Found and test drove my first XK8 last night. As you might guess I did not drive it home. The car looked and rode great, although a bit cramped for a 2XL guy coming from a Lexus LS430. Maybe I should be looking at a sedan(?) but really like the looks of the XK convertable.

After checking with the credit union I might have to stick with an 06 since they will finance that year for 60 mos vs 36 months for anything older. I have some cash down but not enough to buy all cash.

The car: Located this 2006 gold XK8 convertible with 42,000 miles on Craigslist, 2nd owner asking $24K. Car in very good condition, everything worked, no scratches or damage except for a little road rash on 2 wheels, drove fine and just needed a full detail and would have looked fantastic. Seller had an offer in hand that expires today from Carmax and would have let me take it for a pre-buyers inspection but at 5PM last night that wasn't going to happen.

Thanks to the recommendation I found on the forum, I called Mike at Motorcars LTD in Carrollton and will have him do a pre-buyers inspection on whatever I eventually buy. I need to get a car like this on the lift to see how it looks from underneath and have a mechanic to look it over so I know what I am getting into. That's just me and maybe I missed a good buy yesterday as a result but who knows.

On the way home, I stopped at the Jag dealer in Plano and talked to a salesman named Steve. That dealership was recently bought by Park Place. They were selling 5-10 cars/mo and PP wants to get that to 40+/mo. They are bringing in more used inventory and asked for a lot more new cars from Jaguar. Steve said they got a 2003 XKR with 8K miles on a trade last Saturday and it was there 2 hours before it was sold.

The search continues . . .

 

So take it for an inspection today? If there's only some road rash and some dirt, don't let the car go. You might visit Mike multiple times with multiple vehicles until you find the right one.

 

Good suggestion but my job and his job got in the way. Anyway, I hate to feel rushed. His final offer was $23,500 without an inspection good till 5PM today. kbb value is $25,700 so that deal is not too bad if everything would have checked out.

 

If he really wants to sell the car, he will work with you...........If you really like the car, make the deal dependent on the inspection.

 

Well, it's at Carmax now. I called to see if I could work a deal "as is" with them and they don't do that. They will go through their process and have it listed for sale in a week or so.
I should not have stopped at the Jag dealer on the way home and see the '07 XK's they have on the lot. They seem to be a bit more roomy which is nice . . for an additional $20K. Yikes.

 

Less boot room by far though!

 

And they don't look as sexy

 

Just because I live in Texas doesn't mean I wear boots. My size 13 1/2 shoes fit just fine under there.

Oh wait, are we talking that boot, bonnet, petrol and robot language?

K, you have something there, your car looks great.

 

Oh, don't tell the ladies about your shoe size!!

 

The XK8 is the better car over the XK in my opinion. I have owned both. In 10/97 I leased my 98 XK8 coupe and bought it at lease end, still have it and love driving it. In '06 I leased an '07 XK coupe and and was happy to give it back at lease end. Not that there was anything wrong with it but it just felt big and bulky - not lithe and sporty like the older model. For big & bulky I have my Jeep.

 

I know that there are Pros-n-Cons both ways, so it is good to hear an opinion from someone that has owned both.
Thanks,
Brian