Not taking anything personally, just looking to see your advert to see if the car you are selling for a friend is more of a dog than a cat , or if your advert is poor, or what?

 

No problem, if you want to see pictures they're right here. It's not perfect but it's a running, driving XJS Convertible that starts, stops and has no major mechanical issues. Body is straight and interior is pretty decent aside from the seats.

The only other one in the craigslist at this price does not run.

While I appreciate it, I'm not looking for ad critiques or advice on how to sell it.I'm just making the observation that people who have so far made contact don't have any money.

You can usually tell the type because they want to negotiate first by Email without seeing the car. If these cars were collectible, I'd have more serious prospects contacting me.

I'll more then likely keep it and redo the seats.

 

Alabasi,
Thanks for posting, if your car is clean as I describe then, yes, I would fix the seats, clean the car up (looks like it needs it) and place it on ebay or classic auto trader for a bit more than you are currently asking.

Last year, I spent many months and miles looking for a good XJS to take on. I know that you said you don't want help selling it, but I looked at your actual ad on Craigslist and am going to point out a couple of things that mean I probably would not have bothered going to see yours:

1. The car looks pretty filthy considering that you are trying to sell it. The roof inparticular makes the car look like it has sat outside for months.

2. The backdrop in the pics with the other (stagnant looking) old cars, long grass, and fencing do give the impression that you are some sort of second hand car dealer or breaker.

3. The significant wear on both the driver and passenger seat make the milage claim look really unrealistic.

4. You make no mention of prior owners or history with/of the car.

5. You make no mention of rust or other underbody damage.

6. Because of the underbody rust that I came across, I quickly dismissed looking at any cars with the mercedes emulating bright wheelarches that your car has. I was scared to death of what might be underneath due to differential metal corrosion.

7. Not sure Craigslist is casting the net to the correct customer base. That said, here is a current Texas Craigslist ad, nicely laid out, for an XJS V12 that I would likely go see, and offer on if it was sound, even though the miles are a bit high. Seller is asking $13K.

http://dallas.craigslist.org/dal/cto/5373339084.html

In my travels looking for a good condition car last year, I frequently came across mint looking (photographically and at 5 yards) cars but that upon closer inspection had rotton bodyshells underfloor (near the rear trailing arm mount), were accident damaged and repaired cars, had dubious histories, or that had other big mechanical issues that were not immediately visible.

When I did find good cars, I lost a few through:

1. Offering $6-7K for cars up for $8-$15K and sellers refusing to drop the price.
or
2. Being outbid by export buyers (shipping to Europe) that would pay more money than I was prepared to (good money)
3. Not being prepared to consider the later (Buick rear end IMO) model.

When I finally found a car with solid body work and good history that I was able to strike a deal on, I was overjoyed! I overlooked the few mechanical issues and (many) leaks underneath because I knew how hard it actually was to find a good, straight car - even if you are prepared to pay good money.

Funnily enough, the seller of my car had been trying to shift it via local ads and 'for sale' boards for a few months, but had been plaqued by tire kickers and dealers looking to low ball and flip it. I for one, feel blessed that he held out for the right buyer.

Best, Norfolk

 

Thanks, it's sat inside for at least two years but I get it. It's dirty.

What do you think I am, Donald Trump? it's all I can afford man!

Yep, clock has stopped so no telling. I don't have any history with the car aside from knowing the past two owners. As I explained, I traded it for another reliable 4 cylinder because my buddy was doing dialysis over the summer and driving an XJS in 110 heat to dialysis seemed like a recipe for disaster.

It does run and drive, body is as straight as an arrow. It has no rust and aside from the seats, the interior is pretty good (but does need a good cleaning). It's good to be worth more then $800 right?

This is Texas, rust is never an issue hence why we don't bring it up. If it was England or Michigan, it would be another story.

That's my friends car, he's a good guy and he buys cars right.

Yep, so you know what I mean.

I'll probably fix the seats and keep the car. If the truth be told, I prefer parting cars out and selling parts. I can usually make more money and the dismantling process is a lot less hassle then dealing with bottom feeders who seem to raise my blood pressure.

 

I think your car is definitely worth more than 800.00. Realistically I would think it would sell for around 2,500 to 3,000 dollars in my area. Collectors are a finicky bunch, they only want to buy the best example available. That way they can flip them without putting any more money in the car. Your car is a project car, like mine is. Nothing wrong with that. The problem is the "bottom feeders" think they can snag a car at a desperation price from some poor schmuck than flip it like the big guys on TV. You are only going to get a fair price from some one who really wants an XJS. I had my '70 Mustang coupe for sale last November and I got a couple of low bid offers of "cash right now!" I'd just e-mail them no thanks and forget about them.

I had a business selling used Datsun Z parts and I had a customer who bought some of my NOS and really cherry stuff. His advice to me " The rest is trash, just throw it away!" I was a bit offended and told him I had sold lots of good usable parts to a lot of buyers who were fixing up their cars. He said in his opinion collectors only want the best. Well that's his opinion and he's probably right about serious collectors. But a lot of guys like me have got their "fixer uppers".

 

Thanks, this for me is an easy fix. Problem is that I have a bunch of cars including a 94 V12 convertible that are all easy fixes and I like them more. With that said, I may as well fix this one up and enjoy it. I have a good upholstery guy that can redo the seats for about $400 in vinyl which will make the car look 10 times better.

It's all fun and games at the end of the day.

 

hey i got both my Jags for no cost(no money), so i only had up to go with any investment in them.

one a 1978 XJS V12 cabreo, RHD, but rare also!

other 1975 XJ12C coupe, V12 ,factory manual shift, 4 real Spline drive wire wheels.

both rust buckets, 78 no run, 75 simple fix ran great.

78 Cat sucked me into her web, 2 1/2 yrs and 30K later, makes a great conversation piece, runs fantastic, an interesting hit at most shows!

75 coupe, well i was burned out on the 78, so did not want to get into another full restoration.
advertised it in a car mag ,YIKES sold in 3 days, money wired into account overnight, yup turns out to be another very rare car, sold cheap!

 

1996 XJS Jaguar convertible
It has 80,000 miles on it, and you could buy 5 of them for what a single "collectible" car would set you back. Plus it is really a Forduar, reliable and easy to work on. If anything fatal happens to my '94, I think I will just get another one. If I had somewhere to store it I would buy this one. If our cars become collector items, I will be priced out.

 

Yep, for less then the cost to repair rust on a 50's to 70's vehicle you can have the last Jaguar with Lyons personal touch. Will not be this way forever and in many countries outside the U.S. it no longer is.