1996 Jaguar XJS V12 6.0 Celebration Convertible

Documented as the very last right-hand drive 6.0-litre V12 XJS Convertible built, the fact that ‘N555 XJS’ warranted an eight-page feature in Jaguar World Magazine probably tells you all you need to know about how significant it is.

 TLDR: It is very significant indeed.

With just three previous recorded keepers since it was bought by a Mr. M West of London in 1996 – and one of those previous registered keepers is the current owner who sold it and regretted it so quickly the V5 was back in his name within two months – the Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust’s Production Record Trace Certificate confirms it is still finished in the same colours Jaguar applied almost thirty years ago: Solid black coachwork with a matching black folding roof and a cream hide interior. 

The car’s performance is impressive and includes a top speed of 160mph and a 0-62mph time of just 6.8 seconds, figures that made it a shoo-in for a role in Coronation Street as a film star’s transport. (Interestingly, the actor playing the role couldn’t drive, so the owner had to drive the car dressed as a woman, something he described as being “great fun”!)

Very well known in Jaguar circles, it’s appeared at classic car shows too, as well as in classic car magazines, a JEC-TV DVD, and even a book.

Its owner has had it in his hands – for the second time, remember – since 2004 and it’s lain unused for the last few of those, the previous MoT having expired in 2017. 

Recently mechanically recommissioned but otherwise untouched, it’s being offered as a light restoration project – assuming, of course, that the winning bidder doesn’t decide to leave it as it is to revel in its history.

The solid black coachwork is in a pretty good condition; while no colour is less forgiving, there is no finer hue when it is combined with factory smoked rear lights and chromed alloy wheels.

And don’t those 16-inch wheels look sensational? Still in an almost flawless condition, it probably won’t come as a surprise to see advisories for perished tyres. Still, they are matching Pirelli P7 Cinturato, which speaks volumes, and they’ve lasted a dozen years – plus this means you also get the chance to choose your own rubber, and spending money on new tyres is rarely a chore, eh?

Returning to the coachwork, shut lines are still very good and panels present rather well with the odd light pimple dent if you catch it in the right light ensure the XJS retains its upmarket good looks, even now, almost 30 years after rolling off the production line.

The lamp lenses are all good too, including the Jaguar/Carello headlamps that are becoming hard to find. The numberplates bear the name of the dealer that supplied the car too, and the chromework is generally very good.

Most importantly, there’s no rust to speak of, and no MoT tester has ever mentioned structural corrosion, which is noteworthy.

The black fabric roof fits well and rises and falls as it should. The glass rear screen, which features a heating element, is in good order too. The fabric is stained though, but we’d have thought a professional would be able to clean it to a satisfactory standard – and maybe a good trimmer could reinstate some of the loose and missing stitches, too?

The original cream leather hood cover, which is unique to the 6.0-litre cars, tidies things up nicely when the roof is lowered.

As for age-related wear, the paintwork is faded and oxidized in places, with myriad fine scratches and crazing. The badges on the boot lid have lost their shine, the pinstripes are missing in places, the offside chrome washer jet is pitted, the paint on the offside of the bonnet is cracked, and the hood frame has some rust.

But it’s being offered for sale in a largely untouched condition, leaving the winning bidder to choose for themselves whether to restore it or leave the patina as it is.

The interior has suffered from being stored on the owner’s driveway, but even the worst affected parts, which are probably the front seats, are little more than moderately creased. There’s the odd mark too, and the offside outer bolsters have softened slightly but the rear seats are excellent and probably need nothing more than a good clean and feed.

The interior chromework is remarkably good too, and even the lettering on the switches and controls is still nice and white, although the ends of both stalks have faded.

An Old School Jaguar-branded mobile phone sits between the front seats, and while it might serve better to instigate an in-car conversation than to conduct an external one, it’s presence is a delight; we love to see authentic, period features like this and we suspect their presence will do nothing to harm future values as so many people have ripped them out in a quest to ‘modernise’ their classic. 

(This is also one of the many benefits of buying a car that spent three years as a pampered company car before essentially staying in our seller’s hands for the next quarter of a century.)

The boot is as well trimmed and preserved as everything else. Clean and free of stains, scuffs, and visible wear, it is also home to the space-saver spare wheel and Jaguar CD multichanger that is controlled via the Jaguar-branded headunit in the dashboard.

As for cosmetic flaws, the carpet on the top of the transmission tunnel has a stain where a dehumidifier’s water chamber tipped over. The seller meant to sponge it off but forgot, and suggests it probably needs nothing more than that to restore it to a good finish. The parcel shelf and headlining are mildewed.

Also, the veneer is damaged on the passenger door, the offside heater vent, the centre console behind the gearlever, and the panel directly in front of the front passenger.

