Cool, good luck with the search. It is a great car. You have some nice options in Orlando, not sure how far you are going to search. Are you sticking local or willing to fly?

There is a '12 white with tan top convertible with 18k miles from a private seller in Orlando for $42k. Jaguar Orlando has a nice certified '13 black vert with 35k miles at $47k.

 

Check out this thread...
https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...-proud-167341/

"The amazing thing about the XKR is that at 110, my hat didn't even come close to getting blown off my noggin. In fact it was actually pretty calm in the driver's seat..."


Cheers,
Wolfy

 

Nice story- I don't think I'll share that with my son lol

 

I cant believe the prices you guys pay over there

In Australia 90k will get you the first of the n/a 5l and over 100k will get the supercharged variety

Feeling very hard done by! !

 

I can't believe you guys in the Queen's Country are paying so much for your own British cars.

 

The most beautiful thing about the convertible with the top down is that not every punk in an audi or bmw want to race you, they assume it's the wife's car, casual cruiser, or belonging to someone mature enough to not be troubled by androgynous associations.

In that sense, it makes a statement.

 

Well some of us convertible guys aren't very mature and are ready to race at the change of a light. So I still love it when the tires are screaming; and it is more visceral with the top down.


Either way, buying the best car you can find, like drafting the best athlete available, should be your starting point. I just bought my 2010 in April, after a 5 month search. It is like new, with only 16k miles when I took delivery. There are a good number of nice cars for sale out there with 35-40k miles; and a good bit cheaper. However when you consider repair and maintenance costs; to me the lower mileage, more expensive car was the better buy.

 

Im leaving town next week for an extended vacation. Upon my return, it will be September, post-Labor Day. I hope to have some success in finding the right combination of low mileage/strong maintenance and a "deal".

I am also going to approach local dealers about letting me buy from the local auction as my sense is dealers are seeking higher margins because there is a "thin" market for these lovely vehicles. I'm also curious as to what auction prices are.

I had an interesting conversation with my local Jaguar dealer a couple weeks ago, who told me there is little negotiation as the vehicles are already priced "fairly" based on a national pricing model. When I pointed out a NJ dealer was selling (in this case a '13- same as I test drove) a CPO for about $4K less (with about 20K fewer miles) he had no response.

 

EVERY vehicle sale represents the current LOCAL climate. Can't see how a National Price speculation would work.

 

So let me get this straight, you got the advice of a dealership as to why he won't move on his price??? What part of that advice would you believe carries any actual value and why? That's no different than believing a single word from our illustrious two candidates running for presidents... if any of them happen to tell the truth is purely by accident. Don't fall for the crap your dealership tries feeding you or others, never hope a wild bear or lion is there to be friends

 

Coupe or convert

When viewing the coupe from the rear the view is absolutely breathtaking

 

Leeper- You missed my point- I was pointing out the "challenge" of getting "fair pricing" from a dealer and pointing out the politician-style talk coming from these guys (there is a dealer in NJ with a decent price on a '13, but it is a coupe and I'm leaning toward the vert).

 

When I bought my car I searched nationally to get a gauge on pricing. I also looked at some out of state cars, but the inconvenience is what got to me. If it is too far I would need to ship which adds $1500 to $2500. Plus I always have to see a car first, so another $250 to $500 for a flight. Or, if an adjacent or close enough state would need to allocate time to drive it back, my time is my scarcest resource.

If you factor in the other costs of distance it chips away at that $3000/$4000 difference. In the end, by being patient, I found a decent deal in my area.

There are plenty of private dealers who will open up the auction process to choose a car and then act as your agent. Usually for a nominal fee, $500 to $1500. For those that I know who have used these services they get mixed results, some get a perfect car at a good price, others end up dealing with problems and no one to go to. If you buy a car with some residual factory warranty at least you have some form of recourse.

Your problem will be lack of volume in Manheim. I took a quick look and in the last 4 months there have only been six convertibles sold through auction, only one of those was in Florida (Palm Beach). It sold for $48,800 and was a '13 convertible with 9800 miles.

 

All good points. Next week I'm going to S. Florida and I'll do some scouting.

I used to have a "hobby dealership" and bought through Manheim- I was curious to see their data as it will also provide a good idea as to "fair price"- if there have only been 6 sales in the last few months I may have to rethink my strategy. As far as an out of state buy, if the timing is right, it might be a mini-vacation (assuming the car is a reasonable drive like the Midwest or east coast). Ideally, but not a requirement, there will be a bit of warranty.

I must say the thoughtfulness and diversity of contributors to the forum is impressive and one of the reasons I'm excited about joining the club!

 

^^^ this ^^^

 

Yeah, me too. One day may go back and get my license again. Too busy in my main career to maintain that hobby. If I decide to retire early I may dabble in it again.

 

There are very few Jaguar XK/XKR's being offered at the auto auctions. Below is data I retrieved from the Edge Pipeline Auto Auction database tonight. This data does not include Mannheim.

The image below to enlarge and see the search and the results. This data covers the last 6 months.

..

 

Not doubting you, but is your mileage range too restrictive (10000 - 30000)? That skips the very low mileage and reasonable 'middle aged' cars. Wonder what a 0 - 50000 range would yield.

 

If you have been looking at the usual sites like Autotrader, Cars.com, Hemmings, etc; I'm sure you have realized that most of the cars for sale are located in a few affluent areas of the country. Florida is obviously one. When I was searching I found prices most competitive in these areas because of the number of choices. So when that dealer gave you his pricing position, he may have been referring to your local area and whether the time of year is good for sales in that area.


I bought privately. IMHO if you are looking for a gem, a private seller is most likely your best choice; but be prepared to spend some time hunting. When I first saw the ad for the car which is now in my driveway, I first bought a Car Fax and an Auto Check. They were consistent on mileage, service and number of owners. I had a couple of conversations with the owner, who said all the right things. He also provided a lot more pictures in addition to those in his ads. We agreed on the price, subject to a final inspection; and I flew to Chicago. The car was "as represented" and I drove it home.


However there are a number of threads here with stories about guys who traveled to look at "nice" cars and found dogs. There is only so much you can do before looking at a car. I took a chance of wasting a few hundred bucks to go look and I got a great car. If you loose a few hundred, better that than buying a dog.


One final thought. I was dickering with a dealer on a very good car and another buyer jumped in and grabbed it. I negotiated a bit too hard and lost the car. When the next one came up and I was satisfied it was a good car, I offered almost full price (subject to inspection). When the right car comes along, grab it.

 

I bought my XK from the dealer in Asheville, NC; sight unseen. Car exceeded my expectations and had it shipped to me. The saleswoman was dead on with the description. It was a trade in on a newer XK. I would buy one another the same way if it were the same situation. Seemed like they had a good inventory and car was perfect.