It's pretty much the way it works here, though a dealer makes the first registration and having a car sat for 20 years would mean a pile of dreadful issues (for the dealer), such as a big capital loss.

By way of example quite a few S-Type R cars were reg'd in 2008 (or later) though actually built 2007. Inevitably they'd sat around which at least in my eyes just reduces their value.

The VIN and registration document in effect reveal stuff like the above.

 

Lovely motor :-)

 

That's what I thought!

 

That looks like a very good starting place Jim.

1 owner all its life is promising. Mileage is nothing to worry about. It IS a 2006 model year car (the quaint radio antenna is the obvious giveaway) so you might be able to use that as a haggling point. Personally, I'd prefer much lighter coloured leather in a dark car like that (mine is Lunar Grey /Ivory for example) but that is just a personal preference.

I would check the service history carefully. You need to see Jaguar main dealer stamps and/or a respected independent specialist's stamps. IMO, a stamped service book is NOT a 'full service history' and I would want to see all the invoices too. Only the invoices tell you what work was actually carried out. Also, pretty much every enthusiast owner will have kept a file of everything ever done to the car with all the corresponding invoices. If the invoice file is missing, ask why. The dealer /garage which serviced the car (see the service book) should be able to give you photocopies of all the invoices (offer to pay them a little for their trouble, although IME they never want it). If the garage says it can't give you the invoice copies due to Data Protection Laws, then tell them to blank out the previous owner's details before copying the invoices: you are interested in the content of the invoices not the name and address of the previous owner.

Invoices can tell you a lot - way more than a set of service stamps. For example, I'd like to see that the gearbox oil has been changed on a car with that mileage. It is supposed to be sealed for life, but all those in the know say it is is recommended to change the oil at 50,000 miles or so. In fact, I'd like to see that all fluids have been changed recently too. These things don't show up on the x-thousand mile stamp in the book!

I would also check the interior very carefully, looking for rips, tears, scuffs, damage of any sort as this can be very expensive to rectify. In the UK it doesn't get hot enough to worry about the dash leather peeling away but check it carefully anyway. On these cars electrics are very, very critical. Check that *every* button and switch operates correctly. If some don't, get them to agree to fix it before you take delivery. IMO that is better than them reducing the price a little and letting you get it sorted, since it can often cost more than you had thought. You ideally want to see a battery that is no more than 2 years old as well. Battery problems cause a lot of issues with these cars as they are so computer intensive.

Other than that, all the things you'd look for in any used car - check bodywork for issues, accident damage etc. ASK if the car has ever been in an accident of any kind - a dealer is obliged by law to tell you (not so a private seller I think). Check the seat belts. In any serious collision the seat belt actuators will have fired and often this means replacing the belts rather than repairing them. For some reason, some dealers will use secondhand belts from a breaker's and they will be grubby and look 'worn'. Just use commonsense and remember what Ronnie Regan said: always trust, but verify. Good advice.

I'd go and look at this example. Even if you don't buy it, it will give you some experience of the cars and a reference point. People always say "don't buy the first car you see" and it's good advice, but if the first car you see is genuine and ticks all your boxes, why not buy it? I have bought 'first seen' more than once and have never regretted it. Just be careful. Remember you are getting a fairly 'exotic' car and while the X150 is a reliable car (as 80srule says earlier) they are not Kias, so they will cost more if and when they need attention.

Finally remember the Golden Rule with cars like these: if in doubt, any doubt, walk away. XKRs aren't scarce so there will always be plenty of others to look at.

 

Very detailed and excellent advice mate, thank you.

I have seen some NA 4.2 cars very close to me, although I want an XKR I think I am going to view the close by ones to give me something to benchmark against. Will help understand what a good one is when I see one.

 

​​​​This will not happen. Pulley without a tune is money wasted . Probably max you will gain with exhaust and pulley is 20 hp at best but with proper tune it's a different story , I'm at near 100hp gain.. I can help with a custom tune. I also have lower temp thermostat with a more reliable design for our cars as well as tuning to match cooling fan start points and other custom tuning options.

 

The 'quaint radio antenna' wasn't replaced with the hidden antenna until the 2008 MY.

All cars that come down the assembly line at the same time are the same MY regardless of where they are heading in the world. They will have the same basic build spec plus whatever customer options or market specific options are required.

If a car is first registered in 2006 in the UK then it would be listed as a 2006 car but it would still be a 2007 MY car.

This is the summary of the first production XK from Topix. Note its MY:

 

What AlexJag said. He re-tuned my 2011 XKR175 Im using a upper pulley and his tune made the car a complete monster. Mid range torque creates an amazing tunnel vision due to the incredible and instant speed attained Way more power (safely) then some of the more expensive tunes.
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