XJ6-- doesn't matter if you get one for FREE...when you're all done, it's still a piece of junk. There's no way out of it, it's just a question of bearing up under the constant assault of problems and hopefully being lucky enough to space them out into a workable budget of breakdowns. You will have rusted out saddle gas tanks, you will have cooked fuel injection lines (oh those are fun to replace), you will have leaking steering racks, you will have water leaks, and someday (gulp) you'll have scored rear rotors, which are inboard and require dropping the entire rear suspension.
If you must torture yourself, please, 1985-86 models only.
I don't know where people get their prices (out of the wind, or maybe they think the 66k miles doubles or triples the value, I guess). The rust and no hubcaps on a seventeen year-old $3000 car are an interesting touch:
Kinda odd, seeing the rust just blemish out like that on the door, yet the usual areas, like the bottoms of the doors, lower corner of the fender (ahead of the door), around the rear wheel opening, and rear quarter panel, seem unblemished. At least in the picture. I'm sure it would look worse in person.
I know the 'box' Caprices have their fans and all, but for $3k, it really should be in great condition. 66k miles and a nice (though not spotless) interior don't account for an extra $1500 in value.
Here's another old driver. Sounds like a decent car, probably pretty well cared for, but still a lot of money for a 20 year-old car that clearly is developing serious cancer:
This could either be a 'good deal' or a real nightmare. The price, for someone willing/able to do a bit of work, is tempting, though I'd definitely try to talk him down to almost nothing. Could be a great beater, as most of the problems (other than the taillights) don't scare me in the least:
This guy is in the A-body club I belong to, a site devoted to the '73-77 LeMans specifically (see, look around on the 'net enough and you'll find a club devoted to ANYTHING! I think we get more traffic than the Buick Apollo club though :P ), and its GM siblings in general. I kinda like it, although I'm not so crazy about the color. And I can't stand those fender skirts. They look especially clashy with the Rally 2 wheels.
Also kinda interesting that for being a "Luxury LeMans", which was later renamed "Grand LeMans", the interior seems pretty basic. My '76 has a much more plush, luxurious interior. But then, by '76 sales were really falling off, so maybe they were fluffing them up in an attempt to make them more appealing? I think the '76 only sold around 96K units, versus maybe 250K of the '73.
yeah, I definitely like my '76 better, as well. I think the only thing I wish they would have done different was to offer those big, triangular quarter windows. In '76-77 you could only get the little opera windows like what mine had, or the louvered windows. And I think the louvers were only offered on the Sport Coupe.
But then again, since they squared off the '76-77 a bit, maybe those big, triangular windows wouldn't have worked with that style? I think the Chevelle/Malibu, Cutlass Salon, and Century were still offering them though.
which automatic transmission the MX-6 V-6 would use. If it's the Ford unit, I'd guess around $2500. I worked with a kid back in the late 90's who bought a '94 Probe with the 4-cyl/automatic, used with around 20,000 miles on it. Luckilly, tranny #1 failed under warranty. Unfortunately, Tranny #2 failed around 86,000 miles, with about a year and a half of payments on the books! The kid couldn't afford the $2500 for another one, so he just let it sit beside his parent's house until it was paid off, and then finally got it fixed.
But somehow, in the meantime, he was able to score a used Integra 2-door. Forget the year, but it was the kind with the little quad bug-eyed headlights. I'm guessing a '94? Now you'd think something like that would be kinda expensive, but I think it was ragged out and had really high miles.
GEESH -- nice car but I would have thought $7,000 bid would have busted the reserve. Man's a fool to turn down that bid, if he does.
Another case of "it's rare, but does anyone care?"
Not in this case. Same price as any clean GTV-6...figure $4,500 + maybe $1,500 premium for condition (that's 25% over book). So $7K sounds generous to me.
If you must torture yourself, please, 1985-86 models only.
wait ... i'm sensing this might be sarcasm. Are you saying the 85-86 is only for those who want to torture themselves? Or are you saying, for the least amount of torture, buy an 85-86?? Since the car in question was an '86, I'm assuming you meant the former.(?)
