Scratching that itch

JohnLinford

JohnLinford

New member
Greetings from Cumbria and thanks for having me here.

About that itch... Back in the day I owned a variety of E-class Mercs, culminating in the straight six E400, a very civilised car indeed. When, for a few years I lived in the US, V8 steeds were de rigour. So I am used to driving cars with some get up and go.

Now retired and post-Covid my annual mileage is but a small fraction of the 50k I used to turn in, so about 18 months ago I decided to downsize and, for the first time since the envy tax first appeared, avoid paying it if possible. One brand of car that I had never owned but had always fancied was a Jaguar...

One year ago I took delivery of my new Jaguar XE P250 (list price £39970... that was cutting it fine!). The intervening 5000 miles or so have been enjoyable and the XE is everything I had hoped that it might be.

And yet...

Somehow I still yearn for the smooth and effortless power of a six or an eight. Silly, I agree: the number of places in the UK where one can really unleash all that oomph are few and far between. And as a gentleman who is getting on in years it is, perhaps, time to grow out of the craving for speed.

And yet...

Perhaps I'll never grow up and the time left for doing so narrows with every year that passes. When I was prospecting for the XE I couldn't help but notice that lovely F-type alongside the XE in the showroom. NO! I told myself, it's time to be sensible. And I was.

And yet...

The other day I parked next to an F-type convertible. A familiar itch developed. Stronger this time.

I am here to scratch that itch. It's the start of a journey that might culminate in the arrival of an eight pot F-type in my life. Not new, of course: we aren't allowed such things any more as Jaguar, or should that be jaGUar, "reimagines" itself. Perhaps something a couple of years old might suit? An ex. demonstrator, perhaps? I am here to learn, meandering my way through the forum posts and asking questions that I hope F-type aficionados might be willing to answer.

I look forward to participating in the F-type forum!
 
A warm welcome to you John.

…from someone who had an XE R-Sport in Bluefire, before moving on to a convertible F-Type.

It’s never too late to go for it - you know it makes sense 😎
 
It sounds like you're on that slippery slope and there's no way back now! But you are following a path that others here have followed, so it's quite normal. The V8 does cost more to run, but say plus 20-25% above your XE and there's nothing else like it that's so affordable.

Time to change your domestic cat for a real animal. You won't stop grinning, but be prepared to get noticed when out with your big cat.
https://youtu.be/9euOZ78jkaM?feature=shared
 
You can avoid the "luxury" tax by going for a 6 year old, as the excess will have expired by then - mine was a measly £190 at the last renewal. And you don't "have" to use the speed, but it's nice to know it's there, just in case.

Welcome to the forum!
 
Lunar said:
It’s never too late to go for it - you know it makes sense 😎
Click to expand...
Thanks for the welcome Lunar. Of course it does not make sense! As I get older I conclude that fewer and fewer things make sense and, especially, that common sense is very much less common that one might have expected. I might as well go with the flow.
mickjaguar said:
It sounds like you're on that slippery slope and there's no way back now!
Click to expand...
You're probably right there, Mick. Luggage space is the immediate problem. I don't need it very often, any more than I have a frequent need for more than two seats. But the requirement remains. Therefore I think that the F-type might have to be in addition to rather than replacement for the XE. Can I justify two cats, one domesticated, for around 5k miles per annum combined? I need to cogitate on that. The XKR would have fitted the bill but they are getting rather long in the tooth now.
 
scm said:
You can avoid the "luxury" tax by going for a 6 year old, as the excess will have expired by then - mine was a measly £190 at the last renewal. And you don't "have" to use the speed, but it's nice to know it's there, just in case.
Click to expand...
Yes indeed. The urge to deny the chancellor her envy tax was probably assuaged with the XE purchase. It would be nice if it wasn't there but that's true of all taxes I guess. I could put up with 2-3 years of it. Certainly with the E400 it wasn't so much the sheer speed as the dignified way in which it effortlessly accelerated and I think that is what I miss with the XE.
 
JohnLinford said:
Lunar said:
It’s never too late to go for it - you know it makes sense 😎
Click to expand...
Thanks for the welcome Lunar. Of course it does not make sense! As I get older I conclude that fewer and fewer things make sense and, especially, that common sense is very much less common that one might have expected. I might as well go with the flow.
mickjaguar said:
It sounds like you're on that slippery slope and there's no way back now!
Click to expand...
You're probably right there, Mick. Luggage space is the immediate problem. I don't need it very often, any more than I have a frequent need for more than two seats. But the requirement remains. Therefore I think that the F-type might have to be in addition to rather than replacement for the XE. Can I justify two cats, one domesticated, for around 5k miles per annum combined? I need to cogitate on that. The XKR would have fitted the bill but they are getting rather long in the tooth now.
Click to expand...

