Faults:

My '87 XJ6 Jaguar would die when I stopped at a red light or intersection. It became harder and harder to keep running. Finally it died for good. The starter was replaced. Then it became harder and harder to start. The ignition switch was replaced twice. Then it wouldn't start and was draining the battery every night. It was towed to an obscure non-jaguar dealer or independent mechanic, and it was found that a wire to the starter was loose. It cost me $96 to repair. I often wonder if that was the only problem all along, and I was being exploited for the $2,000 it cost me to "resolve" the problem.

General Comments:

The vehicle is a dream to drive now that I've worked out most of the bugs. It is a luxury sports car, designed for touring the country. I can drive for 12 hours and feel no need to stop, rest or stretch. It is the best handling car I've ever driven on winding, mountain roads. The cost to maintain is high, if it is not cared for, which this one was not until I bought it. I recently rode in a newer Mercedes, which didn't compare to the luxury of sitting in the cockpit of my older Jaguar. It's personality is quirky - one day the automatic door locks, back window, antenna, trip computer, etc., will work perfectly; the next day they won't, for no apparent reason. Eventually, they decide to behave properly.

Faults:

Anything and everything electrical.

Radiator fan destroyed original radiator.

Exhaust system totally rusted out.

Cruise control never worked.

For some reason, steering wheel refuses to stay aligned.

General Comments:

I received this car from my dad at 17 when I acquired the rank of Eagle Scout. It had been badly abused by 10+ years of Texas heat, and required extensive work to get it running to full specs again.

However, after almost of year of tinkering (it’s my daily driver, so I can only do a little bit at a time) it’s running strong. The only way I can think to describe it is like driving a giant couch. The seats are soft, but supportive, and the car handles like a 2000-pound Honda and I would recommend this to any parent as their child’s first car (safest car ever built according to the British government).

Faults:

Right now I am trying to discover why the car mysteriously shut off. Since this particular model is computerized fuel injection this has not been easy without the proper equipment. I am about 75% sure that the problem lies in the fuel pump. Since the pump is not cheap {$235.00} I will probably make absolutely sure it is not in the electrics before I purchase the pump.

The only other fault was when the tail lights went out and I could not locate the fuses. I finally found them in the boot {trunk} mounted behind the back seats. I replaced the fuses and have had no more trouble with the lights.

General Comments:

I own two older American cars, a 1965 Buick and a 1970 Ford LTD. Compared to these cars, the Jaguar seems like it comes from another planet. It is not an easy car to work on, and it is not cheap to maintain. In my opinion, the car is "over engineered." For example, having to drop the rear out of the car to change the brake discs seems a bit much.

On the other hand, the car handles very well and is fast. It is beautiful to look at from any angle and it is fairly easy to get parts for IF you know where to look.