I LIKE TO KEEP MY BENZES AS NATIVE AS POSSIBLE. i am a collector of art. would you alter a picasso? at the moment, i want to maintain them as they were originally manufactured.

yes, i have replaced becker radios with pioneer and sony kit. but that is the extent of my mods. beyond that i am reluctant to go with these vehicles. their original status was so fine, not perfect in today's light, of course, but light year jump vehicles when introduced.

and to a large extent, still unsurpassed.

the long wheelbase xj8 jaguar is a very fine auto. linear throttle response. predictable handling. not as easy to get in and out of as my benzes, but it is a car that deals with me as an old friend[as a rental]. as do my benzes. the controls are intuitive, especially the a/c controls and the sound system controls. and it has comfortable seats. the pedal positioning, driver legroom lengthening feature is the best thing that ever happened. to this car.

still, i wish that the rear axle bump stop harshness had been restored to the predecessor's smoothness and silence.

that this existed for the first 6 months of this models intro, OK. but 2 years later i consider inexcusable.

still, a better high performance vehicle than any of the current teutonic offerings.

if i needed a new vehicle, i would own one. but i don't. and it still isn't better than any of my older benzes. better than new ones, of course. better than well-maintained old ones, no.