Hi guys,
I attended the annual Jag Club of Central Florida party this last Saturday. Many, many, cool Jags of various years there, and it truly was a great party! One of the members drove his DB9 to the party and offered me a ride in it. I jumped at the opportunity, and we had a nice spin around the neighborhood. He stepped on it a few times, and yes, it was thrilling to say the least! The DB9 was drop dead gorgeous and very high tech in every way. The exhaust sounded fantastic, and the acceleration was very crisp. The hood seemed as light as a feather, being made of aluminum (as well as the rest of the body) and had REALLY good pneumatic hinges. That being said, I didn't feel that my XKR suffered all that badly in comparison. Unfortunately, the trunk was so small that I'm not sure my Tennis Bag would fit in it. The rear seat was tight enough that it made a Jaguar's rear seat look like that of a Cadillac! I may be delusional, but I felt that my Jag's ride was as smooth and comfortable, or better. My modified exhaust sounded almost as nice, and although his interior was nicely decked out in leather everywhere, I missed my Burl pieces. Driving back to the coast from Orlando, I felt very happy with my Jag. I appreciated the beauty high tech features of the DB8, really didn't suffer any pangs of envy. With his options, he said that it was $189,000.00. Since I bought my Coupe slightly used for an incredible price, I figure that I am ahead at least $150,000.00, even after my modifications. I know that to many people 150K is a mere pittance, but to me, that is a fairly serious chunk of change. I'll keep my beloved Coupe...................and leave the difference in the bank!

 

Brian,

Earlier this year Top Gear magazine (I think) had a comparison test between the Aston Martin DB9 and a Jaguar XKR. They came to pretty much the same conclusion that you did. While both cars were very nice, they thought the XKR was a better GT car due to its better suspension, more powerful engine and better transmission. Since they were both designed by Ian Callum they naturally look fairly similar. I was a little surpised about your comment on the back seats. I thought both car's back seats were designed for legless midgets. Your comment about the XKRs being relative bargains is pretty spot on in that there is a $60K or better spread in cost between the two cars.

Mike

 

Hey Mike,
Yeah, I was really surprised at the rear seats, as I too thought that our rear legroom was pretty bad. Prior to moving the passenger seat backwards, there was maybe 2 inches between it and the rear seat cushion. Definitely a great car, but for that amount of money.......................
Brian

 

Here is SoCal you see evidence of all sorts of people who apparently have money to burn but I can't really relate to someone who would consider $150K a mere pittance. The "previously owned" market (especially with Jaguar) is a wonderful way for common folk like me to get a taste of "champagne wishes and caviar dreams".

Doug

 

Doug,

It seems like a lot of us have "champagne wishes and caviar dreams" but beer and tuna fish budgets. I'm considered a Jaguar 'lifer' by the local Jaguar dealer since I'm on my third one.

Given the choice between a $190K DB9 or a $105K XKR I would take the the XKR and the money. I would then add in a 961 Norton Commando and pocket the rest.

Mike

 

Guilty! Sometimes it seems like cheap beer and some free crackers from a restaurant

 

Guess I'm a lifer too, now being on my third Jag... (Oh, and I have the cool Mont Blanc Jaguar pen too!) I wanted to get something a bit more high-end (e.g. Rolls, Maserati, Ferrari, etc...) but in researching repair costs, they were simply prohibitive. A "common" shop visit for a Ferrari would cost more than a blown engine replacement for a Jag (or in some cases, a whole Jag!) I used to see the guys on the forums bragging about spending $7K for this visit, $12K for this one...no thanks.

I'll be happy with my nice looking car and only couple thousand dollar visits!

Dave

 

My dad used to have a biturbo maza untill the engine had to go to Italy for a rebuild LOL.