Opinions on the 1995 Jaguar XJR?

I am not going to say "learn me", because I am too sofistokated : )

What are the thoughts on this ride? I am not a big ford fan to start with, but is this money trap, with one CEL after another?

I think this was mentioned recently, and my understanding is the transmission is non serviceable (as in when, i mean if it breaks you replace the whole thing) for the minor cost of $15k. That right there should be enough to make your decision.

^To buy it and put a chevy V8 init?

I've been looking at them over here in the UK. The AJ16 ones seem to be very robust (at least for a Jaguar) and are reputedly better than the V8 ones durability wise.

Obvious things to check for are funny noises from the engine and the supercharger (which needs an oil change every 100k IIRC) and several of the buyers guides here in the UK mentioned that they sometimes blow a head gasket for no apparent reason at around 140k. I've seen a couple with really bad rust but the majority of them (and I'm talking 90% upwards) seem to hold up very well.

In reply to Travis_K:

I don't think many of us here would buy a new $15k trans.

This reminds me of a local who got rid of his E30 since it needed $3000 in trans/clutch work.... (a $3-400 affair at our household)

hmmm, non serviceable as in "if you break this sticker the warranty will be voided" or non serviceable as in " if you split the case it will hand grenade in your face into a million little pieces and sever your jugular"? Either way, that alone is a tempting challenge

I guess that explains why I see so many Jaguars at the salvage yard. So I am guessing you might not want to pick up a trans from a junk yard Jag..............unless of course you have a warranty.

Acording to the Jaguar techs at my store a 95 XJR is a superchrged straight six. Bulletproof engine, its the early V8s with nikasil liners you need to watch out for. Trans is a regular old ZF automatic. Non-servicable at the dealership, any trans shop can fix it. Rebuild kits run about $300 if you wanna DIY. The early V8s had a "Mercedes" gearbox (probably also a ZF) that can be pricey to replace. Not sure on aftermarket fixes for that one. Newer V8s went back to ZF. Electronics while fairly reliable are very expensive.

I want a 6 cylinder XJR but there are so few of them out there compared to the V8s. Good luck.

Hmm... I'm probably insane, but I'm thinking '95 XJR w/ blown tranny + transmission adapter + T5 + a bunch of tubes + a bunch of formed metal (or fiberglass) + a CRAP load of time (HA!) = D-Type replica.

That car is on my "to own" list. One of those with a manual swap would be soooo much fun.

I second the chevy or ford 5.0ho v8 swap, the car comes out being only a couple hundred lbs heavier and is more reliable and fun to drive. Although the gas milage is slightly worse then when you started.

If you sold the jag tranny and engine you might come out on top though, they are expensive, lol...

Andrew

I am frightened of these cars, but they depreciate like Lincolns so they are hard to ignore when they pop up for sale. Its quite a package for the money. I would rather have a fairly pristine series III XJ6 at the end of the day, though.

The mercedes tranny is the one i was talking about, if the others are different then thats a little better.

The concept of a "non-serviceable" transmission is ponderous.

These cars haunt me, then I speak with people who have owned one and I am firmly planted back on earth. But MAN does that car look right in all black....

924guy wrote: hmmm, non serviceable as in "if you break this sticker the warranty will be voided" or non serviceable as in " if you split the case it will hand grenade in your face into a million little pieces and sever your jugular"? Either way, that alone is a tempting challenge

I'm guessing as in you can split it all you want to, there aren't any parts available to put back in.

Bah on that Five-Oh or the LS1. Swap in a Rover V8 and keep it all English (even though the Rover's origins lie in the US)

All I know is they look great in BRG

Right. There is no such thing as a 15K trans job I am like...I can buy an ls3 and a trans for that and swappity swap swap

njansenv wrote: In reply to Travis_K: I don't think many of us here would buy a new $15k trans. This reminds me of a local who got rid of his E30 since it needed $3000 in trans/clutch work.... (a $3-400 affair at our household)

I agree, they are just so nice looking

slefain wrote: These cars haunt me, then I speak with people who have owned one and I am firmly planted back on earth. But MAN does that car look right in all black....

The "non-serviceable" Jaguar transmissions (at least with the V8 cars) means you never have to change the fluid. Yes, I know, that's a cruel joke foisted on the unsuspecting car driving public, but that's what they say. There is no dipstick to check the fluid, though there is a trans dipstick tube with a hard plastic cap on it that says "do not remove". The dipstick can be purchased at the dealer as a service tool - I've got the part number somewhere if anyone needs it. Also, for the V8 cars, I believe the non-serviceable thing was only for the Mercedes trans (only used on the supercharged V8s), not the ZF trans (only used on the NA V8s and diesels). There are also several places that sell kits for changing the fluid on these transmissions, because the 'never change the fluid' thing seems very, very wrong.

Anyways, I've got a 2001 XJR, so I can't speak specifically to the 1995's, but I have a love/hate relationship with mine. When it's running right, I love it. Torque everywhere, good ride, handles well (for a 4000lb luxobarge), and until the restyled XJ comes out, it still looks like a brand new XJ, because aside from the short period of rectangular headlights, they've never really changed the styling. I bought into the whole "Ford fixed their quality" thing and now curse JD Power at least twice a year. I've had more problems with this car in the last 3 years than I've had with my 10 year old Cougar over the same period, and I put more miles on the Cougar (going to school in downtown Detroit, I tend to drive the Cougar more).

And here's the irony: most of the things that I've had to replace have been electrical components from Japanese suppliers (Denso MAF, another Japanese company's window switch, etc). Maybe the ghost of Lucas haunts all British cars regardless of the origin of their components.

Anyways, sorry for the longwinded post on a car that's only kind of related to the one you're looking at. Jaguars are great cars to drive, but not great cars to own. Thanks to Ford, they've turned the corner and are now supposedly the most reliable car available (or is it best initial quality) so this is probably changing, but I'd be real hesitant about picking up a mid 90's Jaguar.

For more info, you can visit www.jag-lovers.org for model specific info (though the forum software is probably older than the car you're looking at).

Now, to play the devil's advocate, visit http://www.jagweb.com/aj6eng/index.php and talk to them if you want serious performance. "Replacing the Eaton supercharger on an Aston Martin DB7 (based on the 3.2 Jaguar AJ6 engine) with an Opcon unit boosting at nominally 0.8 bar (12 p.s.i.) along with revisions to the exhaust system and engine management produced 430 b.h.p. at 7000 r.p.m. It produced 300 lbf of torque at 2000 r.p.m. and 390 lbf of torque was available from 3500 to 6000 r.p.m." The early DB7s were basically Aston bodies on XJ frames/running gear, so you could do the same to the XJR you're looking at. They've also got a lot of cool info on Jaguar's development of the V12 and V8.

Bob

Good info Schmidlap

I would want it as a daily driver, so electrical issues would drive me crazy.

Are those electrical parts priced as Jag prices or Ford prices?

The prices haven't been too exorbitant. I don't remember the exact price of the MAF (it was covered under the extended warranty), but it was only about 10% more than the same part would have been for the Cougar (it was a Ford/Lincoln/Jaguar/Land Rover dealer so I asked just out of curiosity). The latest part that needed replacing was the fuel pressure regulator. It was $165 at the Jaguar/Aston Martin dealer in Detroit, or a suburb of Detroit I guess.

My wife has always wanted an XJ, but she wants one with a proper transmission. Can you bolt a T5 onto one? I'd love to get her one some day, she deserves it for putting up with me.