1990 Jaguar XJ40 from UK and Ireland - Comments

Headlight module failed both sides - repaired myself.

Head gasket failed (common) repaired myself but very difficult.

Car radio aerial seized - new one fitted.

Rear Axle A frame bearing worn - replaced by exchange unit.

ABS warning light kept coming on but traced to a duff battery!!

Rear brake caliper ceased.

A really great car with pace and grace. Great for long distances if you can afford the cost to fill the petrol tank (£60). Very well engineered but electrics are a nightmare being very complex - not for the faint hearted. Very reliable and a massive improvement on the older Series 1, 2 and 3.

I own a late 1988 XJ40. I have had a few small problems like the bulb failure light staying on, Door handle and power locks not working properly. Beside those minor problem I love this Jaguar. The 3.6l has plenty of get and go, the ride is like no other. I have a total of $8700 in this car, counting repairs. I could have bought a nice Focus or Yugo but What can I say I own A Jaguar. Blake Blankenship.

I had a 1990 XJ40. The oil pump failed at 600 miles, fortunately I was looking at the pressure gauge when it happened.

It could have been a great car - looks, performance, comfort - but was spoiled by Jaguar's mediocre build quality.

At anything between £1500 to £2500 for a service I reckon the dealers saw us coming too. Jaguar beat Camelot to the lottery.

Used values say it all. Jaguars drop like a stone whatever they do but BMW and Mercedes hold up well and their costs are predictable.

I own a 1988 XJ40, just back from a little 320 mile jaunt out. A pleasure, road rage is non existent when driving such a graceful car. As previously mentioned by Blake, the bulb failure light loves coming on all the time as does the low brake pressure warning, however less often. Driving has never been such a pleasure and I averaged 27mpg, better than the VW scirocco I was driving previously.

I own a 1988 Jaguar Sovereign. I love the car and have found it to be better than my parents BMW and Benz to drive. As far as build quality goes, it's not bad. I have had little problem with the car and will buy many more Jaguars in the future. The major problem in Australia is they cost good money to buy and service. The reputation of the XJ40 is very poor which doesn't help Jaguar's image either.

I've had 2 Sovereigns, a 1988 3.6 which I sold after 2 years because the boot lid went rusty, and a 1990 4.0 which I have run as my only car for the past 5 years nearly. Services at my local used Jaguar dealer in Bournemouth cost about £300 once a year and very little seems to go wrong. I also have the body touched up once a year costing £200 - £300. Have now done 100k and have a car worth practically nothing but which is very fast, very comfortable, and very cheap to run apart from petrol for local journeys. I seem to average about 25 - 27 mpg on long journeys but 18 around town. Splendid transport.

I've owned a 1989 3.6 manual for 5 years now. Sadly neglected when I bought her, she still didn't take much money to fix up (about 1000UKP) and she's been reliable ever since. Beautiful ride, smooth and quiet, and the manual gearbox really lets the power through. Averages about 30-32mpg on the open road. A classic, and I *love* the digital dash. Classic!

I am a recent owner of an '87 XJ40, Australian Delivery.

Pretty good shape for its age. I am no stranger to the prince of darkness having had 420G's and Mk VIII/IX's as well as other British vehicles.

Love the ride. Sit back and let the cruise control do all the work with sunroof open and listen to the tunes.

Just wondering if anyone has produced an PDF/Word/Similar manual for these cars?

Oh yes, a couple of queries. Are the front wheel bearings the same as earlier XJ's/420G's? Can a CD stacker run through the standard radio?

Cheers

:)

Hi, I,ve been reading all I can about the XJ40, and the comments here are from the sort of people I need to hear from... a guy at work has a 1990 XJ6 (xj40) with the 2.9 engine in it.. its sat in his yard, needs a bit of a scrub-up and polish, but appears sound, and has 9 month M.O.T on it... good condition inside, and only wants £700 (UK)...I've always wanted a Jag, but never had the cash... i would welcome any advice on how to get started with this car, basic info really, thanks.