V12 Jag. Runs and drives apparently. NMNA

https://lasvegas.craigslist.org/cto/d/1988-jaguar-xjs-classic/6729960659.html

$1500

How does a car with a reputation for not running due too piss poor or lack of basic maintenance of non engine internal components manage to run and drive long enough to get into that state?  Jag engines are basically bullet proof, it's dumb E36 M3 like not oiling the distributor that gives rise to the myth of unreliability.  That car looks like it's been parked in the desert for 10 years.  It staggers me that all the electrical, vacuum, fuel system components can still be in running working condition on a car that looks that bad.  Maybe it's living in the rust belt that makes me not understand this. 

In reply to Adrian_Thompson :

Car is Las Vegas. Having lived in Vegas and living an hour.5 north of there now I can say the heat takes it's toll on things, but rust doesn't really happen. Lots of cool old stuff running around.

32 years of simple under the hood heat has taken a toll on the wiring in my Nissan truck.  I can’t imagine what it would do to a car in NV.  

One day I will be suckered into buying one of these.

In reply to Robbie :

As a Jaguar lover I honestly wouldn’t suggest someone without Jaguar experience  buy one for street use.  While they are relatively straight forward cars to work on without knowledge and or experience it’s all too easy to get overwhelmed with them.  

Race one?  That’s another story entirely.   The problem areas that will overwhelm the average guy on the street go away.  

Race stuff is pretty straight forward. Easy to add power, better brakes and reduce weight.  

The only mildly complex stuff is fitting big wide tires.  

ps there was one for sale in the Minneapolis Craigslist for $1000 last week 

edit; rethinking what I just said, I recently helped a person buy and get running a Jaguar V12 sedan. In hind site he was way past his depth of skill, knowledge, willingness to figure things out for himself.  

The car had been garaged for almost 20 years and while it was in really great shape it did have storage issues.  Mainly the rubber either had expired or was about to expire. The fuel had long since turned to varnish and he wasn’t  willing/capable of dealing with things himself.  

He told me he had always wanted a Jaguar sedan etc etc. lots of experience blah blah blah. 

In the end all he really was is a flipper. Clean polish and paint. He knew how to do but trace a vacuum line to it’s source?  He sent it out!  Replace coolant hoses? Too hard, 

Bottom line? He sold it at a profit but thought he spent way too much time and money.  Wasn’t worth it he said.  

I’d hate to think of how badly he would have been burned without my help ( free ) but I would have never gotten involved if I knew up front all he was was a flipper. 

Is there a CEM (Classic Euro Muscle) class in Autocross?  If not there should be...  

In reply to noddaz :

Why couldn’t cars like this and say Mercedes Benz 450 BMW733 etc run with the Camero’s and Mustangs? 

In reply to noddaz :

I've been saying they should add a "CIM" class for Import RWD "muscle" cars, with the same rules format as CAM

frenchyd said:

In reply to noddaz :

Why couldn’t cars like this and say Mercedes Benz 450 BMW733 etc run with the Camero’s and Mustangs? 

Not saying they can't, but I was making a sort of "stealth" joke about the CAM class. (Classic American Muscle)

noddaz said:

frenchyd said:

In reply to noddaz :

Why couldn’t cars like this and say Mercedes Benz 450 BMW733 etc run with the Camero’s and Mustangs? 

Not saying they can't, but I was making a sort of "stealth" joke about the CAM class. (Classic American Muscle)

But wouldn’t we then have to call it CEM ?  ( classic European Muscle ) 

of course to not be narrow minded perhaps we’d best include CJM  ( Classic Japanese Muscle ) 

So then would we not form CAEJM ? 

Or since that seem so••• complex & pretentious, perhaps just Classic  Muscle? CM 

Essentially all the heavily pollution controlled  muscle cars from 1975- 1990? 

Someone needs to grab that for $1000. Are those bbs wheels I see?

In reply to yupididit : No they are 16 inch Jaguar wheels used on later XJS 

You're all overthinking it, the running joke is that to encompass all, it needs to be called Classic Unamerican Muscle.