I am looking at a 2000 XKR with 112,000 miles on it. All I have is pictures to go by, the car is 1200 miles away. It's being sold by a large US dealer chain and the pictures show me a car, just as traded. Driver seat shows some normal side bolster wear, some nicks in the bumpers and curb rash on the wheels, all to be expected. Car comes with 3 keys, 2 regular and one valet, as well as all the books, those are good signs. But all in all the pictures show me a car that was cared for, maybe not meticulously, but no where near neglected either. The car is being sold as "driveable" and no known issues are listed, but it's not a Jaguar store, so taking it with a grain of salt.

My use for the car would be summertime fun and would likely rarely leave the county I live in. So maybe 2500 miles a year, tops.

What do you think, is this something that could give me 10 years of enjoyment without costing me zillions to keep on the road ???

 

Chip, without the asking price it's hard to comment. That only multiplies without photos or a link to the ad.

Hey you never know, where is the car? Maybe someone lives around the corner from it and would be in the mood to give it a look for you.


John

 

Could be a cheap ride, but you’re right to be concerned.

XKRs are seriously fun, fast, comfortable GT cars but they are old now with the usual old luxury car problems. Plastic & rubber never ages well.

Serious big ticket items include engine chain tensioners, coolant hoses, front suspension. Check these.

If the car has been kept and serviced well you may be fine. Only buy this car if you have a half decent garage, are handy with a wrench and good at troubleshooting electrical gremlins.

Short of it, is that this is a car enthusiast’s dream beauty, but will need care, plus a fat wallet in case you need parts. This Forum is great for advice which helps keeps costs down.

 

These cars are generally traded in about the time they start "needing" a bunch of stuff, i.e. right around 100K miles. They squeak and they leak and the owner will get a quote of many thousands of dollars from their local dealer or mechanic. Then he'll figure he'd rather put that money into a newer car. Its the reason Jaguars and other European luxury cars depreciate to nearly nothing by 20 years old. The fate of most is to be auctioned and sold as-is on some tote-the-note lot to someone who plans to just live with the squeaks and leaks and just keep their fingers crossed. It can be a logical risk if you get the car cheap enough. Occasionally an enthusiast comes to the rescue and spends the money to have everything fixed up, but they really have to get it cheap because they'd probably lose money fixing everything even if they got the car for free.

There are a few well-documented things on this forum that are critical that you check, like timing chain tensioners. Much of the rest is up to you just how perfect a weekend cruiser you want but if you're only going to do 2,500 miles a year, then it could be a long time before you absolutely had to pay a big repair bill. You could arrange to have an independent mechanic check it out and tell you what all it needs right away, its probably a long list, but then decide if you want to buy it and if so, what all you want to fix and what you are willing to live with. Heck, I've got a couple of far older classic cars that leak like a sieve, but nobody at the car show knows just what a mess they leave on my garage floor and since that's as far as they ever go, there's very little chance they'll leak themselves dry. Someday I'll retire and have time to fix them, but they've been leaking for years and haven't missed a car show yet because of it (well, once a brake caliper started leaking, but that's one of those critical things you'd fix right away).

 

Just to add another little tidbit, if it's a convertible, check out the top. After this much time and that much mileage, the mechanism will need work, as well as the top itself.

 

 

The 4.0 XKR has the Mercedes gearbox, which is as reliable as they get. Once you have changed the tensioners/guides (which you either need proof it has been done, or budget for the work) then you will have a car as reliable/unreliable as any other 19 year old car. Parts are cheap on these cars and this forum contains all the knowledge you will ever need to keep the car going - if it drives as well as it looks I wouldn't hesitate to make an offer.

Also bear in mind these cars can rust, depending on which part of the world they are in, so check underneath carefully.

