And most cars today by a mile. I have an F11 BMW too. The ride is awful. The engine sounds like a transit van. The Jaaag is much better. Makes me smile... which I / we all need right now.
I'm out in the wild west with a 98 XJRL..black as well..love your black interior, mine is charcoal and tan. I saved mine from a succession of owners who also just drove with no real care. It's a loving restoration and when I compare cost with something newer, I'm still way ahead. I took it last summer 3200mi for 20 days...through mountains, hot plains and different altitudes...like Marilyn said...like eating ice cream. Two most important things...maintainance ,which you already know, and learn how to 'read' the language of the computer system. It seems to tell you what's going on by linking system alerts in a cascading format...I had three alerts together to tell me the braking system was compromised, which, after a practical search was the brake reservoir had a cracked cap. This car, an old 76 GMC, and an 82 1100 Maxim make my whole stable complete...I hope you'll love yours as much as I love mine...OBTW..26 highway, 20 town...not bad for a 21yr old V8..
Our definitions for "massive amount of work" obviously differ quite a bit. This would be considered quite a decent used car in many places, especially for so little money. The fact you have no check engine light is a minor miracle.
Looks great. I had a R1 like that, but in far worse condition. I hope yours lives on, it's pretty damn special. You must be the first guy in history to say that you will save money in fuel running an XJR.
I have a 2000 xjr with about 62k miles, this model year was when Ford was involved with Jaguar, these are very underestimated cars, I do all the work myself, it's been very reliable, very fast, they were around 70k brand new, it turns heads everywhere i go, i have no regrets.
Have an 04 XJR. It makes me smile every time I drive it. Lot's of potential expensive things that can go wrong. Have spent a lot of cash on it and don't regret a penny. Things to be aware of... Air suspension and cooling system. $3,000 is a pipe dream. Spent almost that much just on suspension in the first 6 months. Donner car will be good for body parts but, I doubt it will help you much in the mechanical areas. Good luck and welcome to the Jag addiction. :)
American gallons are different to British gallons. It is based on the fluid ounces in a pint. An American pint consists of 16 fluid ounces, but the British pint consists of 20 fluid ounces. So as the British and American gallon consists of 8 pints, the American gallon contains less litres than the British gallon.
Thanks for taking care of this potential gem. Shame on earlier drivers who no doubt mistreated it. Looking forward to your next presentation of this rarity reborn.
You still did great. Fast and elegant date night machine. I found a non running xj8 for cheap and got it moving. I was surprised at how flat it corners. Stiff, heavy sway bars. They shrug off bumps (my 16”s) and are pretty well insulated from the world outside. It’s a calming machine that can spank when you want it to. Reminds me of my old ‘59 square bird I should’ve kept. Even the base model xj8. About 6 seconds to 60 puts it in gentle smile territory. The only things that aren’t fun to work on with these is getting transmission cooler lines fixed (they’ll get rubbed through around 170k) timing components, and bent/ broken wires- mostly at doors and trunk. Keep all modules safe from water and keep fluids fresh and you’ll have a slim and classy car that is unique and still good looking. I hope you keep it. Great car. Glass headlights.
Gorgeous car. I've owned two XJs and they required nothing more than gas and the occasional oil change. Not sure where people get that they are so unreliable. The XJ is an absolute pleasure to drive. Good find!
I had a 2004 xjr. One of the best cars I ever owned. Fixing them is easy, lots of online videos. Whole frame is aluminum so no corrosion. I got 28 mpg freeway consistently. Sold it at 150,000 miles. The only real trouble is the air shocks, but fairly easy to change. Loved that car
xjr were the fastest and quickest saloons in their day, 0-60 in 5 seconds which is 911 territory, you should get about 28 mpg on high way but only 14 in town, good car and creeping up in value, a low mileage 1 in uk can sell for anything from £5000 - £15000 +. so u actually got lucky. jags in general are becoming collectable, always been so underrated, probably cos of fuel prices in uk but i love the big cats.
@Daver G I sell cars for a living, have been for 25 years. I think I recognise wanton neglect fella. So what would you call it, fair wear & tear. Even on a 20 year old car?
