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opinions please…personal vehicle choice.
I’ve just sold my XJ8 to a nice old chap from Aberdeen who’s paying me ‘top whack’ and some compliments for the nice example that it is :).
Anyhoo – have my sights set on one of two cars. Like them both for different reasons.
Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited 4.7 with LPG…or…Jaguar S-Type 4.0 SE.
Jeep’s a lovely metallic green with acres of tan cow and some nasty fake wood.
Jag – silver with black leather and more toys than you can shake a stick at…and some nasty fake wood.
Both OK mileage – good service history and excellent condition. Full MOTs and plenty of tax.
Technical specs courtesy of Parkers so may be a bit sketchy:
JP – 4.7 16v V8 – 0-60 220bhp 8.7sec 124mph 5sp auto
JG – 4.0 32v V8 – 0-60 281bhp 6.6sec 150mph 4sp auto (I was sure it’s a 5 speed though)
Overall internal & external sizes are about the same.
Jag a lot more refined, Jeep a bit more fun.
Jag…endless power, Jeep…dirt cheap to run.it’s just so – "apples & oranges", i like both for different reasons. Jeep will be a ‘cheap’ hoot being LPG…and will probably retain a better resale value. Jag…just friggin’ awesome power and no worse on petrol than the present one.
I only ever keep a car for a year tops (much to my wife’s dismay) as I find some poor excuse to get another one. (Boot’s too small / I’ve always fancied one of those…etc.)
Really can’t find a sensible reason either way – so any notes of experience of either vehicle welcome. At present I’m 55/45 in favour of the Jeep…but then that little voice inside my head that likes kicking the ass of chavs in corsas has a chuckle.
I don’t mean to offend, but please don’t mention the phrase ‘carbon footprint’…it’s just my ‘big boy’s toy’ that’ll do minimal mileage – doing my little bit to help warm Britain up. 😉
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16 Replies
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I really dont like the S Type Jags at all. They just dont look or feel right and arent particularly inspiring to drive considering the power they have.
Saying that, im not really a 4×4 man either.
Are you dead set on one of these 2 cars?
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Do some serious research on LPG conversion, there can be some horror stories on the heads, esp the valves/seats…………
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Which car would be the easiest to use on British roads. Can you easily use the power/speed of the Jag, for that matter can you use a 4WD.
Lots of help aren’t I.
Mo matter which one you choose after a few months the other one will appear to be the one you should have chosen always have always will be the case
cheers Mike -
I’ve kinda wittled down a huge long list of ‘big’ cars to arrive at these…basically stuff with between 200 & 300bhp, 16 foot long and comfy seats.
Looked at everything from Volvos in the V70 range (nasty FWD and retro interiors), Range Rovers…nice except the consoles…like they spend all of the money styling the outside and raided the skip behind British Leyland for the switches. Audi A8 4.2 Quattro…I like the A8’s, but if ANYTHING goes it’s pretty much main dealer only. BMW 5 series…great driving cars – but I’ve seen one too many rusty examples driven by the same people that used to drive ratty 316’s and live in caravans…7 series – very nice if you get the right one…and there aren’t too any. SAAB…glorified Vectra. Alfa – beautiful styling…no power. Subarus / Mitsubishi – too basic and noisy. Older XJ8 Jag…been there done that. Vauxhall Omega…had 3 of them…perfect in so many ways…just not a good one in all the land for sale at present. VX Sigma – much to my dismay I found out they are FWD…
The Toyota & Mitsubishi 4x4s (Land cruiser / L200 etc) were too industrial. Fantastic work vehicles…but not my thing.The s-type has grown on me over the years. I like the ‘jaguaryness’ of the styling. And although build quality is a little down (more ford)…it’s a familiar cabin…and it’ll probably be a damn comfy one at that.
Even looked at the possibility of an XJR…but besides the huge power…it’s the same car as the one I sold because ‘the boot is too small’.
So yeh…been looking for a few months and it’s down to those two.
I frequently use the power of the jag, last one was 240bhp. Handy for overtakes & getting up to speed when joining motorways…the old guy on the test drive evidently had no idea what to expect and was a little taken aback when I told him to floor it.
4×4…unlikely that it’ll be used for 360 days of the year…chelsea tractor essentially.I’ve never said I wanted a sensible car. I’d be in a twingo or some diesel vectra if i was sensible! Thankfully Manda tolerates this ‘thing’…
Dave
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why have you bypassed mercs
out of your choice , its the jag no question
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quote Chris Wool:why have you bypassed mercs
out of your choice , its the jag no question
Not really bypassed merc – but in the ranges that I looked at I eg. E320 – they were just so ‘bland’.
A lurvly SLK on the other hand…looks stunning, but I’d feel (in the words of James May) a right (male chicken).
😀
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There can only be one car of choice for you david. The Chrysler 300C.
Buy the diesel and you will even get reasonable economy, but buy the Hemi and you will be doing your bit to save the climate by helping to ward off global cooling saving us all from the next ice age 😀 -
I’m a Jeep man myself (currently own 2).
Provided you get the full LPG installation / safety certificate (required for insurance), it should be fine.
The only problems I have heard with the Grand Cherokee is to do with the rear axle differential, but that is usually with the diesel engine (too much torque for the axle).
If you get a good one, you will want to keep it for years. If you get a bad one, it will be expensive.
Ivan
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I’m very lucky in that cars do nothing for me whatsoever and, apart from a brief sojourn with a Chrysler 300C (good choice Phill), I really don’t care what I drive around in.
Being without a car a couple of weeks ago I went out in our works runabout, a Focus 1.6 automatic estate, and was really quite impressed. Fair enough, it doesn’t have the magic carpet ride of the Chrysler, but I thought that, for what I want a car to do, it was more than adequate. So I bought one.
Ended up with a two year old Focus 2.0 Ghia auto estate with 19,000 miles on it for £5.5k. Bargain of the week, and makes me feel all righteous for reducing my expenditure on cars in a credit crunch.
On the other hand, bikes is a whole different matter, and I might soon be spending the money I have saved on something much more to my taste. Mine is nearly four years old now and an update would be nice. 😛
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Just got rind of my bmwx5 great to drive and being a petrol one Paid for our local shell managers holiday for the last two years
for a toy I`d go down mr Porsche’s route had a couple and nothing gets near once you`ve had one (like an older woman) oops best of luck nick
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Well – did the deal for the Jeep…and the guy welshed on it (wanted more money) – after I’d sold my car. GRRRR.
So….bought another XJ8 to replace it.
Ex-chauffeur driven 2002 LWB Sov. with most of the toys in BRG…picking up mid week or next weekend. It’s just going to be a stop-gap I recon as it was partly to get a quiet life after I was slightly moaned at for selling it.
Back to square one…
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damn was just going to offer you my Nissan 350z. Its about time for something new for me too! its available if anyone is looking for a scarily fast car in immaculate condition!
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Another lovely painting Nigel! 😀 😀
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Harry, – that’s nearly as funny as your bin trasher :rofl:
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quote Nigel Hindley:Harry, – that’s nearly as funny as your bin trasher :rofl:
😀 😀
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At the minute a 4×4 is the answer ……… snow everywhere! 😀 But if I had the choice of those I’d have gone with the Jag. I drive a 4×4 and love it, but I’m not a fan of Jeeps. I had a Jag in the past and really liked it. 😀
Hope you like the new Jag.
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