Jaguar, now there’s an evocative name. Previously Swallow Side Cars of Blackpool, Jaguar was formed on 4 September 1922, with W. (Billy) Lyons and W. (William) Walmsley as equal partners, with an overdraft of £1000.00. The rest, as they say, is history. “Everybody loves the Jag”, or so we are led to believe. Open-topped tourers, blonde in the passenger seat, hair billowing in the wind, cruising down narrow lanes and drinking in country pubs…. ah, those were the days! I do love Jags, but I hate the short-sighted people at British Leyland who, all those many years ago, dragged the car down with very shoddy build quality. Now that Ford have taken them over and improved that quality, interest in Jags is on the up. I love the Series III XJ6. To me it’s the epitome of a Jag, but that’s only my opinion. It’s a nice car, but purists will go for the Series l.

Now for the XJS. Is it better than an E-Type, or not ? Who really cares anyway, as the E-Type is over rated, and the XJS is under rated. There are a lot of good XJSs about for little money. Perhaps it’s a bit ugly on the front, and personally I prefer them with twin headlamps.

But the XJS to go for is the pre-HE, which was the fastest production XJS Jaguar made (and there weren’t many). The model was withdrawn because of poor sales, and then, after long arguments with Sir William Lyons, it was revamped for the American market and reintroduced six months later with a lot more chrome and a leaner engine. There’s not a lot more you can do with 5.3 litres, I would have thought.

One of the problems with a sports car is that while it has a lot of “go”, you can’t see round the car in front, or over the next traffic-calming hump, so there’s not a lot you can do with the “umph”, except on the motorway after 9.30 p.m.. Personally I prefer a Series 1 Landrover – it’s much, much faster in urban traffic, and far more nippy. On the open road you get the wind in your hair, you catch up with the car in front at the next set of lights, you can go to the “skips” with all the garden rubbish, and you can help Aunty May move the “nice three-piece suite” she bought in the local ads paper for a quid. You get wet feet on rainy days - all the fun of the open road, Oh, and there’s no road fund tax, and insurance is pretty cheap too! If you want real fun, get a Series I. (more about that under Landrover)

Which other models of Jaguar (and Daimler) should you buy? Well, this depends on pocket and taste. Daimler Double Six coupe and Series III VDP models dated 1969 and before start to get pricey, but I’ll pick out a few budget buys. Mk Vs are pricey, though you might pick up a 2.5 “resto” saloon for under three grand. Also for under three grand, you should be able to buy a resto Mk VII, Mk VIII or a Mk IX. The Mk X comes cheap at a few hundred quid for resto, and less than four grand for average. The 2.4 and 3.4 saloons, together with the Mk 2 (all models), the 240, 340 and “S” types all come cheap at around four hundred pounds as restos. But a 3.8 Mk 2 may cost as much as a grand, with eight grand for an “average“ model. The remainder at “average” will be around the four to six thousand pound mark. If you want something different, go for an estate. Prices are surprisingly low if you look around.

E-types are out of my price range, and to be honest, I’m not that fussed. It’s a nice looking car though. I prefer the 2+2 Series III, known as the V12E (which comes with an auto box). I hate those horrible gear levers. Give me an auto any time – they’re faster than a manual in spite of what people say, and you can drive them like a manual if you want to take corners at high speed without overcooking it. Jaguar made 49,846 E-types, but again build quality was at times questionable. I personally know of one owner who had his own low mileage, fully serviced E-type refurbished at a cost of £25,000, only three years ago (remember, he bought the car new). It looked stunning, but was it worth it? Sentiment is a great driver.

If I had the money it would be an XK, but a resto car could set you back a minimum of four grand, and then you’ve got all the work. Worth it though if you have the time and facilities. Donald Campbell had an XK150 fixed head painted to match Bluebird, registration number DC 7. Where’s that now ?