@Daver G err, did you watch the video? That Jag had tyres down the cords, bumper damage, filthy interior with carpet ruined by spilt hair bleach, parts missing, aren't they some of the things on that list you mentioned that is caused by wanton neglect?
@Daver G well it would seem your interpretation of wanton neglect is different to mine. I am in the UK though & that sort of abuse to a prestige car just wouldn't happen here, it's much less of a throw away society in the UK, hence my labelling of "wanton abuse" on that Jag.
Dude! You read my mind. I almost bought a Jag XJ8 Vanden Plas a year ago as a project car. I’ve always thought one of these could be a sick “baddie” car with the right suspension, tires, and wheels and a aggressive exhaust. I got scared-off because I was worried about finding parts and other people with knowledge of Jags. I can’t wait to see what you do with this.
I have had Jaguars for over 30 years and they are high performance and high maintenance, I'm from the UK. My first Jaguar was a 3.8 S Type 1968 and was the fastest car on the road, I have had the XJ6's and Daimler Jaguars and XJ12's. They are all fast and quiet. I had a workshop manual for the 1968 S Type and rebuilt the engine and Borg Warner automatic transmission (The auto transmission was a separate manual). I can now say I am trained on Jaguar cars. I now have a 2007 Jaguar S Type 3.0 V6. One finds with the Jaguars is there is minimal room in the engine compartment to do any work and they are much easier when they are put on a lift. I have done a complete engine rebuild on a Oldsmobile Delta 88. I had a Rolls Royce but never touched the engine.
My girlfriend bought a 2007 xj ( no r) 50k miles 3 or 4 years ago 80 grand new with the wheels. She paid 22k. The car was new in every way in and out. The rear tray tables looked like made for a king. Very roomy back seat. People admire it and ask if it is for sale everywhere she goes. She said the dealer called her twice offering her more money to get it back. It's one of the most beautiful cars I've ever seen exept for a jag convertable. She loves it. Also its been a good car mechanically
I’ve owned a 2000 Jaguar Vanden Plas XJ8, for ten years. Great cruising automobiles. It’s still in showroom condition with 120,000 miles, garaged, second owner. You can pick up a good used one cheap right now.
Good choice man, I picked up a 97 xj6, car was not taken care off at all. But after 2 years of work, she drives and runs great. I get compliments all the time, project will be definitely worth it.
I have two XJ8 Vanden Plas versions, a 2001 and a 2002. Bought them both in 2013 They're good cars if you have a great mechanic and get them sorted properly. They're more reliable than my wife's MB 2006 E350 4Matic Wagon, which is a nightmare. Who would have thought that we take the Jags on long trips because the Benz is not as reliable?!
You got a bargain. No apparrent rust and seems mechanically very good. It's just trim parts and cosmetics. Unbelievably easy fix, there isn't any 'bringing back to life', it already lives. Wanna really see bringing back to life? See the Arthur Tussik channel. Some of those cars wouldn't be legal reapairs in U.S. or Europe, but check the awesome steel-surgeon at work! Metal magician, truly.
I have a 99 xjr, silver with black interior. Watch out for the little problems that will start coming up after 100,000 miles. My head gaskets went out, had to put 2 alternators on it, a windshield wiper motor (brains to the wiper are in it, wipers will go crazy when the motor goes bad), rear wheel bearings, brake pedal sensor for the cruise control, a part load breather tube (car will stall at highway speed if the tube starts sucking air), water reservoir leaking, other radiator hoses dry rot (they are expensive and about 9 of em) negative battery cable (braided steel that will corrode and drive you crazy figuring out why the car intermideny won't start), coolant return tubes cracking and leaking (little black PVC tubes from radiator to overflow, etc), pulley bearings going out (you can change the bearings without buying expensive whole pulleys), transmission conductor plate inside transmission pan (Powers up 5 solenoids, will shift weird eventually when the plate goes bad), little dash lights go out over time but are replaceable. Had my car since 2012, shit started going out little by little. Head gaskets went out again but it was my fault...changed all the radiator hoses, overflow tank and all PVC tubes but crossed the 2 at the overflow and didn't know it and it was pouring out water as soon as it got slightly warm and I didn't know wtf was going on. All in all though a damn good car if you maintain it. Just be prepared for the stuff going out. I'm about to order my head gaskets and timing tensioner upgrade this week. Last time I had gaskets done it was $3000. I'm doing it myself this time. Not too bad, just scary at first thought but no big deal. Good luck with the car, I'm waiting to paint mine black.