 

Here's some images of the car. I've done a little business with this dealer before and the car arrived in better than anticipated condition. I wish there was some way to get an independent appraisal, but that's not possible and the car will be liquidated on Monday afternoon. It's being sold in an auction situation and the price right now looks reasonable to me. My concern is not what I have to pay for the car, but is this going to be a money pit like nothing I've experienced before? I'm 65 and moderately disabled. My goal with anything like this that it becomes family, unless we'd have to "put it out of it's misery". :-) The thing is, I have wanted a Jag since I was about 12, I think. Back then it was the XK-E. So basically whatever I end up with is going to get easy miles, at least as long as I am doing the driving.

Anyways, there's more pictures but those are of details, these give the jist of what shape the car currently is.

 

This looks just like the 2000 XKR a dealer in West Bend, Wisconsin had on his lot a few months ago. He had it advertised as a mechanic's special and was asking five or six grand. If it is same car then I imagine this dealer sent it to auction and it was picked up by this one. I looked at the CarFax and the West Bend car was sold new in southern Florida, then found its way to one of the northeastern states, finally ending up in the Midwest. If this R's report tells a similar story then it is almost certainly the same vehicle.

I don't know exactly what you mean by trouble but if you're looking for something to just put gas into and change the oil then keep looking. These are semi-exotic GT's that cost money and time to maintain properly. The good news is that, like already mentioned, the prices are at rock bottom now and can only go up from here. Keep it in this condition without any distasteful modifications and you'll be ahead of the eight ball.

 

If you cannot DIY the vast majority of the ongoing required maintenance and repairs, walk away and do not look back. If you must pay someone else to keep the car in proper running condition for you, it can drain your checking account in a hurry....

 

I have the belief that these cars will always be a $15-20K expense. Either you will get a "really good deal" and pay 10K for one with another 5-10K in repairs. Or you will pay 15-20K for one that is in well maintained condition and has already been "expensed" by its current owner.

It is doubtful you will never find one for ~10K that needs nothing and lasts a long time. Cars like that are simply worth more than 10K in today's market.

Just understand that ultimately it is going to cost you $15-20K - eventually. You can pay more for a well maintained car and truly enjoy it. Or you can pay less and enjoy it whenever it is not being repaired/costing you more money.

 

If you’re at auction, don’t be tempted with the beauty of a XKR. It does look fabulous but beauty tends to need need love, care... and a fat wallet.

If you don’t have a service history, there are too many unknowns. As an example, if the convertible hood’s hydraulics are original, they are well past it and needs work. That’s easily USD1500k alone. Changing the engine chain tensioners is another USD2k. If you can’t do this yourself, it’s a no go.

As prices are rock bottom, I suggest look elsewhere. Plenty of better informed options out there

 

I can see why your tempted. It does appear a very nice car. But heed the warnings above. I call this situation "I want one eyes". There must be someone who owns an XK8 or XKR around where live on this or another Jaguar forum. Take them along to take a look at the car for you. Established owners can see and feel problems.

When you go to look at a Jag just see if the drivers headrest goes up and down. Many don't.

As for the roof hydraulics all is not lost. If you do get the famous 'green shower' that is hydraulic fluid leaking from a joint above your head from the light dont worry. Its do-able. I did mine it cost me £120 uk and I have done a step by step guide to doing it.

If you want to know some of the problems and general maintenance of the XKR/8 then have a read of this click me to read if you have a few days to spare that is.

 

The ones on his car definitely won't.

 

Well I really have to thank each and every one of you for laying it out there and no one blowing any smoke up my butt !!!
I passed because of the input here and how little you all showed me that I know about an XKR.
Car turned out to be a one owner and was a Florida dealer selling their trades. After I looked all the pictures over, being a one owner didn't surprise me. I wouldn't have ended up with it anyays because the end of the auction turned into a pissing match with the price going up at least 25% when I closed the window out. It was closing in on double what it opened at.
So thank you all again for taking time to give it to me straight and it was a learning experience I wouldn't have had without all your help !!!

Chip