Sometimes, older is better.

Right now, the X350 is the Jaguar saloon that we all should want. What we have here is XJ styling with some snazzy 21st-century high-tech underpinnings.

That added aluminium lightness meant it was 40% lighter than previous XJs, and its bodyshell was 10-15% stiffer, so it was better to drive. It used the existing 4.2-litre V8 engine, including a supercharged version, plus a new 3.5-litre V8 and a 3.0-litre V6. A six-speed automatic transmission helped, as did self-levelling air suspension with a Computer Active Technology system. More significant was the late arrival of Peugeot 2.7-litre diesel power in 2005, delivering an MPG figure in the mid-30s.

Related articles

If you just potter around or do an average annual mileage well below 6000, though, the diesel is best avoided. That’s because the particulate filter will clog and any repairs cost much more than running a petrol, so the V6 in particular would be the sensible buy.

Executive trim brings everything you could need and Sport even more.

The ultra-chintzy Daimler Super Eight was available until 2007, but an SE is plenty. There are Portfolios, too, so you have to sort through the specifications, but it will be hard to feel short-changed.

A 2007 revamp meant bigger specs, a better (but still poky) boot and a funkier front end that not everyone likes.

All that aluminium underneath means that major work is pricey and not for the bodger. Watch out for timing chain tensioner failure, and worst of all is failure of the complicated self-levelling suspension.

The last of the pretty Jaguars and bigger inside than before, it managed to remain something of a boundermobile, thankfully.

Ones we found

02 Jaguar xj