Found a used '97 XK for sale that has been screaming my name, so I have been looking around for more info on Jags and found this wonderful site. I haven't even seen the car in person yet (not enough time available yet), but the owner said that the top will not go down, so I started looking to see what kind of trouble I might be getting myself into. I have learned quite a bit about what to look for (and listen for) when I get to go see it... I seem to have already convinced myself to buy it, just glad to have some info before locking eyes on it and handing over the checkbook.

Anything in particular that, if noticed, should send me running for the woods? I have read about the timing chain issues, and understand that that would be noticed best on a cold start (will ask about 3rd gen tensioners).

Thanks for the advice,
Jim

 

First off, Welcome, Jim. Sounds like have been doing your homework. If you haven't already, check out the XK8/XKR FAQ. It is packed with great information.

 

BigJimbo:

You might want to read closely on this forum on what to expect with an XK8--especially earlier model years. There is a checklist in the FAQ's that a mechanic would use to go over the car from stem to stern. The FAQ section also has two parts files (covering most of the cars' parts) with the mechanic's hours to replace those parts.

Must do's are pulling the valve covers to inspect the secondary camshaft tensioners for cracks--a $800-$2000 repair. Another must do is to change the water pump to a metal impeller and a new metal thermostat housing.

Convertible top repairs can be extremely expensive when you're dealing with $1500 pumps, $233 cylinders, $800 top latches, $150 hoses. Just replacing hoses (a very common repair) requires pulling most of the interior--and is extremely time consumming (and expensive.)

Early model XK8's had a number of issues later addressed by Jaguar--and later model XK8's had modifications.

You might want to check E-Bay Motors and/or Autotrader.com to get a feel for pricing. Even if you got a 97 model cheap, a couple of problems might erase an advantageous price advantage--not counting frustrations of ownership.

Good luck!

 

You know you want that car. Educate yourself then decided to buy it or maybe a better one.

We will be there for you.

 

What bamaman said +1. Squared. Times infinity.

If I were looking to buy another XK8, I wouldn't run away from a '97, but I'm going to make damn sure that it's not going to be a money pit. If the previous owner has taken care of the major things like tensioners and the water pump, then you could end up with a very nice car. But those few high-dollar items could eat you up.

In regards to the convertible top, it should be pretty easy to figure out why it isn't working. Do the windows come down? Does the pump motor spin? Is the reservoir full? As a buyer, I'd want to figure out why it doesn't work before I buy it. Of course, I don't want to repair it in the process and take away that negotiating point. I'd decide what I'm willing to pay for the car if the top was working, then deduct $2000. And if you get a really really good deal, and you can't fix the top, it can be manually raised and lowered, it's just a pain in the ***. It's the kind of thing that you only want to do twice per year; once in the spring to lower it, and once in the fall to raise it.

 

Thaanks for the encouragement, and the awesome site. I have always been a DIY kind of guy so I had never considered taking the daunting task of learning the ins-and-outs of an imported sports car, but the resources you guys have made available here make me feel more comfortable with a ragged out Jag than a newer domestic car owned and driven by a grandmother only to church on Sunday. I hope to finally see the car in person tomorrow... was afraid to before since the pictures were almost enough to make me fall in love, let alone touching it. I am hoping that it will not need too much work right off the bat since I have a rather tight schedule for the next few weeks, but I think I have decided to get one of these even if it is not this one. Never cared much for the look of the 80's and 90's XJ models, but the XK is one gorgeous car.

 

Taking on a Jaguar, especially a 10 year old one seemed a daunting challenge until I discovered these forums. This is better than having a Jaguar technician as a next door neighbor.

There are lots of low mileage cars out there but I started with one with 106k miles and found that ALL the critical issues had been taken care of.

You can get much of the maintenance/repair history from the dealer, especially if it had a Select Edition (Dealer warranty).

 

I owned a BMW Z3 prior to my XK8 and the BMW forums weren't nearly as helpful as this one. Ironically, my BWM had a traction/ABS error just like the common problem with the Jags. No one ever suggested that I should try cleaning the sensors. I was told that the only way to identify which sensor was bad was to take it to the BMW dealership for a $200 evaluation, then the sensor itself would cost $300. Someone else told me which fuse to pull to get rid of the warning light. I bet I could have just cleaned the sensors and fixed the problem if I had known how.

My point is just that darn near any problem you'll run across has probably already been addressed here on jaguarforums. And even if you come across something new, there are lots of people who will actually enjoy helping you solve whatever puzzle the jaguar god throws at you.

