Did anyone else see that depressing moment at the Mecum auction last night where the lovely XJS went for well under $5,000, as the announcers opined that was to be expected because the engines are so hard to work on no one wants to pay much for them?

 

Great news for us! Get 'em while they're cheap.

Porsche 928 and BMW 8 series too.

Got a link to the auction?

 

I like your way of thinking! You can look up Mecum online. They are a major car auction house and do several large auctions around the country each year. Think this one goes through the weekend. They specialize in muscle cars, so the upscale ones go pretty cheap. Nice 380 SL Mercedes went for around $4500 last night, too, which did not thrill my wife who has the mint '88 560SL...and no, she does not need another one!

 

I tend to think the wrong auction for Jags of any vintage or really anything other than domestic muscle or hot rods. Still, the 80s are not quite there yet as far as the demographics that drive collectability. I was a teenager in the 80s, driving those used muscle cars as they were dirt cheap then too but I idolized the XJS because that's what I saw successful businessmen driving (and trophy wives if it was a convertible). Those same successful businessmen are now in their 70s bidding massive sums of money to recapture their youth through the cars THEY dreamed of as young men. MY generation for the most part still has kids in college, years left on our mortgages and probably won't retire near as well off as our parents did. Still, give us a few years and we'll drive your prices up a bit as we reach the age and financial status that we can start collecting too. I'm sure I'm not the only one of my cohort who has an XJS on his bucket list.

 

IMOP the xj-s owner must maintain & work on it themselves. Why ? Most independent shops can't or won't. Try to get rear inboard brakes worked on, cooling problems, engine worked on. Dealers, the way I see it the V12 was last in a xjs in 1996, 19 years ago. How many tech's are still working there that know how work on a V12 ? Price/labor, well good luck with that. That's the way I think there resale is and will be very low for the for see-able future. Hope I'm wrong.
Lawrence

 

I think its a case of supply out stripping demand at the moment, when there are less about they will go up in value