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E M A I L : j w m . e d @ k e l s e y . c o . u k F A C E B O O K : F a c e b o o k / J a g u a r W o r l d M o n t h l y I N S T A G R A M : j a g . w o r l d

STAR LETTER Final Edition facts

The article on the S Final Edition XKs was a great piece by Craig as usual. I really enjoy his tales of Jaguar addiction and how he can’t kick it!

A few things to add if you’ll allow. The special colours mentioned were only supplemented by another four including Platinum, Racing Green, Midnight and Quartz. Montreal wheels were never an option.

The XK8-S came with 19” Atlas wheels as standard with the 20” Sepang available as an option. The XKR-S came with Perseus as standard with no other option. But... the Perseus proved to be prone to buckling so the Sepangs were fitted on some XKR-S straight from the factory or fitted to replace the Perseus wheels under warranty.

Dove Grey leather was only available with Frost Blue and Quartz exterior and came with Dove Grey carpet. Only the XKR-S had red calipers. Silver calipers with cross-drilled discs were an option on the XK8-S. I have a full specification brochure which came with one of the cars I bought. It can be a bit confusing but it ties in with all the cars I’ve seen over the years.

Also Craig states only 500 of the S Final Edition were built in XK and XKR form but I believe it was a lot more and I have been unable to find any mention from the launch that the model was a limited edition. The earliest car I’ve seen is chassis 46613, an XKR-S Final Edition coupe in satin with black trim.

Also Jaguar Heritage gives the start of production of the S Final Edition as chassis 45289, making it 3395 cars built as S Final Edition models.

The earliest car I’ve bought and sold was chassis 46618 and I have the build sheet for this car showing it as a Sports pack which was a £4000 option on the coupe and £3200 on the convertible, over and above the usual XKR-S Final Edition specification. Including, according to the brochure: Handling Pack, satellite navigation, adaptive cruise control and Recaro seats.

In the course of buying and selling many S Final Editions cars, I’ve not found any after the Heritage start number which have been anything other than S Final Edition cars.

However, having said that... I also have a build sheet for a XK coupe with a chassis number in the range for the Final Editions cars but which identifies as a 2006 MY car with 2004.5 MY parts: Quartz with Dove Grey interior, 2004.5MY Montreal alloys and birds eye maple dash plus loads of extras.

I feel it’s important to get these things pinned down because it affects values. There are already myths and legends being attached to these cars in the hope of higher prices. David Hooper

XJR Inspiration

Thanks for publishing the buying guide to the V8-powered XJR last month. I’d been struggling to decide between the XJR and either a late six-cylinder BMW M5 or the later ‘E39’ V8 M5 but your feature was all I needed to nudge me in the Jaguar direction after hearing too many stories of expensive parts and labour costs on the BMWs.

I’ve since found myself a superb 2001 car with some desirable options and although it’s the best one I could find, I’m already enjoying bringing it up to scratch. Peter Wilson

XK decisions

Having been on the hunt for a nice XK for a few months I’ve found myself getting increasingly indecisive thanks to the overlapping prices. Do I go for one of the really nice later X100 cars or – for much the same money or even less – the later X150 generation? Yes, I know the later car is technically superior with its aluminium body and other tech, but is the older car likely to be the safer investment as a modern classic? Michael Preston It’s an interesting point and we’ll be running a comparison soon to show you how the cars compare as they age. Our advice would be to forget any thoughts of future values and simply buy on condition. A cherished late-model X100 will give you more enjoyment and be less frustrating to own than a neglected X150 XK.

For the JWteam, this was definitely the star of the show. Found on the M25 Classics stand, this heavily patina’d 1963 MkX looked superb and featured an original triple-carbed 3.8 engine and Moss four-speed manual. Said to drive nicely, it’s yours for £11,650.

Classic Motor Show 2022

For anyone with even a passing interest in old cars, the annual bash at the NEC is a highlight of the year and naturally Jaguar always features heavily. From a barn-find E-Type in the auction to a last-of-the-line S-Type, here’s what caught our eye this year. See more action from the show on our Classics World website at https://classicsworld.co.uk.

This Daimler coupe in the auction caught our eye. Formerly owned by Harry Metcalfe, it was clearly the poor relation to the well-known car he eventually restored for the Harry’s Garage channel but has apparently received a costly mechanical overhaul. Offered at no reserve, it sold for £12,375. If this month’s S-Type buying guide has inspired you, then here’s one of the nicest you’ll find for sale right now. A well-specced 2007 car with the 2.7 diesel engine, it’s for sale with classic dealer Kim Cairns at £10,995 and is absolutely pristine.

LEFT: It may have done 18,900 miles more than the unregistered car in the auction, but this 1988 XJ-S convertible was as-new in every respect and is yours for £24,995 from Heritage Classics.

This intriguing XJ220 was displayed on the Jaguar Drivers’ Club stand. Having started life as prototype chassis no 005, it was modified by marque specialist Don Law in 2000, who turfed out the V6 of the production cars in favour of the Jaguar V12 engine it had originally been designed to use, even finding a four-cam prototype engine to make a proper job of it. ABOVE: The sole Mk1 we found in three days of tramping around the NEC halls, this 1959 3.4 was on display to promote the Coventry Concours at the city’s Motofest event. Restored back in the 1990s, it still looks superb today.

BELOW: This year’s show saw the first public showing of our own new project car, a 2003 XK8 convertible which represented the culmination of the classic car ‘Trading Up’ challenge in conjunction with Lancaster Insurance and our sister title Classic Car Mart. Considering Kelsey MD Phil Weeden had started off the challenge last year with an oddball Honda Acty Romahome camper van, we reckon he’s done pretty well.

Another no-reserve auction entry was this ’73 E-Type manual, an original UK-spec car which has been hiding in a barn for many years after being parked up for some minor repairs. Enthusiastic bidding saw it eventually sell for £22,500. The barn-find E-Type may have grabbed the lion’s share of attention at the auction but this XJ-S was arguably a more exciting find. A 1989 car, it remained unregistered and had covered just 100 miles, eventually selling for £131,625 against an estimate of £50,000-£60,000.