series 2. Where are they all?

[HJMiller]

Hi All
Just joined the club/forum with the dream of one day owning a series 2!

Where are they all? At least the ones I can afford. Does anyone know of a reasonable one for sale
for the (I think reasonable) price of up to 6K?

I know it'll need some fettling for this price, but they are few and far between.

Any tip offs would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers

Howard

[J44EAG]

Have a chat with Keith Parrington at XJ Restorations in Eastbourne.

Keith works on these cars for a living and knows them well. He may know of one that might be for sale.

Mike K

[oldtimer]

Hi HJ,
Three or four years ago the XJ Series were so unloved that one would have to pay the car breakers to take them away. Many of them that were still running found their way into Banger racing and then joined so many others that had been scrapped off because of the prohibitive repair costs. Fuel costs frightened people off with fuel consumption figures of 12/15 mpg for the V12 version and a little better at 18/22 mpg for the straight six XK engine.

A few have survived that have been carefully maintained and cared for but because of their rarity values have raised dramatically. You may have read of an XJ that recently went to auction and sold for an astonishingly high figure of £36,000. This apparently is the highest figure ever achieved for an XJ. It also had a total mileage of 393 miles, so one has to ask just were has this car been kept over the past many years.

I hope you have managed to read Keith Parrington's of XJ Restorations Ltd article in this months magazine in respect to an XJ Coupe restoration. It is worrying that because of the recent value increase that poorly restored over priced vehicles will start to appear.

You don't mention your experience or skill levels in such matters or your understanding of the potential costs of rectification and repair.
I know a fellow who is well versed in such matters recently paid 10K for a nice XJ and having seen the vehicle would agree that yes it is a good buy. However in the mean time he has spent a considerable amount of time and money correcting aspects that were not satisfactory including some welding.

In conclusion I can only suggest that you approach this aspiration with the very greatest of caution. I have a Series 2 XJ12 which is a hobby car and would not dream of using it as a daily car. I think you will find that most members that own Jaguars of this period also treat them as hobby cars not for daily use.

I hope you find my personal views on this subject of some use

Regards Oldtimer

[mike020150]

Like any 40 year old car, whatever the marque, body condition (i.e. rust!) is the most important issue when buying a series XJ. Inevitably, with age, body panels are becoming more difficult to source whereas most mechanicals are reasonably plentiful. The good news is that these cars in good condition feel remarkably modern to drive. Certainly, I have no hesitation about driving mine to and from the continent. The ride quality is good and with decent door seals to keep out wind noise, these models are great long distance cruisers capable of maintaining (and comfortably exceeding) speed limits for hours at a time. The only pauses are for fuel, as already mentioned elsewhere. Get one whilst prices are rising and not after they have risen! Mike

[340jag]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wv4anTKHleI

[mike020150]

The moral of that clip appears to be, 'Don't take your XJ to Essex!' Mike.

[340jag]

Or if you need parts for XJ6's scrap yards over there should have a few lol

[davidr]

Are you sure that was Essex? It's just that I don't think I heard a single gun shot!!

[mike020150]

I think the Benfleet sign was the give-away... Mike.