One of my favorite Jaguar models is the achingly beautiful XJ6C coupe. It really doesn’t matter what it is; if it is a pillar-less design, I’m going to love it. The W126 coupe Mercedes-Benz comes to mind, but then right behind is the XJ6C which we so rarely see come up for sale. I know of one rotting away on Cape Cod and it breaks my heart to know it’s falling to bits. Fortunately, that isn’t the case with this example which has just 27,600 miles from new and presents incredibly well with a gorgeous lipstick-red leather interior. Find the Jaguar here on craigslist for $69,900.
That’s all the money for one of these, but it may very well be the best one left that hasn’t been restored. The Jaguar is claimed to be all-original, and the previous owner was apparently a celebrity car collector. Take that for whatever it’s worth because the real value here is the rust-free bodywork and factory-correct details. You occasionally find these with a 350 swap under the hood, which certainly improves the reliability but seems like a cheap shot against a car that shouldn’t be modified when so many project-grade sedans are available for resto-modding.
The interior is just stunning, with pristine woodgrain trim across the dash and equally well-preserved leather on the seats and door panels. The thing about Jaguars of almost any vintage is that the materials need some level of love after so many years of sun exposure and general wear. The fact that this XJ6C retains all original materials inside the cabin is fairly unrepeatable among vintage Jaguars, and the seller confirms that the elegant coupe has led a charmed life. The listing states that the Jaguar has been in southern California and various climate-controlled storage facilities since new and that the only alterations from stock are basic maintenance items like tires and hoses.
The seller notes that they didn’t produce many of these two-door Jaguars, with just 3,899 made in left-hand drive form. Considering how many more have likely been lost to rust or are rotting away in someone’s driveway (see above example), that number is almost certainly far lower today. While it is a heady price for a Jaguar from this era, I would also argue that this is one of the more under-appreciated and collectible Jaguar models and that the asking price may seem quite reasonable as time goes on. Would you put a pristine XJ6 coupe like this on the same level as an E-Type? Thanks to Barn Finds reader Pat L. for the find.
Oh man, that is g o r g e o u s! It’s sad to not see the engine, though, that’s really the way to tell if it’s a true Concours restoration as they say. Nice one, Jeff and Pat!
It’s all original – no restoration done – preservation-class is what we call it in shows.
Beautiful car, many with this drivetrain went well north of 100K miles with proper maintenance. Never have seen a coupe in person, always saw the 4 doors and they rust! Don’t think the owner quite grasps the value as he is in the outer limits, again great car but better get it in a high end auction looking for that kind of money.
Best of all XJ I’ve ever seen!
Take it to a big name auction because somebody like me, but with too much lunch money, will pay big for it.
Auctions cost too much in fees and transport etc. Best sold privately.
Dadmanls, I disagree on your statement on going 100K miles.
My dad had a 1977 XJ6L that he bought new. He did more than proper maintenance. The WorstQualityEver.com is where this car should be listed. He told me the service writer suggested buying a second one so when he picked the first one up, he could leave the second one for service. (Don’t know if this was true as Dad was funny guy.)
I remember it breaking down on the way to Colorado one year and to Santa Fe, NM another family trip. He traded it for a slant back Cadillac Seville when he could not tolerate the lack of being able to rely on his car.
It was beautiful car with terrible quality (BTW, remember you had to fill the tank by filling two tanks on either side of the car? One of my jobs was to hold the gas line from dragging on the trunk paint at gas stations.)
Wasn’t that a single fuel tank with two ways to fill it?
Most interesting! https://youtu.be/laoSfVJfTvI
Saddlebag tanks. They are connected by a fuel line
Two tanks, two fuel pumps.
Two tanks. Two fuel pumps. Switch on dash to select left or right tank. Owned two of these cars, always carried spare fuel pump (good reason to have two tanks).
i owned a 74 xj6L. purchased it 2nd hand at 25k miles. the next 60k miles were a dream, the next 10k were a nightmare. wonderful vehicle when right.
We can all agree this is an absolutely gorgeous car. The price seems a little high, but look at the car. To me its all about the style, its great that it has the original drive train ,but even if I found one that didn’t, it would stop me from buying it. In fact in some ways it might be better.
Beautiful car that looks like it’s in great condition. As Jolly Joe says be careful if you purchase it. My Mother had a new 1971 XJ6 sedan. It had such a smooth ride and always got admiring looks, when we had it. Even new the electrical system was a nightmare. So it spent most of it’s one year she had it living at the dealer for repairs. Traded it for a new BMW Bavaria. Very reliable.
These are the kind of car that you take a common-sense,
level-headed mechanic with you when you go to look at it.
These are the kind of cars that you buy on emotion,NOT
common sense.
I agree with “both thumbs up”….. beautiful car, classy, and one that definitely makes guys (and some gals) almost drool over this car…. However, one would have to wish for a lot of money regarding upkeep tho… but that’s ok, I’ve always wished for more money…. lol
“Upkeep” is basically changing oil and other fluids and driving the car regularly, on a low mileage example like this. Annual maintenance costs are no more than your average BMW or Mercedes on the road if you do it right and it has been done right for all of the history of the car – that’s the key.
Jaguar! A magic car. One that BEGS of your love, but DEMANDS of your mechanical senses AFTERwards! Im oogling an 80’s XJ V12 coupe that may dump cheap for quick hard cash. Wish me DARN good luck!
I had one of these, BRG with wire wheels, a real beauty. It was not a regular driver, so I used to joke that I started it once a week, drove it to the repair shop, seemingly twice a month. I did treat the car to a GM motor and transmission swap. It was done meticulously and I thought I was done, but after several more bouts with the Lucas electrical system I sold the car.
