Lot 205 - 1997 12947 XJ8

Jaguar XJ is the designation used for the series of luxury saloons sold under the British marque. The first XJ was launched in 1968 and the designation has been used for successive Jaguar flagship models ever since. The original model was the last Jaguar saloon to have had the input of Sir William Lyons, the company's founder. With the introduction of the X308 generation in 1997 came a switch from the 'XJ6' nomenclature to 'XJ8', reflecting the fact that the X308 cars were powered by a new V8 engine. The exterior styling of the X308 was similar to its predecessor the X300, with minor refinements such as a change to oval indicator lenses and round fog lights. The interior was also updated to eliminate the instrument binnacle used on the X300; instead, three large gauges were set into recesses in the walnut-faced dashboard in front of the driver. The major mechanical change was the replacement of both the inline-six and V12 engines with new eight-cylinder V8 in either 3.2 litre or 4.0 litre versions. Manual transmission was not available, and all X308 models were supplied with a five-speed automatic gearbox.

This 1997 Jaguar XJ8 3.2 litre has had three owners from new and has only covered 50,000 miles. The second owners, an elderly couple, purchased the car when it was three years old and continued to have the car serviced and maintained by Jaguar main agents until they sold it to the vendor in 2011. Finished in the Jaguar colour of Seafrost with Oatmeal leather interior and with burr walnut dashboard and door finishers, this XJ8 is supplied with a V5C registration document, an MoT test certificate which expires in February 2015, a file containing invoices and old MoT test certificates and the original handbook pack with service book and handbook. The Jaguars of this period with low mileage represent luxury motoring at a very affordable price. Price guide £2,000 - £3,000