I've got an 03 xjr r1 as well. Valve cover gaskets are a relatively easy fix and I got a full kit of gaskets and seals from rock auto for like 60 bucks. Careful with the dipstick when you're doing the driver side! You need to pull it out a little bit to get the bolt to come out that it mounts to, but pull it too far and its hard to get it back where it belongs. For the rear left tire, there are a couple of tapered roller bearings that sit in the upright itself and connect to the control arm with one long bolt. I've had to replace them on both x308 jaguars i've had and for some reason, it seems like the shims you need to push in there to take up the gaps are always missing. They're cheap enough that it was worth asking the dealer to find them for me instead of sifting through other sites to find them. The big headliner is supposed to come out the back glass. I've seen a couple people on youtube that bend it and pull it out the back door, can't say for a fact that it will crease when it goes back in, but the videos i've seen they look like they crease on the way out. I'll be doing my headliner is this winter. Hopefully some of this helps. I spent a bit of time figuring all of this out, so hopefully you have to spend a little less. I also have a digital copy of the factory service manual that's extremely helpful and I'm happy to share it with you if you'd like it. You got a lot of fun for 1150. good luck with the repairs!
I as in new Zealand and have 2003 XJ8 which bought 10 years ago from Singapore. It's in perfect condition and lovely to drive! Good luck with your XJR And thanks for your positive approach to it Simon Reeves 👍
Nearly ended up with a Jaguar XJ12, which I bid on back in 2001 at an auction for £150, the bidding stalled at £100… then the bidding went up, winning bid was £160, should have purchased it rather than spending too much money on a rebuilt engine for a Rover P6 2000 TC. Love your Jaguar XJR.
Here in the UK (where she was born!) the biggest issue with this shape of XJ is serious rust, in chassis legs and sills (rocker panels) yes, the car is tatty, but it’s all repairable in time, and when you get to know the car and improve it, you’ll realise that it was an absolute bargain. Have to say over here 20mpg is horrendous- it’s funny to hear you say that it’s good mpg and a plus! 🤣
Great video I drove one one these for a few years always lovely to drive Look forward to more videos on it. Tim in the uk. I live close to where your jag was manufactured
She's a beauty, for sure, and a lovely engine. You're lucky, buying something on impulse can be really risky, but it seems the faults are all basically cosmetic, if numerous. But no reason why you shouldn't be able to sort out these issues as time and money permits and be able to enjoy this car for many years to come. Maybe when you get her looking real nice, it's something for a car show. A rarity with full spec always attracts attention!
Massive amounts of work? That car is not even rusted! What kind of cream puffs have you been working on that you consider that stuff a lot of damage?? It's not perfect, but it's a perfect daily driver. I have a complete working sunroof assembly in the Boston Massachusetts area if you want a good deal on one.
This Jaguar is a high tech car for its day, well balanced and handling super saloon. It is 17 years old, these cars ARE reliable if maintained. As many of these Jags go through the ownership cycle they start getting abused and maintained on a shoe string until the issues mount up and compound into a collossal amount of work and big bills. If the maintenance and servicing is carried out correctly they are fine. Many Americans seem to treat these cars like an old cast iron block push rod Chevy or Ford V8 and run them as such, this is not wise and will end badly.
0 - 60 in a very few seconds. Good British car. Something tells me you are going to provide "entertainment" for your local traffic cops. You want "more power" for it????? Have you ever heard the saying "You don't gild a lily".
Nice car and quite a chilled out fix lol nothing tooooo heavy but enough to keep you busy,in the uk that car Costs sbout £100 + to fill the tank so they’re not that popular as the person who could buy it new would probably replace it every 3 years so for the person who could afford to buy it probably would struggle using it daily in fuel and tax plus maintenance,I run an e34 daily but luckily I get all the luxury I want and can fix it and keep it going without sending it to the garage for repairs 👍🏻🇬🇧
Pay close attention to the plastic joints and fittings on the cooling system. If you rub one gently with a screw driver and plastic flakes off, it's time for new ones.