Hi John and welcome - I started out looking at XKR's over 2 years ago and I do still like them and the extra seats (if you can call them that) would have been useful, but the infotainment system was dated and at the time there wasn't much difference between the cost of a late model low mileage XKR and an early V8 F-Type. Of course it didnt work out that way as once on the slippery slope you keep thinking well for a bit more I can get something a bit better and before long you have nearly doubled your budget :shock:
 
Purplecat said:
Hi John and welcome - I started out looking at XKR's over 2 years ago and I do still like them and the extra seats (if you can call them that) would have been useful, but the infotainment system was dated and at the time there wasn't much difference between the cost of a late model low mileage XKR and an early V8 F-Type. Of course it didnt work out that way as once on the slippery slope you keep thinking well for a bit more I can get something a bit better and before long you have nearly doubled your budget :shock:
Click to expand...

The rear "seats" are the only thing I miss from my XKRs (I had 2, and an XK8 before them). But I think the F-Type is better in many ways, so I have no regrets about downsizing(!).

And you're right that many people buy the cheapest car they can't afford! :lol:
 
Welcome to the forum John!
Scratch the itch! :D

Where in lovely Cumbria are you? I have several times from Cornwall packed the F Type (quite a squeeze mind) with a tent and the other half and spent a few days in the NT Great Langdales campsite. She does feel wide on those roads in and out of Ambleside mind!
 
JohnLinford said:
Mick. Luggage space is the immediate problem. I don't need it very often, any more than I have a frequent need for more than two seats. But the requirement remains. Therefore I think that the F-type might have to be in addition to rather than replacement for the XE. Can I justify two cats, one domesticated, for around 5k miles per annum combined? I need to cogitate on that.
Click to expand...

Two Jags is the right solution, in my experience, for exactly these reasons. My F type is a fun car now, for going to car meets/shows through the summer and for weekends away etc.

I read the original Mr 2 Jags died yesterday (may he rest in peace and best wishes to his family at this time). Whilst I can't say I agreed with his position on many things, I did on his choice of car and also when he punched someone in the chops for throwing stuff at him.
 
JohnLinford said:
Greetings from Cumbria and thanks for having me here.

About that itch... Back in the day I owned a variety of E-class Mercs, culminating in the straight six E400, a very civilised car indeed. When, for a few years I lived in the US, V8 steeds were de rigour. So I am used to driving cars with some get up and go.

Now retired and post-Covid my annual mileage is but a small fraction of the 50k I used to turn in, so about 18 months ago I decided to downsize and, for the first time since the envy tax first appeared, avoid paying it if possible. One brand of car that I had never owned but had always fancied was a Jaguar...

One year ago I took delivery of my new Jaguar XE P250 (list price £39970... that was cutting it fine!). The intervening 5000 miles or so have been enjoyable and the XE is everything I had hoped that it might be.

And yet...

Somehow I still yearn for the smooth and effortless power of a six or an eight. Silly, I agree: the number of places in the UK where one can really unleash all that oomph are few and far between. And as a gentleman who is getting on in years it is, perhaps, time to grow out of the craving for speed.

And yet...

Perhaps I'll never grow up and the time left for doing so narrows with every year that passes. When I was prospecting for the XE I couldn't help but notice that lovely F-type alongside the XE in the showroom. NO! I told myself, it's time to be sensible. And I was.

And yet...

The other day I parked next to an F-type convertible. A familiar itch developed. Stronger this time.

I am here to scratch that itch. It's the start of a journey that might culminate in the arrival of an eight pot F-type in my life. Not new, of course: we aren't allowed such things any more as Jaguar, or should that be jaGUar, "reimagines" itself. Perhaps something a couple of years old might suit? An ex. demonstrator, perhaps? I am here to learn, meandering my way through the forum posts and asking questions that I hope F-type aficionados might be willing to answer.

I look forward to participating in the F-type forum!
Click to expand...

Hi John and welcome to the forum.