 

+1 Congrats on doing your homework you are way ahead of the game. When I first started my search I was attracted to the 97-02 generation by the price point. I looked at quite a few and thanks to research on forums like this I new the correct questions to ask. I was astonished by how many owners could not (or would not) tell me if the big three items (Timing chain guides/Cam tensioners/water pump) had been addressed. Which immediately made me walk away, as in my admittedly **** opinion, I did not consider such a car as well cared for. Ultimately I opted to go for an 03 with the 4.2. Although it cost more, my past experience in this type of weekend car/collector segment has taught me that stigma and or perception, right or wrong, ultimately hurts the long term value of a car. IMO these cars have probably bottomed out in value. The value will remain flat for a while and then should start to rise. Good Luck. You are going to love it.

 

Finally got to see and drive the cat today... Glad that I started looking for help here before going to see it, I did fall in love with it. Now I have to process the info and figure out if I really want to put the time and money into it. There are no key fobs, and only one key (which starts the car and opens the trunk but will not unlock the doors?). Carfax has 5 previous owners, it keeps dropping into Valet mode... just need to read a bit more on the forum to see if this project is something I am willing to take on right now. It is the Carnaval red color, with a small damaged area on the passenger door and looks like something hit the front bumper....

 

Hi, that car sounds like a money pit right off the bat. To get a full lock set fitted isn't going to be cheap, and what does that say about the history.
Saying that, if it's for the right money, why not. At the end of the day it's a car not a space shuttle, and if it feels right, anything can be fixed for reasonable money. If you need a car to turn the key and go, this is not the one, but i would guess for not much more outlay, and a bit of searching you could find it, no problem.
A 97 can be a great prospect for not much money. Look for a car with the least amount of owners, with good history, all the keys and handbooks etc.
Thinking about the keys, the only door lock is probably seized as they never get used.

 

Unless you get the car for a song and a dance, I'd probably stay away. The body damage alone is going to cost a decent amount of coin let alone any of the other problems that can be associated with it. Since you're missing the fob and don't have the spare set, that with a non-operational top is all gonna run you several grand. The 97 KBB value is about 6.5k in excellent condition with no issues. I paid 8 grand for mine, it had no obvious mechanical or electrical issues and didn't show it's age (I swear, it only looks a couple years old at most). I bought it without doing any research and lucked out as every major issue had already been addressed.

If you just have to have it and you don't mind scouring ebay and the typical used Jag parts dealers to fix it yourself, even at a low price, you still get quite a bit of car for the $$$.

My car probably needs to have the suspension bushings replaced, I bought her with 143k miles, and I had considered selling the car to buy a newer and nicer, as well as more expensive vehicle when my friend said, "If you buy any car you're going to have specific costs involved, it's basically a hobby, and even if you have to put more money into the car than it's worth, you'll still have to do that with any other car you would buy." He sold me. I'll be doing my suspension soon even though I could easily buy a newer XKR without the issues, I just love this little car to death, so it's worth it to me even though I'll never be able to get the money I put in out of it, I'll have to just enjoy the money I put in by driving it.

Anyway, good luck with your decision... I love my little XK8 but do envy the newer XKR. My local dealer has a 2007 XKR (last of the old body style) and I was so tempted, but at 6x the price of my XK8 I don't think I'm getting 6x the car.

 

The key should unlock the door. Even the green valet key unlocks the door. Does it actually turn in the lock? If not, that indicates that the lock was changed at some point and it wasn't keyed to your car. Or it could just be that the key never got used in the lock and the lock is just stuck. You should be able to actually use the key to raise and lower the top! If you just turn the key all the way clockwise it will lower the top, and turning it all the way in the other direction will raise it. If the door lock assembly is bad it costs SEVEN HUNDRED DOLLARS at the dealership. You should confirm why the key doesn't unlock the car before buying. If it's a bad lock assembly, getting it repaired at a dealership will run you close to $1000. Deduct that from the purchase price.

Did the owner produce any documentation about the timing chain tensioners or the water pump? If not, the car is worth about $3000 less than it would be otherwise. You can do the work yourself for a lot less, but you're pricing the car based on what it's actually worth, not on what it would cost you to fix it. In other words, if a 1997 XK8 is worth $7800 (according to Edmunds.com) it's worth about $5000 if the major items haven't been fixed. Don't try to talk yourself into it by saying "I can fix the tensioners, water pump and thermostat myself for $500". What it would cost you to do it yourself makes no difference in the value of the car. It's like when you're buying a $200K house that needs $50K in repairs. The house is only worth $150K. If you can do the repairs yourself for only $10K would you be willing to pay $190K for the house? Of course not! The value of the house is decreased by the dollar value of the necessary repairs. It's the same with the car. Don't over pay just because it looks sexy and you think you can do the repairs yourself. There are many more XK8s out there if this one doesn't pan out.