Well done, sounds like she has finally found someone to look after her properly once again. Always pains me to see once fine cars abused and thrashed like this.
One of my favorite cars XJR an the XKR always wanted to own one know this is a older video an just finding you so I'm going to subscribe an see where this goes. 😁
Only year they did the R1 was 2003, great find. I'm going to say the 2002 XJR 100 was the most highly optioned of the time, the 100-anniversary edition, only 500 made, even fewer in left hand drive, even fewer sent to the states. I own 2 of them, lol. It has 19' bbs wheels. The tires will cost you more than the car did, lol.
Taylor,looking at the comments there is no doubt you bought an absolute bargain. Hope it is a keeper,you certainly seem to be warming to it the more you talk about it. A good Investment but hope you don't take the easy route. Great stuff!
I think you made a good buy. The fact that it appears to be mechanically sound is huge. Many of those dings and dents should be able to be removed without paint work. You ought to at least price out the parts you need from salvage before you haul in a parts car. Perhaps you’ve already done that calculation. You can recover the headliner yourself, although the sunroof probably complicates that project. You might try dye on the carpet and take the entire carpet a shade darker. That’s an old detailers’ trick. Couldn’t hurt to test dye in the bleached area anyway. If you can get it close and put in some rear mats, you’d be in good shape there. I also think you’re right that it’s a good value to keep or sell. Once you’re done you can price it where you think the market should be, and if it doesn’t move, so what.
It's an 81-liter tank (so just under 18 US gallons) which is pretty standard for Jaguar XJs. You are, however, not entirely faulty presuming less. The Jaguar X-Type and S-Type, for example, came with circa 60-liter tanks. I must admit, as a Jaguar lover I'm devastated to see one treated so badly. I have a 1996 XJ6 (X300) that has a few age-related problems, but nothing more. It still looks amazing. You hit the nail on the head though when talking about sitting in it. Logically, if you want a luxury saloon, you should buy a BMW. Jaguars just FEEL special though. You can see it in the video, you start off hating it and end up kinda falling in love. The only thing that you said that genuinely make me chuckle was the fact that you considered 20mpg relatively economic :D - Doing about 70mph, this should average closer to 30-35mpg though.
Take matt black spray can and spray carpets. Will look like new and does not come off. Sounds crazy but works 100%.i have changed grey carpets in my car to black and after 3 years still looks good. You won't be able to tell it was sprayed.
I'm in the UK and i love these cars. I have an XJ6 of the same shame. It is only a 3.2 straight 6 but i enjoy driving it, so smooth to drive and great looking over that long bonnet.
This will be a stunning car if stored correctly. Loads of spares in the UK for this car (not too expensive to ship smaller items). I can find one sold in the UL in the last 18 months. Mint condition went for 15,000 U K Pounds. I shall watch with interest...have subscribed.
I have a 2005 S Type Jaguar 4.2 L and 146.000 km and I love it. $1150.00 YOU got a good deal on that car and it's leather and Walnut better, than the plastic crap on US cars .
Lovely lovely car the XJR, wish I had it, I'd get 4 new tyres and just enjoy it and worry about the bumps and scratches in my spare time, an envious Brit😄
Likewise with my '88 XJ6 (XJ40). Paid $500 for it in 2007, drove it 117,000 miles, and overheated and seized the engine in the dead of winter of '13-'14. When it cooled down, it turned over, but had NO compression. Total maintenance costs over seven years was less than $600! And that included a transmission rebuild. Haven't driven it since, but I think I will again sometime. Even my at-the-time 6-year old grandson remarked at what a nice car it was after driving over a rural railroad crossing, which most of the vehicles we ran would really wallow around on. His twin wasn't impressed, but he's turned out to be a kid who thinks the natural restraint system on any vehicle is made up of the windows, the floor, and the ceiling 🤪!
