Blogging my nationwide hunt for affordable CarMax enthusiast cars. Automotive Unicorns.
I gotta pay attention to these alerts. Was clearing out old ones and found that the 2013 Jaguar XJ L Supercharged I wrote about here earlier this week had already been reduced $1,000 per below, and then dropped another $4,000 when I got my second alert. Amazed to see a car for from $33,998 to $28,998 in just over a day. It was in Gaithersburg, MD but is off the net for now. We shall see if an alert buyer scarfed up this unicorn or if it’s being transferred. I’ll keep watching.
Quite surprised to get the alert below on a 2013 Jaguar XJ L Supercharged unicorn I’ve been tracking – a $4,000 drop on a $33,000 car is quite unusual. Believe it’s still part of CarMax’s aggressive end of fiscal year inventory reduction (hypothesis here) that I’ve seen two years running. May have to keep some cash in reserve next spring and see what bargains turn up? Believe the Jaguar sold for aboout $100,000 new.
This XJ L is a two-owner (NY and MD) car, with a 470 hp 5.0 l V-8, eight speed automatic transmission, relatively light aluminum (pronounced aloominium, of course) 4,300 pound structure, and way cool airplane tray tables in the rear for passengers in the back. No overhhead bin space, though. Not a big fan of the baseball glove leather or the NASCAR black wheels but wouldn’t turn it down. Something about a long wheelbase luxury car that clips 4.5 second 0-60 mph runs that works for me. Of course, I’d spring for MaxCare and eliminate worries about expensive repair costs. Find this big beauty here in Gaithersburg, MD. 
Tempted again, but with the S600 I bought I’m outta the unicorn buying business for a bit. But a Jaguar XKR has always been on my bucket list (see these I got oh so close to buying!) and this low mileage 2011 model is as cheap as I’ve seen. The hardtops are sleek and a poor man’s Aston Martin. And with a supercharged V-8 and 510hp it’s sleek but no slouch. Interiors are nothing to brag about – pretty much the same as the XF….but it’s about the motor and the lines.
A great candidate for the MaxCare warranty – wouldn’t own it without it. This car has vanished once or twice over the past few weeks and can be found here in San Francisco. If the link is dead the car is sold, on hold, or being transferred.
Check out the upper left photo – the CarMax history page suggests this is a 1 of 175 imported to the US – a 75th anniversary edition XKR. If so, it would be a bit rare and quite a find. But the upper right photo shows the fascia found on a real XKR 175, and with no tell tale photos of the door sills (should say 1 of 175) and no confirmation from the Jaguar VIN decoder I use, pretty sure it’s not a limited edition car. Defer to the Jaguar pros for verification.
Ignore the 2008 Jaguar XJ8 I wrote about two weeks ago. There’s a prettier cat….er unicorn out there for your consideration. It’s a sweet 2008 Jaguar XJ8 Vanden Plas with only 37,000 miles – a one owner car from Hephzibah, Georgia.  Hephzibah is a little town of 4,000 just south of Augusta. The median income in Hephzibah is $37,000, and 10 years ago one of its residents dropped over twice that for this beauty and has driven it less than 4,000 miles a year. Named after the Belgian coach builder, it’s all aluminum (or al-you-minium for my British friends), and has an underwhelming 300hp 4.2l V-8. But it’s an elegant car for highway cruising, with modern features like navigation, bluetooth, a heated steering wheel, air-conditioned and heated seats. Here’s a review from Automobile Magazine back in the day. I don’t care for warm British beer, but I dig this black and tan Jaguar. And of course, the MaxCare bumper to bumper warranty would be a fine investment, too. Find it here in Charlotte, NC – if the link is broken it’s sold, on hold, or being transferred.
Been working much and writing little, and when I wait to think deeply about the unicorns I’m finding they are too often gone by the time I blog. So without further ado….
Been writing this blog for a year (hmmm…probably time to do a recap? Quit?) and with this 2008 XJ8 there have now been a whopping total of five of these old-school Jaguar unicorns offered by CarMax. I’ve covered them all.  The 2009 XJ8L with 59,000 miles that sold for $19,000. The 2008 XJ8 with 50,000 miles also at $19,000. The most beautiful 2008 XJ8 Vanden Plas at $21,000 and only 27,000 miles. And the dirt cheap 2007 XJ8L at $15,000 and 54,000 miles. This one is also a bargain at $16,998 and 57,000 miles. Oh yeah, the reason to buy it? It’s already 11 years old. CarMax is proud to offer MaxCare, a really good bumper-to-bumper FIVE YEAR warranty on everything they sell, up to 100,000 miles or more. That means you could be driving a 15 year old Jaguar in style, and have zero concerns about unexpected repair bills. Crazy, right? Enjoy.
