Any opinions on late 90’s Jaguars? What kind of track record do they have and are the wicked expensive on up keep?
They are generally unreliable and they are wicked expensive to keep running. That’s why you can get them at what seem to be bargain prices.
Agree; a friend of mine had a 12 cylinder model as his weekend and fun car. They have 2 Acuras as “his and hers” cars as well!!! The Acuras were used for serious driving and to get to work on time.
My friend will agree with you that they are “wickedly” expensive in upkeep, like being married to Paris Hilton.
His was demolished in a crash lately so he is now looking for another hobby car.
On a 90’s Jag just change the oil and cross your fingers. They are relatively inexpensive to buy for a good reason.
I have a middle 90’s Jaguar that I bought for 50 dollars. Yes. Fifty. It was stupid expensive for the woman that I bought it from. 14 thousand dollars in repair bills over the previous 13 months. And now her Jaguar repair facility was telling her it would cost her 3,000 dollars to “clean her fuel jet”. Turned out it needed a 3 dollar relay to keep the fuel pump running.
Yes, they’re stupid expensive to maintain because their electric components are at times of pretty poor quality, despite how pretty they look and how much they cost. They also have what can only described as “maddening” design flaws.
If you can and will do your own repairs, though, especially electrical repairs, it might not be such a bad car to own. Just don’t EVER expect it to be reliable.
An excellent source for repair information, repair manuals, interesting Jaguar stuff, etc.: http://www.captainjaguarscathouse.com/
I have always liked the looks of the Jaguar and sometimes get the urge to buy one to show my colleagues with BMW’s and Mercedes Benz’s that I “have arrived” (arrived at what I don’t know). To get around the reliability issue, I would also purchase a flatbed car hauler and haul the Jaguar to work early in the morning when nobody would be around. I could unload the Jag in a parking place and make my colleagues think that I am really somebody.
At least the V12 was discontinued in 1997, so a more recent one would have a more reliable, more modern design.
Still an expensive beast, but not nearly as unreliable as they used to be.
A friend of mine bought a brand new Jag a few years back. It was in the shop once a month with one mysterious problem after another. She got tired of it after a year and traded the car (at a HUGE loss) for a Subaru.
If a new Jags is that bad, imagine how a used one would be. As others have said, what seem like bargain prices are not, really. They’re just the price of admission.
Having said that, a used XK-8 for the price of a new Kia is tempting. Maintenance costs would be astronomical, but what a gorgeous car.
Don’t do it unless you have a qualified Jaguar mechanic to help you take care of it. And don’t do it unless you have money to burn.