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
the 2-door models are cooler, I think this beast is a good looking car.
I'd hate to think how bad something like this would perform though, with a 231 V-6! My '82 Cutlass Supreme had the same engine, but probably about 800 pounds less weight. It was still a dog, though. Plus, if my experience is any indication, at 77,000 miles the engine is about 4,000 past its expiration date!
If it had any other engine, even a 305 or 301, I'd actually consider it for maybe $1000, if it was closer. Normally I don't like brown cars, but for some reason I always thought Pontiac pulled them off pretty well.
Yes, good editing! I did mean "least amount of torture". These two years generally work out better for people than any other of the "old style" XJ6.
BENZ 300D: I always have to laugh when people say how these cars can "easily achieve" 1/2 million miles....and yet nobody has ever seen one do it. Another urban myth in the making? This guy's car is a dying duck at 360K (and who knows how much money to get even that far?) and he's got another 140,000 easily acheived miles to go!
ouch! so those inboard rotors are actually on a more desirable year? good grief, maybe i won't be getting an older Jag after all .... such a shame they are so damned pretty!
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
RE: Jag XJ6 inboard brakes: a friend has one, his mechanic charged him $900 for a brake job-most of which was for dropping and re-attaching the rear end.
You must live in a low-labor rate area. Dropping the rear end and doing rotors calipers and pads (you really don't want to "patch up" an XJ6 brake job once you've disemboweled the back half of the car) usually runs $1,500 or better.
And once your saddle (two) gas tanks rust out (and they WILL), you'll do it all over again....unless those rear suspension needle bearings (same as the E-Type) go out, then you can saw the entire car in half and do everything at the same time. :P
well, in the case of the volvo, both the dealer and midas insist there is no "turning the OEM rotors" because that would put them out of safe specs. So, in my quote, that included replacing the rotors (which many S70 owners find they need to do every 30k miles, if using OEM stuff).
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
When I was shopping for my latest purchase, I narrowed it down to a used Lincoln LS or used S-type. Usually, when I narrow the list this far, I research parts/repairs cost. I looked up one repair for the S-type, and it made up my mind for me. Turns out a set of new shocks would run me $1800 (that's for the "adaptive" suspension, by the way). As much as I LOVED the feel of the Jag, I just couldn't wrap my brain (and wallet) around repairs like that.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
that makes me think of my '85 Silverado, which has those infamous saddle tanks that can be quite dangerous if you get t-boned at 73 mph. And especially if you have an igniter rigged up like they did on Dateline! :P
Anyway, I had one of them go bad last May...started leaking fuel in the yard. I ended up just parking it and letting it all drain out, and used it in lawnmowers and such. Well, then tank #2 decided to bite the bullet and leak a couple months later! I got an estimate from the repair shop, and it came in at damn near $900, PER TANK!! :surprise:
Well, I wasn't ready to blow that much money, so I just had one tank done. Total cost to replace the driver's side tank, plus the brackets, bypass the crossover switch, and disconnect the passenger-side tank (and screw the door shut so nobody would ever accidentally put gas in it) came to around $885.
Aren't the tanks on the Jag actually inside the trunk? Seems to me they should be relatively safe from rust. With my truck, the mechanic told me that basically, water gets up between the top of the tank and and bottom of the bed and stays there, and starts it to rusting. Then as it deteriorates, I guess crap starts to accumulate at the bottom of the tank, and make it rust as well.
How much would it cost to do the gas tanks on a Jag? And could you just get away with doing one of them, like I did on my truck?
I ended up warping the front rotors on my '00 Intrepid, and replaced them around 97,000 miles. Simple enough though that I was able to do it myself, for a total cost of around $83, including new front pads. Guess I did it right, because it's about 16,000 miles later and nothing fell off yet! :P
I had the rear brakes done around the 101,000 mile mark (second time they were done...first time was around 51,000), and they were able to just turn the rotors. I think a lot of domestic rotors are so cheap though, that sometimes it's easier to just replace them with new ones. I dunno...the back ones might be pricier.
