The Super V8 market?

Well firstly there are far more qualified members on the Forum to pass opinions on the SuperV8
than I but as far as the market goes its pretty much a case of supply and demand .
I think the X350 and X358 market are specialised but purely in the sense that they are not current
models and like everything else the game moves on , people generally want a copy of something
thats fashionable and up to date , the oldest X350s are now getting on for 15 years old so you can
no doubt appreciate that faced with a new XF or an X350 most are going to choose the former rather
than the latter . To put it more succinctly , X350s are bought by people who particularly want them .
As regards the SuperV8 in the marketplace , yes they can hang around but seldom for long , these
are the ultimate in a line of DNA that stretches back to the late sixties , my advice is if you see it
then grab it , I don't think its any secret that I talk from experience when I say that to you .
As regards future investment value , although the car is comparatively rare I have never bought
a Jaguar with investment in mind , I buy it , I maintain it and above all else I enjoy it , over 13
different cars I have seldom made a profit come sale time though if you do , then well done .
I certainly wouldn't be buying a SuperV8 for investment purposes .
LWB or SWB from memory LWB were more plentiful , many were bespoke and some were driven
by chauffeurs with the well heeled reclining in the back . Both are equally desirable and buyers I
suspect pay little heed to which it is , for me personally its the SWB simply because from side on
I think it looks better , others no doubt will say " rubbish " and I would take it on the chin , because
both versions represent the finest interpretation of one of Jaguars greatest cars the XJ , nobody
I suspect would argue with that .

I think the main thing to remember (in my experience anyway) is that a good car in a good colour combination will always be desirable. I sold my first X350 (XJ6) for the same price as I paid for it after putting 60k miles on it. I then bought a Super V8, put 30k miles on it, and sold it for £2000 more than I paid for it. That was replaced by an XJR which I bought purely for financial reasons - it was very cheap, in good condition, and I knew I could put a lot of miles on it and sell it for at least the same price as I'd paid. I ended up selling it for £1700 more than my purchase price. Whilst making a profit on the sale isn't my main reason for buying these cars, it certainly makes them a lot easier to justify, particularly when you consider the bills they can throw up when they go wrong.

My dad recently paid £7250 for an early Super V8, which in all honesty was more than I'd probably have paid. Having said that, it was in excellent condition, with fairly low mileage, and as he lives in London and doesn't do a lot of driving, it'll probably never pass 100k miles in his ownership. I doubt he'll make money on it unless he keeps it for a very long time, but I doubt he'll lose much either.

geekman said:

I think the main thing to remember (in my experience anyway) is that a good car in a good colour combination will always be desirable. I sold my first X350 (XJ6) for the same price as I paid for it after putting 60k miles on it. I then bought a Super V8, put 30k miles on it, and sold it for £2000 more than I paid for it. That was replaced by an XJR which I bought purely for financial reasons - it was very cheap, in good condition, and I knew I could put a lot of miles on it and sell it for at least the same price as I'd paid. I ended up selling it for £1700 more than my purchase price. Whilst making a profit on the sale isn't my main reason for buying these cars, it certainly makes them a lot easier to justify, particularly when you consider the bills they can throw up when they go wrong.

My dad recently paid £7250 for an early Super V8, which in all honesty was more than I'd probably have paid. Having said that, it was in excellent condition, with fairly low mileage, and as he lives in London and doesn't do a lot of driving, it'll probably never pass 100k miles in his ownership. I doubt he'll make money on it unless he keeps it for a very long time, but I doubt he'll lose much either.

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Your last quote is quite relevant to me right now. I've looked at two 100K mile sheds that were at 10k ( dealer) and 9k ( private). The one I'm looking at this weekend is a 54 plate,has done 94K miles,top spec, has 13 services at Jag Md or specialists, gearbox oil done,Sepangs refurbed properly( diamond cut), 4 wheel alignment done,Sp Sport max allround, new genuine suspension pump, big plug service,front wishbones all recently done. A well respected specialist dealer, and a warranty (albeit with a £500 limit per claim, which should at least sort any silly stuff like electric glitches or such like).It's an obviously well looked after car,the issue being, that although I will be negotiating very hard,its a lot more than (for instance) what your dad has paid,so I have no idea where the market is with these. All I do know is the previous two cars I mentioned in the first sentence are hopelessly overpriced but i'm not sure about where to pitch this weekends viewing.

