Jaguar Xj
The Jaguar XJ is a big beautiful, sleek executive saloon that has been around in some form for several decades, hardly changing in appearance, just gradually evolving and gaining weight. In recent times it has been the preferred transport of prime ministers, probably partly because of the thoroughly British image, but more importantly it's girth allows for the installation of plenty of bullet proof panels.
There is a special variant of this, already exclusive, large car, the XJ12 (or Daimler Double Six), which was discontinued several years ago, but it still makes a very interesting, inexpensive second-hand purchase. I owned an XJ12 for three years and drove many thousands of very comfortable, relaxing miles in it.
This is a very rare beast; a big four-door Jaguar saloon with a six-litre V12 engine, the sort of engine only found in very expensive super-cars. The enormous old-fashioned engine, with lineage back to the late E-types of the 1970s purrs quietly as it effortlessly glides the two-tonne car along the road. Despite it's girth the Jag has stunning performance, but was of course, designed to be driven sedately and anonymously. It would make a great get-away car, with one driver, three bank-robbers, four doors and very fast.
The ride is extremely comfortable and the weight of the car just seems to flatten out any bumps in the road and the handling is surprisingly good for a car of its size, just compromised a little by the enormous weight hanging over the front wheels. The twelve cylinder engine sounds wonderful and smooth, but gets drowned out a little by the enormous cooling fan when it is getting hot (then it sounds like a very expensive Hoover) Unfortunately there is a massive downside. The fuel efficiency is terrible at an average of 16 mpg, barely capable of managing 20 mpg on a long journey and easily into single figures in traffic. Reliability was appalling. In my last year with the car I doubt if I had a single week when it didn't break down or at least have a fluid leak of some sort. On the plus-side however, it did mean that the return leg of my daily 150 mile commute was often completed on the back of a recovery vehicle, which saved me a lot in petrol and I did get to know all of the RAC employees on the M3.
The interior is old-fashioned with plenty of leather and walnut veneer on the dashboard and each door, giving the feel of a gentleman's club. The seats are extremely comfortable, with three buttons in the door which move the seats, lumbar-support and headrest to his, hers and the butler's memorized positions, but legroom in the back is not good. The boot is a reasonable size, large enough for two large suitcases and a couple of smaller bags, compromised a little by the big fat spare-wheel and large fuel tank.
I miss my old Jag, but in these times of rising fuel costs and increased environmental awareness it is difficult to recommend this car for regular use. At 16 mpg the average fuel consumption is terrible and the reliability is appalling, but if you want to help the environment, buy one and use it only on special occasions, that way preventing someone else from driving it and ruining the planet.