As for problems, the only one we are aware of is the odometer, which may not be clocking up the miles as it should. We are told it was working but several battery changes as part of the car’s pre-MoT preparation seem to have foxed it. 

There is an invoice on file dated the 10th of January 2026 for recommissioning the XJS, which included a change of engine oil and filter, fresh brake fluid and fuel, and a new alternator and wiper blades.

The final bill came to £1,480 but it flew through an MoT, gaining advisories only for front brake discs in addition to the tyres we mentioned earlier. 

As the video demonstrates, the V12 engine fires into life with little more than a subdued moan, and idles steadily with good oil pressure showing along with a healthy charge to the battery. It revs very smoothly too, with a gruff and purposeful exhaust note and no visible smoke once it has warmed up. 

The magazine article in the February 2026 edition describes it as “smooth, refined and powerful” to drive, a description we found to be accurate, although we note an engine check light is illuminated and there is a light ticking noise coming from the engine.

The engine bay is lightly patinated, but it’s a gentle stroll towards middle age rather than anything that actually demands attention. 

As for the underside, it shows light surface rust here and there but nothing that either we, or any MoT tester, finds remarkable. The seller, who knows the XJS’s foibles well, is also keen to point out that “the subframes, the bottom of front spring pans, and the X-braces do seem to be in very good condition, as you can see from the photos”. 

You’ll want to get it cleaned off, treated, and resealed of course, but that would almost certainly be preventative maintenance rather than restoration and repair. 

Oh, and the underside of the front bumper assembly shows the usual scuff marks that are almost impossible to prevent, along with a small amount of damage on the offside corner. 

The battery unless kept on a charger or isolated doesn't hold its charge and currently only starts using a jump pack so a replacement may well be necessary.

For a long time no one thought Jaguar had built a 6.0-litre Celebration Convertible, much less two. But, over the years, the truth started to emerge. 

For a start, marque expert, author, and long-time previous editor of Jaguar Enthusiast Magazine, Nigel Thorley believed that two had been built and were in circulation somewhere – and let’s face it, if anyone would know, it would be him.

By happenstance, the current owner (who, sadly, is too ill to sell the car himself so has entrusted the job to a fellow long-time JEC member), first bought ‘N555 XJS’ in 1999 after spotting it in a Jaguar showroom.

He paid £26,995 for it with 44,000 miles on the odometer, and ran it until he sold it in 2004. Like so many of us, he immediately regretted selling it – but, unlike most of us, he had the fortitude to track it down and negotiate its repurchase. 

The car’s been with him ever since.

His friend, the one who’s helping sell it, suspected this might be one of the fabled cars, and after some research was proved right. Not that the tale ends there because he’s been contacted recently by the very chap who sold it new back in 1996.

Apparently, Jaguar refused to take any more orders for Celebration XJSs after January 1996, but our plucky Lancaster Sevenoaks salesman wasn’t to be deterred and managed to get Jaguar Order Control to agree to build some – if he got the deposits to them that day.

He did, and Jaguar agreed to supply three cars to him: Two four-litre cars and, amazingly, this 6.0-litre V12, the last right-hand drive convertible version ever built and a car many thought would be impossible given the logistics of building a single V12-engined XJS among a run of AJ16s.

Our salesman delivered it and recalled the buyer’s son scratched it with his bicycle as he was handing it over, which must have hurt given the showroom price of £61,500 – or £167,000 in today’s money.

As for paperwork, the Jaguar’s MoT is valid until October 2026, the recent Vehicle History Check is clear, and it comes with three keys, including the very rare green valet key.

The voluminous history file also includes a Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust’s Production Record Trace Certificate, the Jaguar wallet and book pack including the stamped service history booklet, the sales invoice, period photos, copies of newspaper and magazine articles, a run of expired tax discs and MoT certificates, a print-out of its main dealer service history, and, at a rough count, more than 70 invoices.

Yes, the paintwork is showing its age, but the remarkable thing about this XJS is the absence of rust, something you can attribute as much to the two-and-a-half decades of dedicated curation as you can Jaguar’s much-improved rust resistance and build quality.

Because this is a much-loved member of the family, and it would be noteworthy for that fact alone, even if it wasn’t the last right-hand drive 6.0-litre convertible example ever built.

Or the star of TV, DVD, newspapers, magazines, and Jaguar and classic car shows. 

And yet, despite all this, our estimate is for a lowly £20,000 - £30,000, simply because many potential bidders will be deterred by the need to sort out the paintwork and fit new tyres.

We think it’s absolutely worth saving, and given the market values interesting cars with an impeccable provenance very highly, the refreshed XJS might be worth more than you think…

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