I'd say it's quite likely the warranty won't be worth the paper it's printed on. You do occasionally hear of people managing to get such companies to pay out, but I certainly wouldn't count on it. So I'd attempt to negotiate by first stating you don't require the aftermarket warranty. The dealer has to provide a 3 month warranty for any serious faults under the SOGA anyway.

For that particular car, I'd personally be happy paying £8.5k for it: the recent work completed is a big plus as that resolves many of the issues you're likely to encounter: a couple of those things haven't been done on my dad's car, so he'll likely have to pay for those in the next year or so.

I know there's plenty of people on here who've paid a lot more than that for their cars, and would probably disagree with my valuation, but when buying a car like this I don't see any reason why you shouldn't aim to buy it for the same price you'll sell it for: if I can do it, anyone can.

geekman said:

I'd say it's quite likely the warranty won't be worth the paper it's printed on. You do occasionally hear of people managing to get such companies to pay out, but I certainly wouldn't count on it. So I'd attempt to negotiate by first stating you don't require the aftermarket warranty. The dealer has to provide a 3 month warranty for any serious faults under the SOGA anyway.

For that particular car, I'd personally be happy paying £8.5k for it: the recent work completed is a big plus as that resolves many of the issues you're likely to encounter: a couple of those things haven't been done on my dad's car, so he'll likely have to pay for those in the next year or so.

I know there's plenty of people on here who've paid a lot more than that for their cars, and would probably disagree with my valuation, but when buying a car like this I don't see any reason why you shouldn't aim to buy it for the same price you'll sell it for: if I can do it, anyone can.

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Again that's interesting.
I'm hoping to be pitching around £8750, if it's a bit more still then I honestly don't mind paying a bit over the odds, it's not an investment thing.
Soga now is effectively 6 months now not three I believe, albeit with the age of the car taken into consideration.
As for the warranty, I take your point,but I'd doubt this place would want to tarnish their well earned rep amongst Jag circles by not fighting my corner on a warranty claim, (that's not to say they'd win of course ). I was impressed however that they were perfectly upfront on the claim limit straightaway (they told me, I hadn't asked) and it's for 24 months which is very unusual.
I think I'm just trying to find reasons not to buy it, and the more I look there's less and less other than the price being toppy as it stands.
I think a "watch this space" comment might be in order...

sjc said:

Again that's interesting.
I'm hoping to be pitching around £8750, if it's a bit more still then I honestly don't mind paying a bit over the odds, it's not an investment thing.
Soga now is effectively 6 months now not three I believe, albeit with the age of the car taken into consideration.
As for the warranty, I take your point,but I'd doubt this place would want to tarnish their well earned rep amongst Jag circles by not fighting my corner on a warranty claim, (that's not to say they'd win of course ). I was impressed however that they were perfectly upfront on the claim limit straightaway (they told me, I hadn't asked) and it's for 24 months which is very unusual.
I think I'm just trying to find reasons not to buy it, and the more I look there's less and less other than the price being toppy as it stands.
I think a "watch this space" comment might be in order...

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Morning,

Been reading this thread and being the nosey sod I had to see what car you were on about.

I believe I've tracked it down and if correct ( an Austin Allegro and a MG can be seen in the photos) the price being asked is the same as I paid for mine in June 2015 for a 55 plate with 85k miles on it.

It's MOT history is far better than most I look at and spent most of it's life in the Midlands, with a probability it's first 3 years were in and around London.

Being 14 this November sees it averaging approx 7200 miles per year.

As it is also listed on the bay, the listing has had 2 revisions, the first being on 1st August, so at the very least the dealer has had this in stock for 2.5 months.

I've no idea what your circumstances are or how many passengers your wanting the car for, but being only 4 seats will have put some buyers off.

It is a great exterior colour and does look to have a well cared for interior, although I'm surprised their website does not show any images of the engine bay or boot.

All the above might have been written about a car you're not going to look at but I doubt it.

Pity you are going to look at it this weekend, during the week I could have accompanied you if you'd wanted.

I wish you luck with your negotiating and a long test drive should include a nice blast up and down the motorway not too far from them.

Oh and check for any galvanic corrosion (aluminium turns powdery when present, causing small bubbles in the paintwork), run your fingers along the full width of the boot lip where the chrome strip is. Also along the bottoms of all doors, any you find can be used in the negotiations.

Ask to see any file of receipts they have.

Would I pay the asking price? No, do I think your pitching price is reasonable? Yes.

Good luck,

Rich