Right up front, I have to say I’m a little conflicted about this. My experience with the XJ6 so far makes me think of a Buick with a better ride and a nicer interior. The car in question, which I drove while working at the Larz Anderson Museum, was a fairly late model, possibly a 1987. Mechanically, it was in pretty good condition, and despite the gaping hole in the floor and some other east coast issues, drove fairly well. But I was expecting a bit more of a sporting feel from the company that built the Mark 2 and the E-type, and I definitely didn’t get that feeling from this car. What’s more is, as a cheaper car they’re not exactly known for being terribly robust.
That out of the way, this is an iconic design with a historic engine. Moreover, the western cars should be a bit less rust-prone, so they might be within budget range for our purposes. This example looks like a good candidate – even though it was built during some of the darkest British Leyland days, the pictures show it to be in pretty good cosmetic shape on the outside, and it seems to have had much recent work. The BRG on tan color combination is classic, and should be appealin to a larger market when you decide to move along. Check it out on craigslist in Portland, OR for $3295.
Rusty But Trusty 