You do know that the S-Type and Lincoln LS are pretty much the same car right?
They sit on the same platform same, motor, same everything minus some styling and suspension stuff like you mentioned.
As for the oem rotors being replaced at 30k that is just a European thing all european cars get the rotors replaced when the pads go. Like our Rovers a front brake job on a Range Rover will cost 1000-1200 dollars and you will have to do it at around 30k if not a little sooner with heavy braking.
yes, I do know that. One of the big differences being the shocks on my LS don't cost $1800 to replace.
There is something to be said for "keeping it simple."
And, actually, their are alot of differences between the cars. And what they do share is covered up beyond recognition. You'll find 2 very different cars when you drive them back-to-back (as i did on a couple of occassions when deciding). Kind of like the Accord vs TL (although I found those to be much more similar than the Stype vs LS).
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
IIRC, there was no V-8 option that year except for the dreaded Diesel 350. I'm pretty sure you were limited to a 110 hp 231 V-6, a 125 hp 252 (4.1) V-6, and the 231 turbo, which may have had 175-180 hp by then.
I think around 1985, they started offering 307 V-8's in them.
Comments
Come for the Football stay for the Jeeps...
XJ6-- doesn't matter if you get one for FREE...when you're all done, it's still a piece of junk. There's no way out of it, it's just a question of bearing up under the constant assault of problems and hopefully being lucky enough to space them out into a workable budget of breakdowns. You will have rusted out saddle gas tanks, you will have cooked fuel injection lines (oh those are fun to replace), you will have leaking steering racks, you will have water leaks, and someday (gulp) you'll have scored rear rotors, which are inboard and require dropping the entire rear suspension.
If you must torture yourself, please, 1985-86 models only.
http://eugene.craigslist.org/car/126727240.html
james
http://chicago.craigslist.org/car/130442014.html
Kinda odd, seeing the rust just blemish out like that on the door, yet the usual areas, like the bottoms of the doors, lower corner of the fender (ahead of the door), around the rear wheel opening, and rear quarter panel, seem unblemished. At least in the picture. I'm sure it would look worse in person.
Here's another old driver. Sounds like a decent car, probably pretty well cared for, but still a lot of money for a 20 year-old car that clearly is developing serious cancer:
http://chicago.craigslist.org/car/130494481.html
http://chambana.craigslist.org/car/128937266.html
This guy is in the A-body club I belong to, a site devoted to the '73-77 LeMans specifically (see, look around on the 'net enough and you'll find a club devoted to ANYTHING! I think we get more traffic than the Buick Apollo club though :P ), and its GM siblings in general. I kinda like it, although I'm not so crazy about the color. And I can't stand those fender skirts. They look especially clashy with the Rally 2 wheels.
Also kinda interesting that for being a "Luxury LeMans", which was later renamed "Grand LeMans", the interior seems pretty basic. My '76 has a much more plush, luxurious interior. But then, by '76 sales were really falling off, so maybe they were fluffing them up in an attempt to make them more appealing? I think the '76 only sold around 96K units, versus maybe 250K of the '73.
Scary to think of a 90 YO women driving around in this barge though.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
But then again, since they squared off the '76-77 a bit, maybe those big, triangular windows wouldn't have worked with that style? I think the Chevelle/Malibu, Cutlass Salon, and Century were still offering them though.
....for an MX-6? This one sounds great otherwise, could be a good deal.
But somehow, in the meantime, he was able to score a used Integra 2-door. Forget the year, but it was the kind with the little quad bug-eyed headlights. I'm guessing a '94? Now you'd think something like that would be kinda expensive, but I think it was ragged out and had really high miles.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Alfa-Romeo-RARE-1982-ALFA-ROMEO-GTV6-BALOCCO-SPEC- IAL-EDITION_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ5356QQitemZ4608934140QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZW- DVW
Wouldn't you love to have a low-mileage early '80s Alfa such as that one? (I know you must like it)
Hahaha.... gotta love it.
Another case of "it's rare, but does anyone care?"
