A magically beautiful Jaguar XJ140 Vanden Plas, seen in the far north of Beijing. The great Jag’ was painted in a very characteristic wine red shade. It was in a very good shape, but in need of a little work.
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The Jaguar XJ140 was manufactured from 1986 until 1994. The Vanden Plas name was used for the highest trim level in selected markets, including the United States. In other markets the Daimler name was used for this trim level. The XJ140 Vanden Plas and XJ140 Daimler were thus basically the same car.
The Jaguar badge on the front fender.
The Vanden Plas came with all luxuries Jaguar had on offer; with leather seats, loads of wood, and picnic tables in the back. The leather on this particular car is sadly in a rather bad shape, and the owner has replaced the original trim around the gear lever with something more leopard. Gear knob is rather kinky too…
The XJ140 Vanden Plas was powered by a 4.0 liter six-in-line, good for 223 hp and 377 Nm. The engine was mated to a four-speed automatic, sending horses to the rear wheels.
For a short while, Jaguar sold an an even more luxurious variant of the Vanden Plas in the United States. This car was called the Vanden Plas Majestic, and Jaguar only made 527 units. Sadly, I have never seen any of those in China.
The XJ140 wasn’t marketed in China at all, but some examples arrived in country via the gray market and diplomatic channels. Our Beijing car has license place of the far southern Guangzhou Province.
The infamous trip computer that had a habit of breaking down a lot.
More a sofa than a bench.
All rd lights with a subtle chrome rim around.
That’s a proper steel wheel! Hubcaps are missing.
The Vanden Plas badge.
Timeless design still looks brilliant today. And see those Bimmers on each side? We’ll get back to them later. They, and the Jaguar, and a bunch of other cool cars, are owned by the owner of a nearby restaurant.
Have you seen a similar Jaguar in China? Show us! You can now upload images in the comments below.