cosy. So I get to truly enjoy the best thing about this car: its driving dynamics. I feel that the driver's seat is well positioned behind the midpoint of the wheelbase so I can feel the squirminess of the rear end under acceleration. And acceleration is not a disappointment with the 4.0L and 5-speed. It's a bit quicker than a Ferrari 308 in the 0-60 (yes, I know, so are most minivans). Best of all, I can charge cross-country for hours and feel rested at the end. The XJS ride quality is among the best of any car I have driven.

And that's the thing about the Jags. I can tear down to Reading, Pa (9 hours) and get out of the car having had fun and feeling rested.

 

ques; do you own the car,,OR does the car own you??

 

Were my comments not on point?

 

Ultimately, I have an olfactory relationship with my XJS.

I have nothing but respect for you V12 masochists (God luv ya!), but I have fallen in serious like with the AJ6. Straight-6s must be the divine right of Jaguar, or something.

I love driving a '70s car manufactured in the '90s with (at least some) semi-modern features. I mean, my feet are forward of the windshield, for Pete's sake! No acre of dust on this dashboard. This thing is a proper mid-70s death-trap, I'm sure, even if it does have an airbag.

I love the driver's experience, both for the comfort of the seat and the driving position; best driver's fit for me in years. My left (outboard) leg is slightly awkward; I still don't seem to know quite where to park my knee or my left foot, and have to shift them a bit in the tight cabin. And don't get me started on the climate controls. But the when I get in, the very first thing I notice is how comfortable I am in the driver's seat.

Then I smell the leather.

 

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