I have been asked to help dispose of an estate including 2 Jaguar autos.

There seems to be some question aa to whether the cars are what the seem to be.
A prospective buyer raised issues concerning both cars.

One is a 1987 xj6 Vanden Plas. However, I was told that since the car does not have the fold down trays in the back seat, that it is not a VP.

The second vehicle is maybe a 1988 or 1989 XJS-R. The car was manufactured in Feb of 88, but titled as a 1989.

The deceased owner had maintained that the care was very rare. The prospective buyer says that the cars has aftermarket spoiler, wheels, and other trim to make it appear to be the rare model, but is in fact an XJS.

Can the VIN sort this out?

Any help would be appreciated.

Larry Adams

Submitted by SE56-39631J-J on Fri, 04/28/2006 - 17:26

gail&a.w.amanns vonore tn. 99xk8 conv. 93 xjr-s coupe would check the serial number stamped under the hood from what i've read they will be different than the vin on the windshield. the only year the xjr-s was shiiped to the states was '93 they only came in two colors signal red or black and only 50 coupes and 50 convets were built. however in the rest of the world they were built eariler. check out jaglovers.com

Submitted by theauctionelf@… on Sat, 03/18/2006 - 16:18

Bob,

Thanks Bob.

Based on you input, this car cannot be a 1989 XJR-S since:

The car is red.

The seats could be called doeskin, but there is no piping.

and if the treadplate, which I call a sillplate, is the same thing, this one is plain with just Jaguar embossed on it.

Doug, this may answer the question I asked you, since Bob's email came while I was responding to you.

Thanks

Submitted by theauctionelf@… on Sat, 03/18/2006 - 16:05

Doug,

Thanks. You info is very helpful and I appreciate your prompt input.

This XJS's VIN, including a K in the 10th digit, indicates that this is a 1989 vehicle.

As I understand your response, it appears that there was not a true XJR-S offered in the US, by Jaguar, for the model year 1989. This may explain why this vehicle is badged XJS instead of XJR-S.

However this raises another question.

Does the VIN indicate a US market vehicle?

If this was a US vehicle, it explains perhaps why someone changed our various components, such as headlights and tailights using Euro components, to further disguise this car's heritage.

Submitted by peddlarbob@sym… on Sat, 03/18/2006 - 15:48

Edited on 2006-03-18 15:51:07

It is my understanding that only a 100 of the 1989 XJR-S was manufactured for the European market. They were all painted Tungsten and the seats were doeskin with saville grey accent piping sewn into them. When you open the doors and look at the tread plates they should say Jaguarsport on them with victory laurels depicting the 1987 sports car championship.

Bob.

92 Ser III V-12 VDP #31 Canadian Edition
87 Ser III V-12 VDP
86 Ser III AJ6/Soveriegn
85 Ser III XJ6/VDP
65 MkII 3.4 Automatic
59 MkI 3.4 Automatic.

Submitted by dougdwyer@adel… on Sat, 03/18/2006 - 12:53

Assuming that we are talking about USA market cars, a 1987 Vanden Plas would be a "Series III" car and would not have the fold down trays. The fold down trays reappeared on the VDPs with the "XJ40" type cars....1988 model year in the USA.

The XJS issue is a bit trickier. First, being manufactured in 2/88 and being registered as an "89" is not unusual. My "88" XJS was built in 2/87....but the VIN clearly denotes it as an "88". Look at the VIN tag on the left windsheild pillar. The tenth digit will be "H" for a 1987, "J" for a 1988, "K" for a 1989, "L" fo 1990 and so on. Again, this applies to USA market cars (or perhaps all North American cars)as the original serial number (found under the bonnet) was "Americanized" according to regulation.

I'm not sure if the VIN will denote if it is a genuine XJR-S or not. I'm not an expert on the XJR-S...others will chime in. I think the late-80s vintage XJR-S cars were upfitted by an outside company (TWR perhaps?)and for the USA market included only the trim items...not the more powerful engine. I wouldn't be surprised if some dealers or owners took a standard XJS and fit some of the "R" accessories.

No doubt some of the others here will clarify the "R" issues :-)

Doug Dwyer
Longview Washington USA
1987 XJ6 Ser III
1988 XJS V12 Coupe