I did some research before I purchased my car, I have researched what the next classics might be etc., and the XJS was one of those cars in the mix. I have had mine for over a year now and have read these posting which can be very helpful and informative, but I have often noticed how little some of you think your cars are worth. While its true that a good one may be hard to find, and if you find a bad one its very expensive to bring back in shape all at once, I feel they will be a good investment in the long run. I have had mine insured as a collectable since April of last year for a fraction of what State Farm was charging me, at first they said the car was not considered a collectable yet, but felt it would be soon. The next year I tried again and they accepted it telling me that the car was now considered a collectable. Just thinking out loud, but in really bugs me when people sell these cars so cheep (unless I am buying) because I think they are worth more. Everyone that sees mine thinks itÆs worth a lot of money. Classic Car shows it Load 13200.00, collectable value between 19-32K.
Check out: http://www.britishmotoring.net/bm0402/xjs/xjs.html, they have a nice article on the car.

1991 XJS Convertible Classic 5.3

Submitted by NC43-62049 on Wed, 08/03/2005 - 21:44

At the zenith of XJS production, Jaguar made about 10,000 cars for the world-wide market. That suggets a pretty rare car to me. How many good examples are really left? It seems to me that these are the best of times for an XJS fan who can tell his/her granchildren that when he/she was young(er)he/she could have a great british grand tourer for peanuts and have no qualms about driving it.

Dan Lokun
Toronto, Canada
90 XJ-S (2+2)

Submitted by arsenaultd@ear… on Wed, 06/01/2005 - 20:07

In June 2004 we paid $19,750, negotiated to $19,250 after receipt of the car. This was sight unseen for an Ebay car with 54,000 miles on it in the ultra rare Rose Bronze color. Was supposed to have been mint, but it had some mechanical and cosmetic issued glossed over by the dealership in St. Louis.

We had to immediately do about $1500 worth of work to make it drivable and safe, but overall the car was not in bad shape. It now needs the seat leathers redyed or recovered and has its share of scratches, dings and paint issues, but nothing you could see from 5 feet away. Its been very reliable.

Was it worth it? I think we could have got a better deal by far, and did see one sell for about $3,000 less in the same color, but it was an impulse buy for my wife. I will say I got a 200% better deal on my XJ12 that I got in 1999 for $14,500. Mint condition, 64,000 miles, and its now a multiple show winner.

I think Ebay is a good indicator now of what the market values are, since many of the cars are being sold by regular and specialty dealers and not private parties. A 95 or 96 with average 50K miles in mint condition should bring from $15,000 to $19,000 now depending on the color, region of the country and engine.

Regards,

Daniel Arsenault
Lakewood, CA
1994 XJ12 Morocco Red
1995 XJS 4.0 Rose Bronze

Submitted by marshall@moret… on Wed, 06/01/2005 - 07:51

Marshall Moretta
Well, I paid $21,400 (pre-tax) for my '96 4.0 XJS, 28K mile BRG convertible and I am happy as a clam! I could be driving a Miata for the same price. My partner has a Miata and while they are certainly more nimble, there is nothing as sweet as cruising a rolling country road in an XJS with Diana Krall singing "The very thought of you....! Makes one into Toad from Toad Hall!! In fact, my wife named our car Toady. Somewhat inelegant unless you've read the book.

So how about the rest of you who have purchased an XJS in the last 5-10 years come forward and tell us what you paid for yours? A group of costs over a time peroid might tell us what the "market" value is and where its going. I'm interested in the 4.0's, but 12 cyl folks are probably interested in those also.

Marshall Moretta
1996 XJS 4.0 BRG

Submitted by arsenaultd@ear… on Tue, 01/04/2005 - 17:07

I would like to see the XJS increase in collector value, but its a few years yet before we will see any significant values arise. They have held their value better than the XJs of similar vintage, especially the more recent post facelift versions.

Two things working against XJS collector values:

1. Supply. There are a LOT of these cars around. The more there are , the bigger the supply for the collector market, which is , in turn limited. If you have a glut of good cars out there, its going to keep prices down.

2. Rare versions and special editions. Classic Collection, Collection Rouge, XJR-S, Celebration... there are an awful lot of limited run XJS series out there. Thats going to hurt the value of "regular" XJS. The values of the limited runs will be better though, if you are lucky enough to have one.

I think its 10 years before XJS start coming back up much in value, in the meantime, the desirable color combinations and the limited run series will appreciate before any of the regular models.

Daniel Arsenault
Lakewood, CA
1994 XJ12 Morocco Red
1995 XJS 4.0 Rose Bronze

Submitted by NE52-32043 on Tue, 01/04/2005 - 12:58

Robert,

As a former '89 XJS owner, I do think you are right about one thing... the XJS is not yet but some day will be a collectible. As far as price goes, the marketplace sets that. The best test of the marketplace is an auction. You're not seeing many XJS's hitting the "collector" car auctions, so it is hard to say what the value is. But ultimately, a car is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it.

If someone is selling a car and asking a high price, and no one is willing to pay that, is the asking price the true value? Probably not. When I sold my car, I had many lookers but few takers. I ended up selling it for what I thought was a fair price -- less than I really wanted, but more that what I felt would be undervalued for the car. But I sold it. Same thing for the '72 E-type I sold last summer. Sure, I could have held on to it, but that made no sense. It costs money to "sit" on a car hoping its value will go up. I sold it and moved on.

Price guides are a range. And generally in my experience, they are only a guesstimate of value. Ultimately, your car is worth what someone will pay you for it; no more, no less.

Steve Weinstein, JTC-NJ
'70 XKE FHC
'69 XKE OTS