1989 Jaguar XJS from North America - Comments

My upper AC hose leaked all the freon out (common with XJS's).

I think I have a couple of oil seal leaks (common with XJS's).

My passenger side window won't go down (might be the switch).

The car overheats when AC was working (somewhat common with these V12's)

The XJS coupe is the most beautiful looking car on the road.. Its long sleek hood and the magnificent shape of the rear window area truly is stunning.. I had a choice between the coupe and the convertable, and the coupe won hands down... The convertable just doesn't have the graceful lines that the coupe has.. looks like a big bathtub with a giant laundry sack stuck on the back... Its even uglier with the top up..

I've had my problems with the Jag, but I knew these cats were naughty before I bought one, its worth the aggravation..

I have one word of advice to anyone thinking of buying one... LEARN HOW TO WORK ON THEM YOURSELF.. IF you have mechanics do it, you'll end up in the poorhouse eating catfood.

How to fix cooling on XJS over 10 years old: overhaul all cooling related components, particularly the radiator and replace the yellow fan with new design black fan. Do not add any sealing gloop to the water under any circumstances. Fit extra water temp gauge reading at the (hotter) left bank thermostat housing; use VDO model 310 010 014K gauge and VDO sensor 320.002. Normal operating temp 91 deg C, rising to 96 in slow heavy traffic when exceeding 32 deg C ambient (Australia). In conclusion: the standard cooling system on an XJS is adequate if properly maintained.

The 89 XJS convertible the most stylish car on the road today.

I have owned and driven Corvettes for 15 years before I came upon an 89 jaguar convertible with 34,000 miles on her. I was looking for another Corvette at the time. This car took my breath away. I didn't even drive it before I bought it, I just had to have this work of art. When I drive this car I get more more waves and thumbs up than I ever did in any of my Corvettes. I now have 69,000 miles on her and she runs like a Swiss watch. I have had some minor issues with her, but nothing that I couldn't fix. Have you ever seen the picture of a Jaguar running through the jungle with a cover over it's head? I don't think so. It's running free with the wind it her face, the way a convertable does.