My father in law owns a 1987 XJ 12 Cyl that has been converted into a covertible, a Hess & Eisenhardt conversion. It only has 28,230 miles and is in near perfect condition. All of the parts are stock expect for the wheels that have been upgraded. He was planning on trading the car in to get a new car and I told him it would be worth while to sell to a private party rather than trade it in. The only problem is we have no idea what the car is worth. Kellyt Blue book put the price of the car at $3,750 for being in perfect condition. This seems ridiculously low to me. Does anyone have any idea what this car might be worth? Or just a price which below it would not be worth it to sell? Thanks for your help.

Rob Dall

Submitted by f.c.caldwell@att.net on Thu, 12/04/2003 - 05:05

Hi,

I have a 1983 XJ6 Series III that I am trying to sell ($2995 by the way). I also accessed Kelley Blue Book / NADA to try to determined a reasonable / fair asking price (also for 1040 ScheduleA deduction value in case I decide to donate it by 12/31). I also was the Service & Parts Director at one of the largest Jag Dealers in the USA (Rosenthal in the Wash. D.C. area) & was involved in many Used Car transactions & reconditionings (I purchased my XJ6 thru our Used Car Dept-it had been a Lease Car). One must remember to factor in Condition (Mint/Excellent/Good/Mediocre/Needs Work/"Fixer-Upper"/Parts Salvageable/"Junk" etc.) as there is a considerable spread. One must also factor in Mileage (mine has 135K, for instance). One must also factor in Options/Upgrades (Convertible Conversion & Wheels in your case). It sounds like your XJ12, based on Condition, Mileage (extremely low), & Options/Upgrades, would be on the very high end of the spectrum. Therefore, I suggest/recommend that review Kelly Blue Book / NADA again (I am sure you are aware that they are Internet accessible for most current values). Also, you might want to check comparables on this Website, your local Jag Club's Website or Newsletter, eBay/Yahoo etc. on-line auctions, Cars.com, Car Bargain at Bargains.com, Autohopper.com, TheBigLot.com, & newspaper classified (both local & nationwide). Good Luck & Good Selling.

Frank Caldwell

P.S. You are wise to try to retail your Jag (at minimal out-of-pocket expense, of course). Based on my own dealership experience, you probably wouldn't even get true Wholesale value (which are the other "Books", White, Brown, Black, etc.) from a "smooth" Used Car person.

Submitted by arsenaultd@ear… on Wed, 12/03/2003 - 21:20

Im assuming you mean an XJS and not XJ12.

Forget trading it, they will give you next to nothing.

In a private party deal, You will not see more than $9000 tops even from the right person and it might take months to turn it over at that price. $5000-$7500 would probably move it quicker to the right Jag person, but only if it really lives up to the mint condition description. Blue book does sound low, but you would be surprised what an 87 XJS will sell for. You cant break an XJS into 5 figures unless its a 90 or newer. Even late model 95s with low mileage have trouble pushing 20-25K.

You might try ebaying it or listing it in Hemmings Motor news to try and find the right collector looking for a low mileage Hess convertible.

Unfortunately, what you probably want to hear is that the car is worth a bunch, and sadly, its not, and probably wont be for another 10-15 years.

Daniel Arsenault
Lakewood, CA
1994 XJ12 Morocco Red