I also live in Cumbria and if you would like to kick my F TYPE V8 wheels for some ideas, your welcome. There is also a local Jag club, Solway Jaguar club that have various meets and events during the year.
 
mickjaguar said:
Two Jags is the right solution, in my experience, for exactly these reasons. My F type is a fun car now, for going to car meets/shows through the summer and for weekends away etc.

I read the original Mr 2 Jags died yesterday (may he rest in peace and best wishes to his family at this time). Whilst I can't say I agreed with his position on many things, I did on his choice of car and also when he punched someone in the chops for throwing stuff at him.
Click to expand...
Yes, I think you're right. Can't say I am really into car meets, or more precisely I have never been to one. For all that I like decent, interesting cars, they're not a way of life or a real interest/hobby if I am honest. I have quite enough expensive and absorbing hobbies already and probably should resist the temptation to acquire any more! Perhaps if I get an F-type I will have to review that.

Yes, saw that two-Jags had passed away. Respect for the guy, despite his politics not being my cup of tea.
 
Jimmyrn85 said:
Where in lovely Cumbria are you? I have several times from Cornwall packed the F Type (quite a squeeze mind) with a tent and the other half and spent a few days in the NT Great Langdales campsite. She does feel wide on those roads in and out of Ambleside mind!
Click to expand...
I'm in the Eden Valley, to the east of the Lake District, south-east of Penrith. In my youth I rock climbed and yomped the Lake District mountains, so what started off as a weekend retreat from work in Berkshire became my retirement pad when the dot-com bubble burst. Never looked back! Love it up here and really couldn't live down south now.
 
JAGBOB said:
I also live in Cumbria and if you would like to kick my F TYPE V8 wheels for some ideas, your welcome. There is also a local Jag club, Solway Jaguar club that have various meets and events during the year.
Click to expand...
Ah, now that's an interesting offer Bob, thank you very much! Let me get a bit further down the road on the F-type idea. Realistically, if it happens, it won't be before late spring as I am gallivanting around Africa then the USA for much of the intervening time. Notwithstanding what I said earlier about not being a car club sort of fellow, I might just let you introduce me to the Solway Jaguar Club!
 
JohnLinford said:
JAGBOB said:
I also live in Cumbria and if you would like to kick my F TYPE V8 wheels for some ideas, your welcome. There is also a local Jag club, Solway Jaguar club that have various meets and events during the year.
Click to expand...
Ah, now that's an interesting offer Bob, thank you very much! Let me get a bit further down the road on the F-type idea. Realistically, if it happens, it won't be before late spring as I am gallivanting around Africa then the USA for much of the intervening time. Notwithstanding what I said earlier about not being a car club sort of fellow, I might just let you introduce me to the Solway Jaguar Club!
Click to expand...

John,

I live in Penrith and just catch-up when your ready.
 
The itch is definitely strong with this one. Today I toddled along to my local Jag dealer and had a good poke around their MY 2024 demonstrator F-type coupe. A P300 but apart from that it was really good to see one in the wild. My concerns about boot space were largely assuaged - it's better than it looks in the pictures. I think it could be fine as a daily driver for me.

So I'm officially on the lookout for a one to three year old P450 AWD. Might even be a Christmas present to myself...
 
Hi John and welcome, I think a coupe is fine for luggage space the boot is certainly bigger than a convertible boot, P450 AWD is a great choice, it I am slightly biased tho, drive as many as you can see what you like, the group on here are a great bunch, can help with most questions, if you find one you like post the registration number and ask for a car check you’d be surprised when can be found, as an example a advertised FSH is not always a FSH
My personal experience be careful around main dealers the cars are not always what they should be from a main dealer.
 
Hi Billy, thank you for the welcome and for the helpful tips. The buying options are rather more limited up here in the boonies of Cumbria but my experience so far with my XE bought new from the local dealer has been good. They have since lost the Jaguar new car franchise but have retained the Approved Jaguar used car status, so my hope is that they are more motivated to do a good job of that. I might have to look beyond the immediate area though, because there are rather few F-types hereabouts. I'm not in any rush, so I can afford to take my time and be choosy!
 
JohnLinford said:
I might have to look beyond the immediate area though, because there are rather few F-types hereabouts. I'm not in any rush, so I can afford to take my time and be choosy!
Click to expand...

I started looking locally in about May, but ended up getting mine 200 miles away last month and couldn't be happier with the colour / options / price I ended up finding. Choice can be limited if you are picky but I was happy to wait.

I'd suggest not limiting your search by mileage so you at least know what is available then can later decide how far you are willing to go for the right one
 
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