Jaguar's Worst Car? - The XJ40 Story

Hello everyone! :D

While there have been many protracted car development stories, none have held so much promise than that of the Jaguar XJ40, a machine that was conceived way back in 1972, but wouldn't emerge onto the market until 1986 following 14-years of fragmented assembly, with numerous restarts due to the exacting demands of the British Leyland management.

However, the resultant XJ40, despite its initial acclaim, was a machine that was most decidedly a product of the time it was originally considered, as due to the conservative mindset of the Jaguar engineers and managers, the car looked old when it was new, especially when compared to the Lexus LS400 that was released only three years later.

This, combined with a plethora of build quality problems and reliability concerns, led to what has often been dubbed the worst car Jaguar has ever made, and even today holds a mixed reception among enthusiasts, praising its luxury and performance, but condemning its horrendous construction.

Chapters:

0:00 - Preamble
0:37 - Building on Perfection
3:38 - The Difficulties Start
6:26 - Putting things together
8:49 - Engine Trouble
11:57 - Entering Sales
15:03 - A Calamitous Stumble
18:18 - A Prayer for the Dying
21:22 - Conclusion

The views and opinions expressed in this video are my personal appraisal and are not the views and opinions of any of these individuals or bodies who have kindly supplied me with footage and images.

If you enjoyed this video, why not leave a like, and consider subscribing for more great content coming soon.

Press the Join button to get access to new videos a week ahead of schedule by becoming a channel member for just £2.99 a month!

Thanks again, everyone, and enjoy! :D

References:
- AROnline (and their respective sources)
- Wikipedia (and its respective references)

[chrispenn]

Sorry to spoil the cliche, but I had two these XJ40s at a couple of years old and both were very reliable. Really enjoyed them. I've also had a few Mercedes - also great cars, but they didn't feel as special as a Jaguar....

[milehighclassics]

I love em, had lots from nearly new and none BROKE DOWN NONE

[HarryHipster]

From 1988 til 1996 my father owned the 3, 6 version with 6 cylinders in grey metallic, with black leather trim and fine wooden panels on the interior. I enjoyed driving it, too. The car had the ZF 4-speed automatic which I also loved to use in manual mode. I remember the gear switch was U-shaped with the manual gears on the left side. Very smooth and easy to drive. The comfort was excellent, but due to its elegant low lines it wasn't that roomy and spacious. Despite driving at a good pace I often managed to get the fuel consumption under 11 litres per 100 km (25 MPG) which was considerably good for an 80's car. Despite its classy and conservative look the XJ40 was equipped with a modern bord computer which reminded me a little bit of the much more expensive and exclusive Aston Martin Lagonda. The red LED's looked a little bit dated like the first quarz watches. Overall, a beautiful car – in our case without any reliability problems.

[drstevenrey]

I like to old footage from BL. You can almost taste the uselessness that surrounds this whole failure.

[carolynfield]

I had an XJ40 3.2 in the early 1990s. It was badly made, under powered, rust prone with peculiar steering. I was pleased to exchange it for a BMW 5 series in 1996 and have always had BMWs since then 0:22

[MattBrownbill]

Wow, 14 years development, that's 7 completely new Nissan models in row. Lol.

[brentfairlie]

I always liked the XJ40. i never liked the XJ6 series 3.

[frasermitchell]

The XJ40 was the first Jaguar to have fault monitoring technology. The only problem was that every time an owner started his car, it told him there was something wrong with it.
Anyway, it looks as if JLR are about to kill off Jaguar. There will only be 15 dealers in the whole of the UK and they will have only one all-electric model to sell, and that will cost well over £100, 000. They've already kissed goodbye to all current Jaguar owners and even those comtemplating buying a new one.

[Yormsane]

I still see a few XJ40s out here in Colorado. The dry desert climate keeps the electronics working, and rust at bay.

[XJag]

😢 as a X300 owner the title alone made me sad! Ford doesn't get enough credit for saving them! Love all your content BTW!!!

[normandunckley]

In the late 90's had a 89 Sovereign then a 92 Daimler XJ40's Both were excellent drives, perhaps as i did alot of motorway driving & regular up keep ( oil, water, fluids, etc), neither gave any trouble & pleasure to drive.
Like them or not, even in the mid - late 90's they still turned heads & got respect on the road. Yes there's better engineered cars, but the look, stance, class of a Jag along with the ride are their edge over the Lexus's & German marques.

[macjim]

Those guys spray painting the cars must have had health problems later in life as, although they were wearing protective gear, did not have masks on.

[flightofthefelix]

Jaguar's worst car? Not by a long way. Absolute rust bucket? No worse than any car of the period or since. I have owned Jaguars for years - from a 420G, through S3 XJ6, XJ40 Daimler, S-Type, X-Type and XF. I still have the XJ40 and the XF is my daily. The S-Type and X-Type rotted to the point of scrap - the same with the S3 although there were way more issues with that than just rust (thanks to BL incompetence) and the 420G was sold on as too large. My XJ40? Sitting on my drive with its original metal and paint. A magnificent luxury barge with WAY more character and presence than any Japanese imitation or German attempt at 'luxury'. Sorry Ruairidh, your videos are great and entertaining, but with this one you appear to have just rolled out the usual tropes. No matter, I will still enjoy them. BTW - Read Sir John Egan's book "Saving Jaguar" - you will find the full background as to why the XJ40 took so long to come to the market.

[scotty]

I worked for the old Plessey Defence company as a vehicle tech in our fleet workshop in Addlestone nr Weybridge, Our board members went from S3 XJ-6's to the XJ-40, Overall the XJ-40 was pretty reliable and well built and better to work on than the old S3 XJ, The only problem i recall having with them was the self levelling sensors used to fail on the O/S/F accumulator valve block and leak hydraulic oil, It was an easy job to rectify and some of our 40's exceeded 150K trouble free miles but we were anal on maintenance!

[danieleregoli]

I would like to know how many of those who like to criticise the XJ40 have actually driven, or for that matter owned one...
I for one am the very happy owner of an early series 3, 6 which goes like a bomb and literally glides over the road like a flying carpet...
To each their own.

[ksorsomeplace]

Mass appeal cars spell doom for a marque. Of course, today, generic SUV (where they got "Sport" is beyond me) reigns. A bulky, poor handling, wagon is now the choice of the

[paulie-Gualtieri.]

The XJ40 was a great car mechanically. It handled and drove better than the equivalent BMW and Mercedes. The wood and leather were better on the XJ40 than it's replacement the X300.

[franzkoviakalak]

It was bad, but at least it had recognizable Jaguar DNA. The current lineup is so utterly bland and removed from brand heritage as to be Jaguar only in name. It’s a zombie brand that’s truly been squandered.

[MrJezza]

It was actually a much better car than the predecessor, and got an unfairly bad reputation for no particular reason. I’ve had 12 of them, and simply wouldn’t have spent as much time on them as I have if they weren’t utterly superb.

[kevinmccann]

I have fond memories of my XJ41 V12 Jag, I bought it from an Isuzu dealer who had taken it in on trade and just wanted it gone. It cost me a fairly large amount of money to fix it up, but it was one of the best cars I have owned and it saved my wife's life when she was broadsided at an intersection hard enough to write off the car and she had a bruised wrist and walked away from the collision. So from my perspective one of the best cars ever made. I now drive a 15 year old Lexus GS460 and my wife has an RX350 also 15 years old, both excellent cars. Very well addressed Ruairidh, I enjoy your YouTube content very much.
Regards Mac.