For the price, it is actually a very good car! The drive train is pretty solid, only look out for chain tensioner rattle and repair soon if this occurs. I am sure that you get most of the affected parts easily from scrap years, so fixing to excellent standard without too much cost is doable. One problem: once you sell it you will start to miss it. Jaguars have this ride quality and handling that are difficult to match.
Just found your channel, love the XJR, wifes step mother has one, I have a XF R, there is a white XJ R that is owned by one of my customers, I have offered to buy it many times, but it's owned by an old couple who explained to me, it's the last car they will ever own (they've had it 12 years now) and when thy die, I get the car. The sad thing is, by the time I get the car (hopefully a while yet) I don't know if it's going to be able to be rescued, a Jag is never a cheap fix and this one is going to take a lot.
Despite their reputation it did stand up quite well to the abuse it’s had! A lower quality make wouldn’t be worth fixing up! Those cars sell for silly high money in various parts of Europe, people import them from the USA to resell.
Glad you are going to save this car. It doesn't appear to be in that bad of shape. All cosmetic. Being an '03 you don't even have to worry about the timing chain tensioners. The headliners always sag on these cars as they age. The parts car is a great idea and I'd hold out for an XJR or XJ Sport so you can get the proper seats. I purchased just the seat skins from eBay UK when I bought my XJR as there was a cut in the rear seat. Enjoy it! These are great cars!
Fix the door handle, fix the wiper fluid container, replace the tires. Leave the dents. Keep it. Drive it until the engine explodes. You have a rare, fast, comfy, luxurious car that you won't cry about if a shopping cart crashes into it. If and when the engine dies or it has another major mechanical issue, part it out then, but that could be a decade from now.
Any owner who neglects their car that badly is unlikely to have looked after it mechanically either, i'd expect poor maintenance and a lack of servicing too. Also because it's an R someones probably beat on it for giggles too. Potential minefield of issues with a vehicle that's been treated like that. If you are lucky and you fix all the problems yourself you might be able to fix it up for less than the cars is worth, but it's a gamble. Good luck!
All parts easily available in the Uk and quite reasonable, just shipping costs might need looking into, great cars, doesn’t look bad at all really compared to some I’ve seen over here.
Sad to see, the disparaging comments, I have rebuilt 7, parted 3. I will put my jags dollar for dollar against similar luxury cars by year. I value the work, engineering and style. Not everyone deserves these cars, caution and knowledge are the passwords for ownership.
A little rough around the edges, but for the price, I would just drive it I have a 1993 XJ6 that I bought on ebay for $300. It's waiting for me to replace the head gasket.
Jaguars form this era is the last of the beautiful Jags. Then they went and change them to a very nice looking car, but it just doesn't do it for me like the one featured in this video. The Black sets it off nicely.
I think that is a great guy. I bought an 03 xjr r1 for 850 bucks with 170k miles. Mine is cosmetically a 7/10 in and out. Serious. But it needs a valve job.
@@MitchGrooms XJR 100 and XJR R1 are two different cars. But correct, the XJR 100 was only for the 2002 model year. Lookup the R1. It is basically an xjr 100 without the 19inch bbs montreals. The R1's have the big brakes and bbs milans.
@@brandonherrera2891 LOL, thanks. I had too because I knew the R100 is 2002 only. I do have a car Channel here on RU-vid, I have Jags too..;-) It is under this name..Any vids of your Jag?
@@MitchGrooms I have two x308s. An 02 xj sport and the 03 xjr r1. There are videos of both cars, but mostly when I was just documenting certain problems. Love the x308s, xjr even more so.
@@brandonherrera2891 I looked on your page and did not see the vids, I searched your vids. Look at my page BTW. Are you on Facebook? here is a link to my Jaguar page, its pretty big, would love to talk about all your Jags. I have owned 6 of them. facebook.com/groups/JaguarXJR/
Some people just have much money and they just don't care. Glad your saving tis one hope it does come out at your budget amount. Following to see end result anyway drive and enjoy.
Looks like youre just a set of tires away from a very usable extremely nice beater for under $1500 even if you don't do anything else. Good job lucking out on the mechanicals being solid.
