From the moment it replaced the iconic E-Type in 1975, there was a demand for a roofless version of the Jaguar XJ-S.
But with Jaguar under the control of British Leyland, there wasn’t the budget to invest in two body styles for the new V12 sports car and it would be a whole eight years before a soft-top XJ-S did appear, to tie-in with the model’s mid-life facelift and the introduction of the new high efficiency “HE” engine – a rather odd moniker for a 12-cylinder behemoth that still only returned 17mpg, albeit an improvement on the original.
Even then, the ragtop XJ-S wasn’t a full convertible. Called the XJ-SC, it was a targa top model á la Triumph Stag so as not to impair the XJ-S’s structural rigidity.
But with Jaguar finally gaining independence from British Leyland in 1984, there was finally scope for its engineers to plough their own furrow and a full convertible XJ-S was the second job on their list, behind the urgently needed new XJ6.
The car made its debut in the summer of 1988, by which point the XJ-S was already 13 years old – the launch of a whole new body style being unprecedented for a car of this age. Nevertheless, it was the model that Jaguar sports car enthusiasts had been awaiting for a long time and as such it gave the XJ-S a whole new lease of life. Combined with the new 3.6-litre six-cylinder engine (a genuinely more efficient alternative to the V12) in 1989, the model recorded its best-ever sales year.
This example is one of the first XJ-S Convertibles – a 1988 car that originally wore an F-prefix registration. It’s quite rare in being a V12, as by now the vast majority of XJ-S buyers plumped for the far more usable six-pot. It is in largely original condition and has covered an average of less than 3,000 miles a year since new.
The current owner of this XJ-S has been its custodian since 2002, so has owned it for more than half of its life.
In that time, he has had an annual service and further work carried out on the car as and when necessary, with a lot of the maintenance carried out by the well-known independent Jaguar specialist, David Marks, in Nottingham.
It was originally supplied to a marketing company in Leicester which owned it for the first three years as a company vehicle, with one additional owner in between.
The XJ-S comes with a UK V5 in the name of the current owner and a new MoT, valid until August 2021. There are no significant advisories, just slight play in one wheel bearing and some chips on the windscreen.
It also comes with two box files full of supporting history backing up its ownership record, including several maintenance bills from David Marks, the original service book, handbook and leather wallet and some interesting artefacts, such as a confirmation certificate that some recall work was carried out in 1989, plus an exploded wiring diagram for anyone brave enough to delve deep enough into the XJ-S’s internals.
It also comes with an XJ-S book by renowned Jaguar author Nigel Thorley, plus a selection of old adverts, photographs and reprinted road tests.
Grey leather and carpets work beautifully alongside the car’s pale blue exterior and the cabin is in overall very good condition. It was previously re-trimmed, with a receipt for some of the work included in the car’s history.
There’s a minimal amount of wear to the driver’s seat and to the driver’s overmat, but otherwise everything is very smart and well-presented.
A fairly recent addition is a return to a standard head unit for the stereo, which the current owner spent months looking for after the aftermarket CD player packed up. “It seemed the perfect opportunity to put it back to standard,” he says.
The walnut veneers are all excellent, as is the condition of the black vinyl dash surround. The rear electric windows also aren’t reliable, they work sporadically, suggesting a wiring fault somewhere.
Everything else is present and correct and there’s something spectacularly cool about the ‘rotunda’ gauges for the temperature, fuel level, battery condition and oil pressure – at least as long as they continue to deliver good news…
This is a largely original car that has had repairs carried out as and when required rather than a full restoration, so as a result it’s impressively original.
However, it’s not perfect – something the owner is happy to admit. There are some rust bubbles under the paint surface on the OSF wing and some others around the sill edges that will require attention at some point in the future, while in the past the inner sills have been welded around the jacking points and the rearmost edges of the sills.
The front valance also has a rust patch beneath the bumper, behind the offside fog lamp, which although not structural would most likely require a new front valance or repair section to repair fully.
The Arctic Blue paintwork is largely in good condition though, and cleaned up the car still looks very impressive indeed. The blue fabric hood is in excellent order, with just a couple of minor areas of wear around the rear hinge mounts, while it also comes with a factory spec tonneau cover in matching dark blue canvas. The hood is electrically operated and works perfectly.
There’s something hugely impressive about the 5.3-litre Jaguar V12. Open the bonnet and you’re met by a mystifying morass of pipework and cylinder banks. It’s no wonder that most of them end up being specialist maintained, though in terms of complexity the Jaguar V12 is probably less daunting to a mechanic than many modern engines.
This one has been fettled by a specialist throughout its life and is in fine order, starting up straight away from cold and with no excessive smoke. As you’d expect, it sounds fabulous.
Unfortunately, the A/C and cruise control don't work, but with a soft-top and a V-12 engine, do you really need them anyway?
With the very best XJ-S convertibles now fetching in excess of £20,000, this car will appeal to those who want a tidy, reliable and smart-looking car that’s eminently accessible. It isn’t perfect, but at the same time it’s also very tidy and ideal to either use as is or gradually improve, especially given its impressive history file, provenance and the fact that it’s one of the earliest XJ-S full convertibles.
Pus, it’s a V12. Back in the day where running costs were relevant, that may have counted against it. But as a classic car things are very different and today it’s the one to have.
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1988 Jaguar XJ-S Convertible
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