Why do the British drink warm beer? Lucas refrigerators!
Get it out of Florida, quick, before it rusts.
Beautiful car, I ‘ve seen a few conversions over the years and I think I’ve read where the small block Chevy actually weighs less than the Jag 6.
If it’s never exposed to water it’s unlikely to rust just being there…
I had only just heard of the XJ Coupe a few weeks ago and was entranced. Now, here is one less than 75 miles from my home. Even if I decided to make the sacrifices necessary to buy it (my marriage, my home) the necessary maintenance would finish bankrupting me. Oh well.
Beautiful car though.
If you can afford to change the oil every 5k miles you can afford to maintain this car – this example, at least.
Took a tour of the Jag factory in England back in the 80s. Saw that to make the doors for the Xj6C the took two front doors for the XJ6, cut ’em in two and welded ’em together!
I’ve had several XJs over the years (Got a ’95 now) and have had very little trouble with any of them. I’ve heard that the Chevy V8 you see often is due to the added load of Americans running the A/C as much as they do caused the 6 cyl to blow head gaskets, not fro additional power.
Not just the doors, but even the bodies were also “cut’n’shut” operations at the factory. That’s why these all came with vinyl roofs, was far cheaper to just grind the weld line flush and cover it in vinyl vs. finishing the weld to to a standard that wouldn’t show the scar when painted.
Wrong. They already had the roof stampings for series I XJs of which most were on the shorter wheelbase. I’ve seen a coupe as the vinyl roof was removed and there was no scar.
The vinyl top was simply a choice of a sporting look stylish in the mid 70s.
reply to crahm – Sub is right. While the platform (inc roof) of the Series 1 short wheelbase cars was what the “C”s were built on, there is a minor roof issue which was indeed the basis of the vinyl roof. That minor roof issue was the lead seam that was finished on the sedan but since the “C”‘s were significantly over budget, it was cheaper to slap a vinyl roof on the car rather than the expense of finishing (inc paint) the seams to Jaguar standards.
I’ve stripped one and seen another – the majority of the roof was in red primer – not even painted.
Bing, You mean Lucas the Prince of Darkness?
Jeff, gotta disagree one one thing. “Lumping” (pulling the XK and dropping in a 350) an XJ doesn’t improve reliability. I’ve got almost 300,000 miles on one of mine. What it does do is drop the price of engine parts and simplify who can work on it. You would not believe the number of “lumped” XJ’s I see on FB and CL that are dead so reliability going that way isn’t a given.
There’s a V12 XJC only about 15 miles from me , if I was younger I’d buy it for a parts car for a project but sadly , it’s gone like many others , serious rust
Jaguar cars are not rocket science. Workshop manual can be
bought online from Jaguar. In think their reputation came
from the fact that only a few also have the knowledge ‘how at all’.
Jaguar’s special technical solutions (like the rear inboard brakes),
the persons to work on need common-sense.
In addition to common sense also two hands that know
exactly what they are doing, the else/if and and/or -method
does never succeed on a British car.
The price for this car here is well to steep, about 42’000 KM
its ‘just worn-in’, 15-20’000€ in optical as-new condition is fair.
I think people will disagree with your assessment of Jags when it comes to the Lucas electronics. Like I said we had to trade in my Moms 1971 XJ6 because of the electronics. Driving on the NJ Turnpike one night every interior and exterior light got very bright and then the entire car shut off. Not only did every wire have to be replaced but every light bulb too. And it was only a few months old. That was the beginning of one electrical problem after another.
Got any comps to justify that price? Now that I’d like to see.
hey! U 4got the frenched headlights (a hi point to me)
made for GB conditions – slo on cobble stones/in town. Occasional blast outs on open road. Never too far from the light vehicle technician (Brit for grease monkey – me).
BUT… 1 of my fav motors (if used here) the 3.4 – 4.2 1949/92 Jag i6.
Hello all – I am the owner of this car – thanks to Barn Finds for bringing this one out to a wider audience than the wild west yard-sale that is the Craigslist world (which is the whole point!) – I’d be happy to address any questions or comments or interest.
@Scotty Gilbertson – this is not a restoration but an all-original car
@Walter & @TheOldRanger – maintenance is regular oil and fluid changes – none of the ‘upkeep’ on this car will be more expensive than your newer-model BMW or Mercedes which I see virtually hundreds on the road in FL every day – the myth that Jaguars have some kind of mysterious cost associated is related to cars which have had serious engine or electrical trouble (which, with 27k original miles, is unlikely)
On price – valuation is based on comps – if you have comps that justify a lower price let’s see them – the problem is, there are none – this original, this mileage, this condition (virtually showroom), this rare – Jaguar museum-quality – they just don’t exist in the market here in the US (the UK has some). BaT had one recently that was a conversion that went over 100k.
There were 10,426 coupes produced in total, with 3899 left-hand drive 4.2L (6C) models and 1269 5.3L (12C) models made only. Most coupes were right-hand drive and sold generally in the UK or for other RHD markets.
Hello all – I am the owner of this car – I’d be happy to answer any questions/comments etc.!
Hello all – I am the owner of this car and would be happy to answer any questions or comments. Thanks for looking!
This is the Jaguar I want. Exactly everything is there. I own a 93 Jaguar XJC coupe. Totally refurbished in 2015. Teal n Biscuit. I need to sell it before I can buy your Jaguar XJC. Is this Jaguar in Florida.
Did hurricane Ian damage anything. I am in SC. More later from me. I am very Interested. Thanks..Mert Fox Charleston SC.
Hi – you can reach me via the Craigslist ad:
https://newyork.craigslist.org/jsy/cto/d/new-york-1976-jaguar-xj6c-coupe-rare/7571508499.html