Jaguars of late have been appalling. But the XJR is a performance bargain which will make you feel special and you wont get tired of. It is flawed and certainly not as magical as Jaguars of old, id rather have a spotless XJ-S or XJ-12 than any of the recent crop including this XJR. That V8 engine is nothing special and not a patch on the wonderful V12.
The BMW M5 will be a far superior car, and will handle better, be better made and probably more exclusive - but of course far more expensive to run than the relatively cheap XJR.
I left North America around the time that E39 model was made, so I cannot remember whether it was offered with an automatic transmission on the US market. If it was, and that one is Automatic, then it would be my choice. If auto wasnt available, then the Jaguar would be my choice.
No performance saloons are manual, i cannot see why BMW only offered the M5 as a manual on the UK market - at least theyve seen sense now with the new M5.
Originally posted by Palmira: I left North America around the time that E39 model was made, so I cannot remember whether it was offered with an automatic transmission on the US market. If it was, and that one is Automatic, then it would be my choice. If auto wasnt available, then the Jaguar would be my choice.
No performance saloons are manual, i cannot see why BMW only offered the M5 as a manual on the UK market - at least theyve seen sense now with the new M5.
I am pretty (99%) sure that the E39 M5 is only available as a manual over here as well.
This must be one of those head Vs heart decisions!! The head says the M5, the heart says the XJR
I do understand and agree with all of these points.
However, I would say this:
Modern Jaguars are rubbish. I drove a new XJ last year wanting to like it, but it was awful.
Your comment about being "there" when you get in and close the door used to be absolutely true.
I used to sit in the driveway in my XJ-S if I needed to go out & think something through, or clear my head. The smell of wood & leather, the magical feeling it used to give me, and the beautiful, unique & characterful interior. The engine sound was like a dynamo yet so powerful and the view over the bonnet was fabulous.
The XJ-6 used to give me a similar feeling. All the chrome & bakelite fittings were special and it felt like a pedigree car for real car people.
But the new ones are annodyne rubbish. They feel plasticky, old and poorly made. They dont match up to their rivals and all of the magic is gone.
The V8 is nothing to write home about either.
The V12 engine was available for a short time in the X300. Try going for one of those if you can find one. They only made 600.