Loved my X308. I drive and X350 R these days, but my Sapphire Blue over Ivory 2002 X308 was a joy. It was a salvage with the best body/paint work I have ever seen. Gorgeous. Hey, double check that you have the 3rd Gen Secondary Cam Chain Tensioners, for the chain between the twin cams on each side. If you dont... GET THEM. The early ones fail and its an interference engine. 'nuff said. 03 should be 2nd or 3rd gen.
Jags are the best cars in theworld - end of !!! Yours is the best of the best with a great spec. You are doing exactly the right thing to restore it. When finished you wil want to keep it forever. I had an X308 3.2 sport for 10 years.[Not an R i'll give you] Never ever tired of it. ps I am a Brit and biased but I have yet to drive a better car !!!
I have always loved Jags from early school days when picked up by neighbour in large Mk 10 behemoth. You need to budget 4 to 10 grand per year to run a Jag I suggest.
Not at all. I am on my third XJ (2001, 2006,2007) Yes they have a few weak points (what doesn't) and I do all my own work. Super reliable, and inexpensive IF you do your own work. Else, budget $1k a year. TOPS, unless you have something that's been mistreated.
Some years ago I went to a local dealer who bought whole sales fleets from companies and there was an XJ6 Sports with the full trim package,lowered,customs calipers,wide low profile wheels,darkened glass and black on black.It looked so mean and was a ridiculous £4,000 when an ordinary Ford saloon was the same.`That`s an awful lot of car for the money`said my more knowledgable companion.but being a family man with fuel economy in mind I didn`t buy it,but I`ve never forgotten his words,he`d say the same about your beast.
Change the diff oil and gearbox oil first before anything else. 'Sealed for life' Utter bollocks. Also check the supercharger for bearing whine if need to get changed get all the bearings done at the same time, don't be cheap. You could get a pulley change done too. Make sure you upgrade the cooling circuit too though. Not Nick named Heatons for nothing.
I have an XJR with the same very popular color scheme. Love it! I've put 32,000 miles on it in the last 2-1/2 years with fewer repairs than the cost of a lease on a Kia Rio! A parts car is a good idea considering you need both bumper covers, carpet kit, glove box, etc. You may want to check out LKQpickyourpart.com and get on their alert list for your car. Would save you the hassle of a parts car. Anyway, the tire being bald on the inside was most probably a front tire for most of it's life. Because XJ's and XK's of this era suffer from bad bushings (and while your at it, tie rod ends) because they weigh 4,000 pounds. One thing you should check is the timing chain tensioner. If it's metal, then a previous owner did you a big favor. If it's plastic, then your engine could catastrophically fail at any minute. Replace the timing chain cover gasket after checking. I know its a big job, but its a life or death situation with these 1998-2003 4.0 liter XJ's & XK's. These are great cars. The problems with the 70's and 80's XJ lemons of the past gave them a bad name, but these newer Ford owned cars are much better.
That is a nice looking car. If it were mine, I would just take it slow, spending a lot of time on the internet looking for parts. I love it. When the engine poops and parts become obsolete, you can always put an ls3 or an lt4 with a modern Chevy tranny in it. That way it would save on the headache time researching on the internet. It looks roomy to me and that is ideal in my book. Today’s cars are too tiny, small and tight. The lines on that car are absolutely beautiful. Wish I got it for your price. It is a daily driver and a keeper. My best to you. I do not see any rust which makes it even better.
its not beat up. its not all damaged. Ive owned 9 jags, and I have 2 xjr's as of now. they are not expensive to repair..... IF you know how to do it. Replace timing chain tensioners immediately. it needs maintenance. a couple cosmetics. stop saying massive amounts of work with the little you have stated. hit me up and ill fill you in if you want on stuff. If you dont replace timing chain tensioners, it will destroy the car. All the parts you describe are pulled from any xj series jag from 98 to 03. Again I got 2 xjrs in my drive...... including 2 vanden plas. And stop talking about going to copart to buy a whole car, go to a junk yard.... ( its hard... ) and get the little you need part by part.
Sorry but you overstate the negatives - this is a classic and all it needs is labor and consumables - dye for the carpet, glue for the headliner, paint for the door, stuff for the leather. You should bring it most of the way back and just enjoy it as it stands.