Not in this case. Same price as any clean GTV-6...figure $4,500 + maybe $1,500 premium for condition (that's 25% over book). So $7K sounds generous to me.
hahahahaha ha ha ha haaa
Well, the seller is honest anyway
wait ... i'm sensing this might be sarcasm. Are you saying the 85-86 is only for those who want to torture themselves? Or are you saying, for the least amount of torture, buy an 85-86?? Since the car in question was an '86, I'm assuming you meant the former.(?)
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
I'd hate to think how bad something like this would perform though, with a 231 V-6! My '82 Cutlass Supreme had the same engine, but probably about 800 pounds less weight. It was still a dog, though. Plus, if my experience is any indication, at 77,000 miles the engine is about 4,000 past its expiration date!
If it had any other engine, even a 305 or 301, I'd actually consider it for maybe $1000, if it was closer. Normally I don't like brown cars, but for some reason I always thought Pontiac pulled them off pretty well.
BENZ 300D: I always have to laugh when people say how these cars can "easily achieve" 1/2 million miles....and yet nobody has ever seen one do it. Another urban myth in the making? This guy's car is a dying duck at 360K (and who knows how much money to get even that far?) and he's got another 140,000 easily acheived miles to go!
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
And once your saddle (two) gas tanks rust out (and they WILL), you'll do it all over again....unless those rear suspension needle bearings (same as the E-Type) go out, then you can saw the entire car in half and do everything at the same time. :P
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
When I was shopping for my latest purchase, I narrowed it down to a used Lincoln LS or used S-type. Usually, when I narrow the list this far, I research parts/repairs cost. I looked up one repair for the S-type, and it made up my mind for me. Turns out a set of new shocks would run me $1800 (that's for the "adaptive" suspension, by the way). As much as I LOVED the feel of the Jag, I just couldn't wrap my brain (and wallet) around repairs like that.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
Anyway, I had one of them go bad last May...started leaking fuel in the yard. I ended up just parking it and letting it all drain out, and used it in lawnmowers and such. Well, then tank #2 decided to bite the bullet and leak a couple months later! I got an estimate from the repair shop, and it came in at damn near $900, PER TANK!! :surprise:
Well, I wasn't ready to blow that much money, so I just had one tank done. Total cost to replace the driver's side tank, plus the brackets, bypass the crossover switch, and disconnect the passenger-side tank (and screw the door shut so nobody would ever accidentally put gas in it) came to around $885.
Aren't the tanks on the Jag actually inside the trunk? Seems to me they should be relatively safe from rust. With my truck, the mechanic told me that basically, water gets up between the top of the tank and and bottom of the bed and stays there, and starts it to rusting. Then as it deteriorates, I guess crap starts to accumulate at the bottom of the tank, and make it rust as well.
How much would it cost to do the gas tanks on a Jag? And could you just get away with doing one of them, like I did on my truck?
not a big deal. I took the opportunity to replace with better aftermarket stuff for less money.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
I had the rear brakes done around the 101,000 mile mark (second time they were done...first time was around 51,000), and they were able to just turn the rotors. I think a lot of domestic rotors are so cheap though, that sometimes it's easier to just replace them with new ones. I dunno...the back ones might be pricier.
Oh crap, and I just noticed it's not very far away from me!
Scare Escalade drivers to death with a real 4x4 Caddy
They sit on the same platform same, motor, same everything minus some styling and suspension stuff like you mentioned.
As for the oem rotors being replaced at 30k that is just a European thing all european cars get the rotors replaced when the pads go. Like our Rovers a front brake job on a Range Rover will cost 1000-1200 dollars and you will have to do it at around 30k if not a little sooner with heavy braking.
There is something to be said for "keeping it simple."
And, actually, their are alot of differences between the cars. And what they do share is covered up beyond recognition. You'll find 2 very different cars when you drive them back-to-back (as i did on a couple of occassions when deciding). Kind of like the Accord vs TL (although I found those to be much more similar than the Stype vs LS).
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
That is a beautiful car. Before tailfins.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
I think around 1985, they started offering 307 V-8's in them.