2000 Jaguar XKR Silverstone

First registered in May 2000 by Frosts Jaguar near Brighton, less than a month after Jaguar’s return to the British Grand Prix, this XKR Silverstone Convertible is number 80 of 100 limited edition models and one of only 50 drop-tops.

Its one and only owner, our vendor, bought the car after being stopped in his tracks by it when passing the showroom. He’d always liked the look of the XK and was an F1 fan so this seemed to tick a lot of boxes.

He was sadly a little too late to receive Jaguar’s invitation to the 2000 British Grand Prix but has certainly enjoyed owning the car - using it for “high days and holidays” but never going very far in it and having it serviced annually.

Within a year of ownership, he found and bought what has to be the perfect number plate for the car - XKR 1S - which will stay with the Jaguar for the next owner. That alone must be worth a few quid.

Over the last handful of years, the demands of work and a busy everyday life have stopped him driving it as much as he’d have liked and the car has been stored for most of that time - being taken out now and again when time allowed.

He now feels that a car like this needs to be driven more and enjoyed by someone else - sad for him but lucky for one of you…

Buyers of the XKR Silverstone edition could specify their cars in any colour as long as it was Silver - Platinum Silver to be precise. The bodywork on this particular example looks very good, with just a few small scuffs in less noticeable places, like the inside edges of the front wheel arches and alongside the offside tailpipe.

The sweeping nose carries a special edition XKR Silverstone script around the growler motif and the bonnet wears the characteristic louvres denoting the presence of a supercharger.

The power-folding hood is in a contrasting black fabric and looks to fit well when deployed, featuring a heated glass rear window. There’s a small tear in the rubber on the nearside frame above the door, which might be worth addressing soon but otherwise all appears in good order. A black vinyl tonneau cover can be fitted to neaten things up a little when the roof is down.

The XKR sits on its special, 20-inch BBS “Detroit” five-spoke alloy wheels. All look in good condition and are shod with Dunlop Sport Maxx tyres. The silver Brembo callipers visible behind the wheels carry the Jaguar script and straddle the ventilated discs - again, all looking in good order.

The interior of a convertible is as important as the outside, and the black leather upholstery with red contrast stitching of this XKR Silverstone works well in that regard.

The unique-to-Silverstone “smoked” maple veneer across the fascia and centre console stands out against the black and is a welcome departure from the walnut burr cliché of classic sports cars.

The steering wheel is also leather-clad - again contrast-stitched in red - and has perforated leather on the hand grips and XKR embossed into the airbag cover. The original Jaguar-branded stereo (playing through Alpine speakers) is fitted below the controls for the heating and A/C - all of which are understood to be working as expected.

Aside from a little creasing and patina on the front seat side bolsters and some scratching to the vinyl on the driver’s seat back, the upholstery is in a super condition. The +2 seats are, as with most sports cars, limited to either short humans or short journeys. Consequently they show very little wear.

The XKR Silverstone sill plates present well and the dark grey carpets appear clean and undamaged, with protective over mats. There is slight soiling on the roof lining at the rear but otherwise it appears clean and taut.

One point the vendor has asked us to advise buyers of, is that currently the central locking is not working. Hopefully it will be an easy thing to fix!?

Unlike some of its V-powered predecessors (have you seen a 5.3 V12?), the XKR’s engine bay layout is neat, ordered and not without some aesthetic qualities. The supercharger nestles into the V, sucking lungfuls of air through a wide diameter intake and working its twin charge-coolers hard. Elsewhere around the engine bay all looks in good order, a flick through the fistfuls of invoices in the history file and the service booklet tells you how well it has been maintained.

The undersides look straight and undamaged and show underseal across the floors as well as body-coloured stone-chip coating on the sills. There’s a little surface rust on some of the suspension and steering components, as you’d expect, but nothing that appears to have any major consequence - certainly the inspector on the last MOT saw nothing untoward.

The boot lid has acoustic lining and provides stowage for a warning triangle. The boot itself is reasonably spacious, with netting for small items and the carpets and linings are in a good, clean condition. Inside the offside wing is the CD-changer and under the floor is a temporary-use spare wheel covering a scissor jack and wheel brace housed in a polystyrene moulding.

This XKR comes with two thick, heavy books unique to the Silverstone edition. One is all about the car and Jaguar’s return to F1, the other celebrates Silverstone’s anniversary as a Grand Prix circuit. There is also a framed photograph of the car signed by both Jaguar F1 drivers, Eddie Irvine and Johnny Herbert. But best of all, it comes with that perfect registration number - XKR 1S!

It has a current MOT valid until August 2023 and, judging by the history file, has been well maintained; serviced annually by the supplying Jaguar dealer Frosts for the first 10 years and then latterly by JAGtechnic.

The car comes with a full owner’s book pack and the service booklet contains the following stamped entries:

May 2000 - 48 miles PDI - Frosts Jaguar, Brighton

May 2001 - 1,973 - a/a

May 2002 - 4,151 - a/a

May 2003 - 6,983 - a/a

May 2004 - 10,546 - a/a

May 2005 - 12,999 - a/a

May 2006 - 15,583 - a/a

Mar 2007 - 17,916 - a/a

Apr 2008 - 20,612 - a/a

Apr 2009 - 22,737 - a/a

Jun 2010 - 23,894 - a/a

Nov 2011 - 25,074 - JAGtechnic, Eastbourne

Dec 2012 - 26,399 - a/a

Dec 2013 - 28,159 - a/a

Dec 2014 - 30,486 - a/a

Dec 2015 - 31,699 - a/a

Documentation includes the original bill of sale from Frosts, sundry servicing and repair bills and past MOT reports. There is also an invoice from JAGtechnic for an oil change service in July 2019 - since when it has done very little in the way of mileage.

“The XKR Silverstone is a celebration not only of Jaguar’s return to racing through Formula One but of our long association with the world famous British circuit, the scene of over twenty Jaguar racing victories. But above all, the XKR Silverstone, with its supercharged engine, finely tuned chassis and distinctive style, is a sports car for the true driving enthusiast”.

So said Jonathan Browning, Jaguar’s then Managing Director, and he wasn’t wrong to describe this special edition as a driver’s car. The XKR Silverstone is a rare and much sought-after limited-edition Jaguar, possibly the most desirable first-generation XKR variant.

We think this well-maintained and cared for one-owner example, with modest mileage, will sell for between £10,000 and £15,000 - which is well below what those contemporary Porsche and Aston Martin models with similar mileage are currently going for.

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; we are open weekdays 9am-5pm, to arrange an appointment please use the Contact Seller button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.