In last month’s Other Stuff we looked at the upsurge of interest in older cars verging on classic status as a means of cutting your motoring costs whilst still driving in style. The Mercedes Benz 190 was, to be honest, a dead cert’ as far as classic status goes as a brief look through any respectable classifieds will show. Continuing the theme this month we think we have found something of a dark horse in the classic stakes. The Jaguar S-Type was launched in 1999 during Ford’s tenure at Jaguar and based on the underpinnings of the Lincoln LS.

From the outset the S-Type polarised opinion with some loving its retro styling and others claiming it was an Americanised ideal of what a Jaguar should be. The truth is probably somewhere between the two as the car certainly takes many cues from the original Jaguar S-Type of the 1960s and, indeed, the iconic MK 2 made famous the Inspector Morse television series.

The S-Type featured three main facelifts in 2000, 2002 and 2004 with each improving the car in terms of quality and appeal. That said the original S-Type has a rather appealing, clean lines. Engines range from a 2.5-Litre V6 petrol through to a 2.7 litre V6 twin turbo diesel. Manuals are rare, automatics were 5-speed originally and later a much improved and more desirable 6-speed unit. There were a variety of trim levels over the life of the car but all, even the lead-in versions, are well equipped.

All S-Types, irrespective of age, have bags of class in a traditional English style. Early cars had rather lacklustre quality interiors that received a significant upgrade in 2002. If you go for one of these early cars darker interiors seem to present a better quality look than lighter colours. In 2000 the car had improvements to the steering and ride that significantly improved the way the S-Type drove.

The most desirable S-Type has to be the R with it’s V8 Supercharged engine, but don’t overlook lesser powered models. The 3.0 litre V6 petrol is a delight with bags of power and sensible economy, the 2.5 V6 even more economical but in automatic form not quite the ball of fire the 3.0 litre is. The normally aspirated V8s are immensely driveable, especially in manual form, and the 2.7 V6 diesel is smoothness personified. On the road the cars offer a smooth and fluid drive with remarkable refinement.

Running costs can be surprisingly affordable by using one of the many Jaguar specialists and choosing your model carefully. The 2.5 and 3.0 V6 models may not be the performance paragons of the range but offer the cheapest servicing options.  A service history with receipts – either main dealer or specialist – is a tremendous help. Mechanically they are pretty robust and there is plenty information out there explaining the potential pitfalls.

On the interiors don’t dismiss cloth seats as they are far more durable than leather. Leather that is just shiny and dirty can be bought back to life but splits, scuffs and tears cannot. Forget the adverts you see proclaiming spraying leather seats makes them as good as new. They’ll only stay looking new if you never sit in them! Retrimming leather interiors is hugely expensive. The remainder of the interiors, even on the earlier cars, are pretty durable.

All S-Types are classy and well equipped with prices ranging from around the £1,000 mark (avoid at all costs in my view) up to the £18,000 mark at the very top of the range and age profile. I’d suggest spending around £2,500 upwards for a good model. Personally I’ve owned an early 3.0 litre that I sold running like a dream with 92K on clock and my current car is a facelift 2.5 litre with 62K on the clock. Both have given minimal trouble and have never once left me stranded so don’t be put off by horror stories.

They are a wild card on the potential classic car blocks but offer huge class and style in an immensely affordable and well-upholstered package. There are some simple upgrades you can adopt too with optional Jaguar alloy wheels, smart grille upgrades and Jaguar styling kits.

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