A quick Thanx to all that helped with my purchase -

I spent a happy 3 hrs in the old owners driveway scrutinizing the car and then had a 45 min test drive around San Diego and it's surrounding freeways.

Suffice to say I am happy with my decision and purchase - according to the manufacturing stats its one of 78 cars made in 1995 -

a 1995 XJS 6.0L V12 2+2 convertible in Flamenco Mica (I think thats the color) 74k miles with a pretty consise service history, has all the manuals, jack etc, and a brand new JAGUAR dealer $350 custom fit car cover, the car is accident free and has new, rotors, brakes and tires all around + recent full service $1500 worth @ 67k miles - time for another service me thinks - at least oil and filter all round -

Paint is pretty good considering the age - a few scuffs and scratches but nothing that can' t be touched up and buffed out.

Found a small leak at the AC condenser unit - hence AC is pretty weak - but still works sort of - every thing else on the car works as it should -

stereo is an aftermarket Alpine unit - Circular bonnet Jag logo badge has been replaced with a big leaper - and the passenger side sun visor attaching clip is cracked - leather interior is all good - a few scuffs and crinkles and could use a good cleaning / conditioning.

Anyway we haggled for a while and settled on $13,000 - so there ya go ......I gotta new kitty in the driveway ! And I think I got a pretty good deal -

The drive back to Los Angeles is about 3 1/2 hrs - and I had a blast driving the beast - wow there's a lotta power under that hood ....much more than I'm used to -

Temperature sat right on the 'N' for 3 hrs of driving but started to creep up on the dial slightly just before I reached home - worried me a little as it got as high as half way between the N and the red and then sat there - I put the heat on full to pull some from out of the engine bay and that seemed to help a bit - seriously considered pulling over and letting things cool down - but just risked it and sat at 55mph the final 15 min drive home - watching that gage like a hawk.....

Once I got home I let the car idle in the driveway for a few mins with the hood open and then shut him down leaving the bonnet open as the engine cooled - aux cooling fans were on for 7 mins before they switched off.

Took the wife for a ride in him about 20mins later - started first time - and temperature gage read normal - admitedly it was only a 10 min drive -

anyway cause for concern or not - no sign of any coolant leaks anywhere and levels are normal.

I'm thinking a cooling system flush - and check of thermostats - according to the servicing history new thermostats and hoses were all done last November.

Should I add Water Wetter to aid in cooling ? or maybey recore the radiator -

where to start ... I want that temperature needle on N or below it at all times !

anyway the journey begins !

I'll add some pics of the car (soon to be aptly named) on the site.

Cheers all

James

1995 XJS 6L V12 2+2 Conv.
1974 Jensen Healey #18149

Submitted by NE52-32043 on Thu, 07/07/2005 - 12:15

Congrats on the new ride!! If you haven't already, join your local Jag club. It's a great way to get involved in local activities, and you'll also get lots of useful information about the car.

Don't fixate on the temperature gauge!! Yes, overheating is an issue with these cars. Running mid-gauge is NOT overheating. If it runs on N for a while then starts creeping up, and keeps going up, then you have something to be concerned about. If it rises to mid-level and stablizes there, you are probably okay. I would not run out and start pulling things apart. However, I would suggest adding a bottle of Water Wetter. I does help. If the stats were changed last November, and assuming the system was refilled with fresh fluid then, there's no reason to dump it now and flush things out. Drive the car a while and consider doing it in the late fall or over the winter, or next spring.

As I said earlier, go to www.jag-lovers.org and download "The Book" by Kirby Palm. It has an extensive amount of information in there about overheating in these cars. Believe me, it's the one topic that is talked to death among XJS owners. Also, search the archives on Jag-lovers under the XJS-lovers forum for "overheating" and you'll come up with hundreds of postings about overheating and suggested remedies. Read a bunch of that stuff before you start pulling things apart.

Good luck with the new car, and go out there and ENJOY it, and stop worrying.

Steve Weinstein, JTC-NJ
'70 XKE FHC, '69 XKE OTS
Former '89 XJS owner