OUR JAGUARS

CRAIG CHEETHAM - SENIOR CONTRIBUTOR

2000 XJ8 4.0 Sovereign

A looming German GCSE leads Craig and family to a week of grand prix circuits and urbex, on a 1200-mile X308 road trip

THIS MONTH’S instalment of Our Jaguars is brought to you by my 15-year old son, Ben, who is sitting his German GCSE mock exams at the time of writing, ready for the real deal next spring.

As a passionate linguist myself, I know that the best way to learn a language is to experience it first-hand, and there seemed no better way for my eldest to be thrown in at the deep end than a road trip during the October half-term, especially as I had a newto-me Jaguar to take across the continent.

The deal was sealed when Ben’s mate Noah expressed an interest in coming along. His dad had just bought a Sapphire Blue X308 that previously belonged to a good friend of mine, and the 3.2 Executive model seemed the perfect companion to my 4.0 Sovereign for a transcontinental blast.

A large two-family AirBnB was booked in the enchanting old town of Monschau, just across the border from Belgium, and four adults, six kids and as much luggage as we could squash into the load bays of a ‘John Prescott’ of Jaguars ensued – in other words, not a tremendous amount.

We met in Dover after a less-than-joyful trip down the M11, M25 and M2, which led to us being parked up for two hours near the Dartford Tunnel – the one and only time in 1200 miles of driving that we experienced any kind of traffic woes.

Our first pit stop, more or less halfway to Monschau from Dunkerque, was the Atomium on the outskirts of Brussels. Built for the 1958 World Expo, the allalloy structure is designed to represent the structure of an atom and is a fabulous

Craig’s X308 (left) and Nick’s (right) at Spa Francorchamps

Spa Museum is home to a wonderful collection of racing machinery visitor experience with incredible views across the Belgian capital from the top ‘ball’, and it’s just five minutes from the motorway so well worth a pit-stop if you’re traversing the lowlands.

As for Monschau itself, its ancient streets aren’t the easiest through which to thread a tanker-sized luxury saloon car, but it’s well worth the effort. It has to be one of the most stunning towns in Europe, unspoilt by modern progress and with the most amazing selection of restaurants and pubs.

The Eifel Forest in which it sits is a truly wonderful part of Europe – not a natural choice on the tourist map, but truly enchanting and well located for exploring both western Belgium and northern Germany, much to the delight of my motorsport-mad youngster who twisted my arm (not that it took much of a twist) to take the Jaguar to both Spa Francorchamps and the legendary Nürburgring.

The original plan was to do a lap of the world-famous Nordschleife in the in XJ, but when we arrived at the Ring it was closed to the public for a manufacturer test day instead, so we settled in one of the viewing areas and spent a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon watching disguised prototypes being put through their paces.

Sadly, a model is the only Jaguar you’ll find at the Spa Francorchamps Museum

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The view from the top of the Atomium – can you spot both Jaguars?

The Sanitorium Du Basil is an eerie but fascinating ruin, well worth a visit if you’re not easily spooked. Aboard the DFDS Dover-Dunkerque Ferry – much quieter than the Calais routes, notably cheaper and wonderfully straightforward

Spa was more just to take a look, as you can’t drive around the GP circuit, but the old forest roads make up much of the ‘old’ Spa circuit and were great fun to drive around in the Jaguar convoy, with another highly recommended pit-stop in the nearby town of Stavelot. In the basement of Stavelot Abbey you’ll find the Spa Francorchamps Museum, and while the only Jaguar present is a scale replica of the 2002 Jaguar F1 car, it’s still a fabulous experience for any petrolhead.

Close to Stavelot is the ruined Sanitorium du Basil, a former tuberculosis hospital and latterly mental hospital, a grand early 20th century palatial building that’s slowly being returned to nature. Both Noah’s dad, Nick, and I love a bit of urban exploring, so we decided to pay a quick visit – one that turned into a two-hour exploration of a fascinating but creepy building that you can drive straight up to and wander around the remains of – at your own risk, of course. Being Hallowe’en week, we decided to leave before dark.

We also managed to pack in a day trip to Cologne and an afternoon aboard the Hohes-Venn Railbike in Ardennes, where specially constructed ‘bicycles’ can be ridden along the abandoned rail track that used to ship coal to Germany and wood back to Belgium – hard work on the legs as it’s one of the few parts of Belgium that’s hilly, but a fantastic family experience.

We’ll take the one on the left please…..

Also in the ‘Ring car park was this lovely early Audi 100

If you’re planning to go touring in your Jaguar, I can’t recommend the area highly enough. It’s less than four hours from either Calais or Dunkerque so you can get there on one tank of petrol, even in a 4.0 V8, and the scenery is fabulous, as is the local hospitality.

As for my X308? I’d love to say it was utterly faultless but there was one blot in its copybook. As we left Belgium, it decided to throw me into mild panic by throwing up a Low Engine Coolant warning. I immediately stopped at the first service station to check the levels, only to find the coolant reservoir as full as it was when I left Cambridgeshire 24 hours earlier. A little wiggle of the coolant level sensor restored temporary order, but the warning would continue to flash on and off for the entire week, especially over bumpy roads.

The coolant level sensor is seemingly a common issue on all Jaguars of this era as it plugs into the bottom of the expansion tank and ‘drops’ with age, so I’ve got a new one on order and will fill you in on my progress on the next update for X388 VVW – a car that I have fallen for hook, line and sinker.

In the meantime, that means either my launch-spec S-Type 3.0 manual or similarly early Y-plate X-Type 3.0 is for sale as the X308 has asserted its status as a keeper and I don’t have the space or time for them all – the XJ is just such a lovely car that I can’t imagine not owning it. If you’re interested in either, drop me an email at craig.cheetham@ kelsey.co.uk as I’d much rather whichever one I sell goes to an enthusiast.

The Motley crew of both Jaguars stand before another 20th Century icon – the Atomium in Brussels

The driveway of the AirBnB attracted lots of attention from admiring locals

Nürburgring was closed for a manufacturer test day, but prototype spotting was a lot of fun! Just a mile away from the Nürbrgring entrance is the old castle of Nürburg – well worth a visit!

A week away for a family of five is a challenge and a half for an XJ luggage area!