2019-07-03 10:08:45 | pauls writes:

Ebay item 7/3/19
www.ebay.com/itm/1989-Jaguar-XJS-convertible/293139672920
Opening bid US $3,999 reserve not met 0 bids 6 days left in auction, seller appeli1, 69k miles.

Seller's description:
Fantastic convertible classic with V-12 power!! Awesome for cruising with the top down.

I bought this beauty here on eBay in late 2013. It had been in the collection of a dealer in TX who got it from CA and kept it garaged in an airplane hangar but never titled it, so I am only the second titled owner. Since then, I have kept it garaged on a lift and only driven it less than 7k miles.

Many other XJS owners have complimented me on its condition. To my knowledge, paint and pinstriping are original and still looks great. The drive is smooth and you will have a lot of jealous stares. Really beautiful machine.

Non-original parts I know about are electronic radiator fan and K&N air filters on the V12. I will include the original air boxes and belt fan pieces the previous owner forwarded to me for completeness.

The seller didn't disclose all the minor imperfections (some of which required repair due to safety -- I have spent about $3k removing and sealing the gas tank, brake job, wheel bearings, new radiator fan controller, AGM battery, etc). Here, I list minor remaining issues I can think of:

Passenger-side wedge window control gear does not engage without manual help when closing convertible top.
Non-functioning Cruise control.
It is sometimes hard to start, esp in cold weather. This could be a function of the thicker motor oil I used (20W-40).
An engine bearing sometimes squeals for a few seconds when first starting engine, but dissipates immediately.
The tires have plenty of tread but the sidewalls show minor cracking. I was told this is due to overuse of tire cleaning products which strip plasticizers from the rubber.
AC is not cold; I have not tried to recharge the system.
I don't think the ABS feature on brakes work. When pedal is engaged, ABS dash light goes on briefly and I don't feel the telltale pulses.
The shipper in 2013 broke the emergency brake cable by overextending it.
The left rear turn signal has some flaky electrical contact that I got tired of fixing, so now I just use hand signals to turn left.
The radio works and plays cassettes! However, the cassette deck sometimes switches between side 1 and 2. Gotta love the 80's. Cleaning the magnetic heads has helped in the past.
A small amount of windshield gasket is displaced. It was like this when I got it, and it has not gotten worse.
Window control plastic bevel is broken so switches are a bit loose.
A slight vibration develops when driving at ~30mph and ~60mph. Several mechanics have been unable to diagnose. I just drive at in-between speeds.