Yes it’s an odd but delicious pairing. The 2008 BMW M5 with the outrageous 500hp V-10, and the 2008 Jaguar XKR with the supercharged 420hp V-8. The E60 BMW was one of the most popular M5’s, with an 8,000rpm redline, SMG transmission and an alleged (delimited) 200mph top speed. It sold for maybe $90,000 new, and maybe 8,000 came into the US during the E60 run. It’s under $30,000 now and one of the last V-10’s you’re going to see at CarMax. And they will sell you a MaxCare warranty to cover you at least another five years and 50,000 miles – critical if and when when that V-10 augers in. Ayan Basu made my case in Jalopnik two years ago. Every few months one of these V-10 M5’s shows up at CarMax and I so get the urge to snag one. This is a one owner California car found here – if the link is dead the car is sold, on hold, or being transferred. I am surprised after a few days it’s still available – it vanished once when a potential buyer put it on hold.
One of only 500 imported to the US!  The 2008 Jaguar XKRis only 420hp, but surprisingly about as fast as the M5. But it is pretty. Aston Martin pretty. It sold for almost $100,000. It’s more stylish and refined, so here’s an appropriate review from The Hunt. This XKR has low mileage despite being a five-owner car and bopping around New York, New Jersey, Texas, and Mississippi before being transferred to Wichita for sale. I love the XKR so much I passed not once but twice on buying a newer model. Maybe three times. Sigh. We hear about Jaguar reliability, and every time I note that a reader writes me to say their Jaguar wasn’t a problem at all. But if you’ve been here before you know with MaxCare I really don’t care – for a few thousand dollars I shift the financial burden of tens of thousands of dollars in repairs to CarMax. Everybody wins. Find this beauty here – if the link is dead the car is sold, on hold, or being transferred.
CarMax doesn’t carry very many XJ8’s. Maybe three or four in the years I’ve been tracking. I blogged about a 2008 Jaguar XJ8 with low miles and a low price tag in January, and it wasn’t until April when another popped in Las Vegas. Been toying with the idea of buying a unicorn for the sole purpose of driving and reselling (with MaxCare Warranty ) and maybe defraying the cost of driving some interesting cars, and maybe turning a profit. So foolishly, and impulsively, I did my guerrilla tactic  to take it off the market – putting it on hold while I figured out what to do next. But when I bought Etta (my 911) somehow my CarMax profile got changed to make my wife’s phone number the primary contact. So yes, she got a call to coordinate HER appointment to see a Jaguar in Las Vegas. I plead the fifth and let the car go. It disappeared for almost a month. Today it showed up in Fort Myers, Florida. Something about these old school XJ8’s I find very appealing. A V-8 without too much horsepower, luxury and room, and above all, style. Of course repairs can be expensive, especially as one reader pointed out – the air suspension, that’s why we get the warranty. Find this two-owner California car now in Florida here – if the link is dead perhaps the car is on hold, sold, or once again being transferred.  
I started tracking this car last fall – I still have an affection for Jaguar XK’s and rue the XKR I rejected. This XK has been neglected so long it has dropped $3,000 since I found it. It’s a pretty basic 11 year old, three-owner, low mileage, California car. YEs, it only has the 4.2 liter 300hp V8, but it’s plenty perky. I I am starting to think about flipping a car – drive something for six months and enjoy it, put it on the market back east, and drive it until it sells? think it’s beautiful and with MaxCare cheap to own. Go for it.
Stole the title from Jason Isbell’s song. This Jaguar has less than 3,000 miles annually, all in the Chicago area, a decent V8, and is one of about 44,000 made (X350 model I believe but no Jaguar expert). I can’t find a more plush cruiser for $21k. I considered one of these as there are very, very few carried by CarMax (one every few months) and the five year bumper to bumper warranty made me worry less about reliability, but my wife and daughter decreed it an old man’s car. But what a nice ride. Car makes me want to put a rod from coat hanger to coat hanger in the back seat, hang my wardrobe, and drive to Florida.  
CarMax occasionally offers a Jaguar XJ8 and these S-Types at low prices. The magic remains the MaxCare warranty……don’t care how unreliable it is if I’m not paying for repairs. Wasn’t a fan of the S-Type but it’s an unusual, clean little sedan with a 300hp V8 that spent 10 years in Illinois driving 3,000 miles a year before moving to Florida in December. Here’s the link if interested – if the link is dead it’s on hold/sold/being transferred.