The valet mode issue could just be a stuck switch. It's easy to remove the knee bolster to access the switch. There are two bolts at the bottom of the bolster. Remove those, pull the bolster forward, and it comes right off. It might be something more expensive, though. I'd deduct $500 or so from the purchase price to get that fixed.

Key fobs can be bought for $25-$50 on eBay. You can program them yourself. I'd still deduct at least $100 for each missing fob. Keys are a different matter, though. Only the dealer or a very well-equipped locksmith can do the keys. Expect to pay $200 or more for the key plus programming. You're missing the valet key, too, so there's another $200 to deduct from the purchase price.

So, if you add up all of those numbers, you should be able to buy that $7800 car for about $3000. I doubt the seller is going to go that low, just keep in mind that if all of those items you mentioned have to be fixed at a dealership, it will probably run you $4000 to $5000.

 

Oh crap! I forgot about the non-working convertible top! That's another $2000. And then the body damage is going to be $1000 at an absolute minimum. Any time the body shop has to mix paint you're looking at a grand easy. Now we're down to about, oh... ZERO dollars. I guess any car is worth something as long as it runs, however. Make sure you take it to the inspection station to get your emissions tested before you buy it.

 

No emissions testing in Florida (yet)... still just mulling over the car. There are alot of little issues that will need to be fixed, but I have not found another one in but budget range in the area. Guess I need to expand my search a little to see if I can find one in better shape. Just so sad to see such an attractive car neglected. I have an Actron OBD II reader that I took with me, but of course it would not connect. What issues are common (and easilly correctable) when a dead battery occurs? The Driver's seat controls do not respond... the passenger seat controls do... trunk release and fuel cover release beep, but do not release...

 

I did fall in love with the car, but have decided to look for one that I feel more comfortable with ( one that will talk to my odbII reader). been hitting the internet quite hard, but not too many in a reasonable distance to casually check them out. What are the main concerns to look out for in the newer ones with the 4.2?

 

Jim, I saw this one on the Raleigh Craigslist the other day. It might be a decent deal considering it has a NEW engine and transmission. I can go take a look at it for you if you're interested in coming up to Raleigh to buy it. I'm not sure where you are in Florida, but it takes me about 8.5 hours to get from here to Orlando.

xx-clean jaguar xk8 convertible

 

Check this out. You can search all of the Craigslists in any state. Here's a search for all XK8s for sale on any craigslist in Florida. I see a couple of decent looking deals. Of course, you never know until you actually see the vehicle in person.

http://www.statewidelist.com/Results...&button=Search

 

I have looked at most of these ads already, but Florida is a bigger state than you may realize... I am closer to Dallas than Miami. I just don't want to invest the time and travel only top find out the deal isn't quite so good after all. It may seem petty, but I think that since I am willing to invest the time and money for this toy I am going to wait and watch for one that is a color that I like ( Carnival Red or Saphire Blue) in reasonable shape. I don't want to feel the twinge of regret each time I see one in one of the colors that just make the lines of these cars 'pop'. I spent a good bit of time checking out the info for the 4.0l here on this site since that is what I was looking at, but I need to check out the info for the 4.2l to see if it is worth the extra cost and travel to find one of those.
Thanks again for your help and suggestions.

Jim

 

Ah... so you're in the Pensacola area. My parents live there. That's about a 12 hour drive from here.

That's why I volunteered to check out the one in Raleigh for you. It would suck to drive all the way up here thinking you're getting a good deal only to find out that seller embellished in the description. I've seen that many times. I drove 45 minutes to look at a car that the seller said was in great shape. I specifically asked about the leather seats. He said they were in great shape. When I got there the leather was shredded to pieces. You could see more foam than leather. I was not happy.

Carnival red was my original color choice, but the silver has really grown on me. Now I prefer it to the carnival red. I'll keep a look out for a red or blue one in this area and let you know if I see one for sale.

What's your price range? Personally I think it's worth it to spend a little bit more for a 2003+ I only paid $14K for mine with 73K miles on it.