I still haven't bought a new car yet. The more time I read and ask questions, the more I see how a used car from the 1990s that's out of warranty can be a handful with repairs. There is no Benz in my price range ($12,000-$14,000) that seems to be a safe bet. Either the car is last of the old generation (W124) of first of the new (W140). I will not buy a W140! So far, the top 2 cars on my list as of today are a 1996 BMW 740iL and a 1996 Lexus LS400. You can see from my earlier thread what I was looking at:

Which Car Would You buy? 56k Warning

On the weekend, I passed by the Jag dealer and couldn't help from staring at a beautiful Black XJ they had. Considering that the 1998 and up generation is German designed with a ZF 5-speed automatic transmission with Bosch electronics and Japanese and Nippon parts, is it possible Jag finally got it right? Can a Jag be the car I choose over a Benz for the first time? What do you guys think? Are these cars an option or out of the question?


Here is one to look at:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=31847&item=4554459845&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW

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1989 300CE Astralsilber/Schwarz
1992 300CE Schwarz/Schwarz

Good luck with the Electrics/Electronics.
My understanding is, they have improved in the last 4 or 5 years, since Ford " took charge ".
You may also want to price a few spare parts & maintenance items, just to compare.
Nice looking cars, always have been.
Just do your research.

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2007 C 230 Sport.

There is a dealer in Ontario that is well known. They seem to always have a large selection. You may know them:

http://www.birkshiremotors.com/2home.html

http://www.trader.ca/powerpage/listings.aspx?vlotid=29033

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1989 300CE Astralsilber/Schwarz
1992 300CE Schwarz/Schwarz

Jaguar = Danger. My friend bought his dadīs 2000 XJR. this car had nothing but problems. Now with the transmission. He is looking at a $4000 repair and is ready to give up. If your price range is $ 14.000 get a W210. ( I just got a 1999 E 240 for $ 13.000- absolutely no problems) A Jag potentially can wreck your finances. Remember Lucas electronics. Lucas is the Lord of Darkness. Pretty car tough.
Good Luck,
usaustria

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E 240 2000
E 320 Coupe

I think the jags are beautiful fast luxury cars. Howerver, the beauty of a Mercedes is that spares can be bought at a fairly reasonable cost from online vendors. I don't see many people selling cheaper parts for a jag. To my knowledge they are also not the most DIY friendly cars either.

For a used car, Jag has an excellent bang for buck rating but you should be able to get a W210 Mercedes within your price range.

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With best regards

Al

I don't get too excited when I see a W210 for some reason. I have seen some of them that have a lot of rust which scares me. These are cars on Ebay in the US. The other thing is that some people say that the W210 is very reliable and other have had a lot of problems. It doesn't come accross to be a car as relaible as an LS400 for example, based upon what I've read. The Jag I don't have enough feedback to form an educated opinion yet. That's what I'm looking for.

I did find this though:

http://media.ford.com/news/section_news.cfm?make_id=95&section=80&change_jag_session=true

http://media.ford.com/news/index.cfm?make_id=95

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1989 300CE Astralsilber/Schwarz
1992 300CE Schwarz/Schwarz

It's the beauty of the car that got me going. The autolux connolly leather in the XJ8 VDP is the same a Rolls Royce leather and the lambswool footwell carpeting and all that wood...it's just beautiful, but maybe I should be more careful. I just don't want to fall into a trap.

The old joke was:
Why do British people like to drink warm beer?
Because their fridges were made by Lucas.

Thinngs have changes since those days. I thought I read somewhere that Lucas is actually a respected company now. Not sure though, and do these new Jags use Lucas anyway?

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1989 300CE Astralsilber/Schwarz
1992 300CE Schwarz/Schwarz

Sure, if you want to jump out of the frying pan into the fire.

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Lawrence Coppari

2002 SLK32 AMG
2005 Acura TL
1987 328GTS
1986 944T

What is considered to be the most reliable W210 in the 1996-1998?

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1989 300CE Astralsilber/Schwarz
1992 300CE Schwarz/Schwarz

The most reliable would have to be the E300, turbo diesel.

Next would be the E320.

My choice would be the E300.

ozzy