Iconic luxury saloon that Jeremy Clarkson once described as the ‘best car in the world’ can be yours for under £5,000
A LUXURY saloon car from an iconic British brand was once dubbed the “best car in the world” by Jeremy Clarkson – and it can now be yours for less than £5,000.
The stylish Jaguar XJR, perhaps one of the best-known Jags of the last 30 years, was produced between 1994 and 2003 and is known for its plush interiors and distinctive, round headlamps and sculptured bonnet.
In a famous review in 1995, Clarkson claimed the XJR was among his all-time favourite cars – alongside the Dodge Viper, Aston Martin Vantage, Ford Escort Cosworth and Ferrari 355.
He wrote: “The steering is perfected, weighted so well that you can feel exactly what the front wheels are doing, and you know precisely what the back end is up to, almost as though it is in telepathic contact.
“And if you choose to ignore the signals of impending doom, the traction control gently pushes the accelerator pedal upwards.
“It does this rather a lot, because the six-cylinder, 4-litre, supercharged engine is sublime.”
He summarised by saying: “For now the Jaguar XJR is the best car in the world.”
While the XJR once cost £45,000 to buy new – which, adjusting for inflation from 1995 to 2024, is the equivalent to nearly £90,000 – it’s now much, much cheaper to pick up.
In fact, we were able to find a great-looking Jaguar XJR in a stylish red finish for just £4,250.
This 1995 model, with 143,000 miles on the clock, with an automatic gearbox and a 4.0-litre motor, capable of 322 bhp on the Autotrader website.
The listing added: “I bought the car from a customer that had dry stored it for 10 years back in December 2021.
“The following 18 months was spent getting it ready to go for its MOT with various bits being done in the workshop.”
This isn’t the first time Clarkson has heaped praise on the iconic British brand.
Recently, we picked out a motor that he once described as feeling “like a £100,000 car” with heated seats and tinted windows that can be bought for under £11,000.
And elsewhere, a new state-of-the-art car warehouse has become the first of its kind, offering high-tech security including “fingerprint recognition” and “heat-activated sprinklers”.