Friday 6 August 2021

Bought another S-type Jaguar

Having recently given away my Ford Escape to DS1 as his 21st birthday present, I decided to have another go at buying an S-type Jaguar as my 'new' (used) car. Last time I tried this was back in August 2018, and on that occasion I ended up buying a lemon from a private selling (hence no warranty) that had an electrical problem which ended up making the car a total write-off only a few months after I bought it.

This time I've bought a 2002 Jaguar S-type SE from a local used car dealer. Being in lock-down in Sydney I didn't go to inspect the vehicle in person, relying on the car dealers photos (the body work, paint and interior all appear to be in good condition) and I paid an extra $590 for a 12-month warranty. The car cost $8,000 and I was told that it had only one previous owner and it has reasonably low mileage (123,000 km) for its age. We'll see how reliable the car turns out to be in reality. The car dealer has a mixed bag of very good and very poor reviews regarding the quality of their used cars and after-sales service, so I suspect if the car is OK everything will be fine, but if it has any major issues I may have trouble getting the dealer to rectify it under warranty. Fingers crossed that this turns out to be a reliable vehicle, but I won't be surprised if it turns out to be another expensive mistake.

I've arranged for it to be delivered early next week, so this weekend I'll spend a few hours rearranging the boxes and junk stored in my garage so I can park the Jag inside rather than under the carport. The current  registration lasts until next February - if it is still driving well by the time I have to get it inspected to renew the registration, I'll think about getting a personalized licence plate with a nice rego number and in a colour to match the vehicle (which will cost about $125 pa). I'll probably continue to work from home several days a week even once the pandemic ends, and I normally take public transport to the office, so I will probably only use this car a few times a week, and for occasional visits to any of my financial planning clients/prospects that want a 'house call', as well as the occasional longer drive up to the lake house during school holidays.

The total purchase cost (including 12-mo warranty, delivery charge, and a $100 'admin fee') was $8,709. And annual registration and CTP insurance will cost about $1,000. Being a 3.0L V6 engine it isn't very fuel efficient, allegedly needing 10.8 - 12.5 L per 100 km, and emitting around 314g CO2 per km. The 70L fuel tank will cost around $100 to fill at current fuel prices, and should provide a range of about 560 km. The running costs will largely depend on how much basic log book servicing costs, and if it develops any expensive faults.

I already have a 1960 Mk2 Jaguar that my parents gave me for my 18th birthday, but that car is stored up at my parent's farm and hardly ever gets used these days (I used it for daily commutes to university and then to my work back in the 1980s, but we did a respray and interior restoration and haven't used it much in the past twenty years). The styling of the S-type is based on the classic Mk1 and Mk2 models.

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