Non-Italian barges

Nayf

Member
Messages
2,734
Now, I'd pick something Italian over any of these – a QPV Sport GT S 4.7 please – but I can't help but admire some of the German and British stuff. And some Japanese stuff.

On first glance £20k for an E38 might seem a lot, but it's done 35k miles and is in a striking shade of green. Seeing a newer, uglier one is £100k more at least, well...

Please post your current favourites.
 

philw696

Member
Messages
25,113
I have always liked a big BMW saloon and they certainly don't make them like that anymore that's for sure.
As a kid the family car was a Jaguar XJ6 for a longtime as I had 4 brothers then.
The old man then bought a E3 2800 manual and I was blown away how quick it was for a 2.8 single cam motor where the Jaguar was twin cam 4.2.
When he bought a 733i one of the first in Gloucester that was even quicker.
Because of my father I have driven the cars I have mainly because they are good and memory lane.
 

Wack61

Member
Messages
8,764
I love a big barge , I've had a few at throw away money that were nice to drive
A8 4.2q loved it , 8mpg on short trips
S type Jag 4.0 bit like 300bhp in a grandads slipper
XK8 4.0 same as above but more stylish
E280 , probably the nicest driving car I've ever owned
Currently on a 3.0 V6 Touareg which is a fantastic car but very wide, or feels it anyway , I can see me having this for a while as I really like it and the previous owner did a lot of preventative maintenance so I'm hoping for no catastrophic failures

Never owned a BMW , don't know why really

My dad wasn't a car guy
1976 -2011 Volvo 245DL estate, Volvo 245DL estate, Subaru forester .

His main criteria for picking cars was will my fishing rods go in it
 

MarkMas

Chief pedant
Messages
8,795
I had a 3.7 Audi A8 about 15 years ago. Bought as my first automatic for a long-distance commute that was fast in parts but with a big stretch of stop-go traffic in the middle.

It was the old style before the full height gaping grille. A lovely car and enjoyable to drive in principle, but full of problems that cost thousands to fix. Traded it in (in a barely drivable state) for a jag x-type.
 

TimR

Member
Messages
2,654
I get them. Happily for my bank account, everything from Jensen Interceptors to Supercharged Jaguars sport slushbox auto transmissions...
For that reason, Im out !
 

rs48635

Member
Messages
3,181
I like the E38 Seven series, right up to the point of sitting in the hot seat. So many are that shade of grey, even worse pleated leather. Think Farrow & Ball called it Elephant's scrotum. One of these lead me to Alfa 166, which upgraded to QPV so I am thankful.
The B12 Alpina variant is more than acceptable inside .
Used to be handful less than €10,000 on mobile.de - inflation now 28k. item 324382416

 
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Nayf

Member
Messages
2,734
I get them. Happily for my bank account, everything from Jensen Interceptors to Supercharged Jaguars sport slushbox auto transmissions...
For that reason, Im out !
Yeah, the slush boxes are what would point my wad towards either an Alfa 166 3.2 (manual) or a QPV (paddles). I’d just get horrendously bored on long journeys otherwise, unless the barge was part of a selection of cars owned.
Today’s barge is this last of the line, old school XJ. The newer car will be faster, roomier, etc but this has such a thuggish style, even if I do feel I’m wearing one rather than sitting in one.
 

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Hawk13

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1,471
Love big cars and have pretty much always had one as a daily.

Interestingly I am now in the position to buy almost whatever I want as a daily driver and yet haven't - in fact I am currently using my TR6 as my daily.

I just don't want anything enough but am drawn to big Alpinas
 

Guy

Member
Messages
1,999
I love a barge for mile munching in comfort, though these days I prefer a full fat RR for most aspects. My favourite was probably the W140 S500. I had two and covered over 130k miles in them. The A8 V8tdi was better than the S8 (no torque) of the era and now I am on my 2nd E65 V8 7 series as not so keen on the direction Merc took after the W140s. Not pretty to many eyes but handles very well an wafts silently when needed. I do like the gangster look XJR though Nate!88320
 

makeshiftUK

Member
Messages
1,089
I love a big barge , I've had a few at throw away money that were nice to drive
A8 4.2q loved it , 8mpg on short trips
S type Jag 4.0 bit like 300bhp in a grandads slipper
XK8 4.0 same as above but more stylish
E280 , probably the nicest driving car I've ever owned
Currently on a 3.0 V6 Touareg which is a fantastic car but very wide, or feels it anyway , I can see me having this for a while as I really like it and the previous owner did a lot of preventative maintenance so I'm hoping for no catastrophic failures

Never owned a BMW , don't know why really

My dad wasn't a car guy
1976 -2011 Volvo 245DL estate, Volvo 245DL estate, Subaru forester .

His main criteria for picking cars was will my fishing rods go in it
Grandad's slipper lol, priceless... also had an XK8 with burr-walnut interior trim for the 'gentleman at speed'. Loved doing 200+ miles trips in this... recline the seat, lounge back and let cruise control take care of the smooth 4.2L... more expensive to maintain than a QP though!
 

Nayf

Member
Messages
2,734
I love a barge for mile munching in comfort, though these days I prefer a full fat RR for most aspects. My favourite was probably the W140 S500. I had two and covered over 130k miles in them. The A8 V8tdi was better than the S8 (no torque) of the era and now I am on my 2nd E65 V8 7 series as not so keen on the direction Merc took after the W140s. Not pretty to many eyes but handles very well an wafts silently when needed. I do like the gangster look XJR though Nate!View attachment 88320
Talking of W140s, have you seen this?

A lot of money but rarer than a rare thing. Had the pleasure of driving a W140 S70 AMG for Modern Classics in Belfast; wheelspin in the damp through all the gears. 7.0-litre 500bhp V12 was wonderful. That too is for sale, with Deane Motors – I can put you in touch.

This will be less expensive, but unrepeatable I'd imagine
 
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woody1144

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108
I love these topics, I'm a huge fan of a barge and some great suggestions! Currently in a F01 7 series as a daily. Highly recommended wafting car. Only issue is it's the diesel but I think the v12 petrol wouldn't have been a great idea for daily driving.
 

woody1144

Member
Messages
108
Talking of W140s, have you seen this?

A lot of money but rarer than a rare thing. Had the pleasure of driving a W140 S70 AMG for Modern Classics in Belfast; wheelspin in the damp through all the gears. 7.0-litre 500bhp V12 was wonderful. That too is for sale, with Deane Motors – I can put you in touch.

This will be less expensive, but unrepeatable I'd imagine

Does the CL70 have the zonda engine in it by the looks of it? 7 litre V12
 

Nayf

Member
Messages
2,734
The Zonda engines were all variants of the M120 V12, but the actual, precise ‘Zonda engined’ Mercedes are, from what I remember, the 7.3-litre engines in the CL73, SL73 and S73.