A lorry tried to kill this Jaguar XK V8 - but I made it a minter again

Chris Shepherd’s 16-year-old Jaguar XK 5.0 is immaculate but holds a horrible secret… “Before I bought it, it had had an altercation with a lorry,” says Chris. “The truck’s wheel nuts tore off the driver’s door skin and rear quarter panel. Basically, it was missing the driver’s side.” Even so, when Chris was offered the damaged car by its owner, he didn’t hesitate to buy it and not just because he’s a sucker for a bargain. “I own a bodyshop so it was no problem to repair it,” he says. “It needed a new door and rear quarter but an XK’s aluminium bonded and riveted body is much easier to repair than a traditional steel one, where you have to drill out all the spot welds, which takes ages. It’s a better way of manufacturing too, because with steel there’s a greater chance of moisture being trapped between different sections and triggering corrosion.” Not that aluminium is without its problems. “Dents are harder to fix than those in steel bodies,” says Chris. “For example, you’re limited on your pulling tools. Old aluminium gets very brittle and splits and cracks, although it’s more of a problem with older formulations. It can corrode too. Some early Aston Martin DB7s and DB9s suffer it around the back of the roof and around the mirrors. That said, bonding and riveting is still a great construction technique.” His Jaguar’s previous owner was glad to see the back of the car but at first Chris wondered why he’d sold it to him rather than claiming on his insurance. “In the end, I imagine the haulage company wrote him a large cheque to cover its repair, which he banked before selling the car to me. In my experience, a lot of people don’t bother to claim on their insurance. A lot of older people in particular don’t perhaps because they’re worried if they make too many claims, they’ll struggle to get reinsured,” he says. Whatever the reason, Chris is just happy he was able to fix the XK such that you’d never know it had been opened up like a can of beans. “I love cars and I’m lucky that ones like this come to me at the right price,” he says. “The XK’s styling is on the money, isn’t it? And the sound – that V8 burble. It has plenty of power and is extremely comfortable.” Chris has owned the XK, which was registered in 2010 and has done 70,000 miles, for only two months. It has joined his select collection of other motors: a Ford Sierra XR4x4 and a Mk2 Ford Escort RS2000 with a Burton 2.1-litre engine. Until recently, it also included a Jaguar XJR 4.2. “It was fast but very different from the XK,” he says. “With its larger engine and a supercharger, the XKR was very entertaining!” Chris’s partner has joined him for what he calls their “bimble out in the Jag”. While she gets a drink, he admits he rarely tells her he’s acquired another car: “She’ll just open the curtains and there it is!” It must be a wrench to part with any of them, I venture. “Well, sometimes, to placate certain people, I occasionally have to move one on,” he says. “All cars are for sale, aren’t they? Even the XK. But if I then decide not to sell, I just explain that it’s a slow market...”

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A lorry tried to kill this Jaguar XK V8 - but I made it a minter again

"It was opened up like a can of beans", but now this epic modern-classic Jag is fighting fit again

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A lorry tried to kill this Jaguar XK V8 - but I made it a minter again

"It was opened up like a can of beans", but now this epic modern-classic Jag is fighting fit again

More from Autocar

Top 10s

Latest car reviews

Top manufacturers

Quick search

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Legal bits

About Autocar