"Jaguar was founded as the Swallow Sidecar Company by Sir William Lyons in 1922, originally making motorcycle sidecars before developing passenger cars. The name was changed to Jaguar after World War II to avoid the unfavourable connotations of the SS initials. Sale to BMC happened in 1966, which in 1968 merged with Leyland Motor Corporation and became British Leyland. Jaguar cars today are designed in Jaguar Land Rover's engineering centres at the Whitley plant in Coventry and at their Gaydon site in Warwickshire and are manufactured in Jaguar's Castle Bromwich assembly plant in Birmingham. The Jaguar XK series was introduced at the Geneva Motor Show on 5th March 1996. The first generation of the series, the XK8, replaced the XJS and was available as a coupé and convertible. The XK8 was the first eight-cylinder vehicle produced since the Daimler 250. The XK8 came with 17 alloy wheels, leather interior, burr walnut trim, and side airbags as standard.
Originally registered on 19th March 2004, this delightful XK8 has been owned and enjoyed thoroughly by the vendor for the last 10 years. He purchased the car with the knowledge it was a Category D insurance loss in May 2008 with what was thought to be damage to the nearside front wing and bonnet. An avid classic car collector and a knowledgeable enthusiast, he has ensured anything needing doing on this XK8 was carried out by the local mechanic. We are advised the car drives well with no known faults and the hood works perfectly. Finished in the fabulous colour combination of Zircon Blue with Nimbus Grey leather interior, this Jaguar is fitted with the desirable 19” Apollo alloy wheels. Supplied with a V5C registration document and a current MoT test certificate, this convertible example of the XK8 is offered for sale without reserve.
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