After an exhaustive six month search, we arrived at Hennessy Jaguar on Saturday, March 20, 2010 to pick up the new car.

My first Jaguar ownership experience evolved into something very pleasant despite a shaky start. The water pump failed after the first month. That was followed by a couple of fuel sending unit issues and an ABS module failure. Even so, I drove this car for a little over two years, adding 44,000 miles to the odometer, all of which were smooth, comfortable, and quiet.

Just as the purchase of a new car is a significant experience for me, so is the “letting go” of the old car.

There is something about a Jaguar that makes me smile, which I did in spite of the issues right up until I handed over the keys.

Today was the day to move on to bigger and better things. I traded the 1998 Jaguar XJ8-L for a 52k original mile 2004 Jaguar XJ8.

The new car featured a higher profile which can be seen in the photo above. This allowed for more luggage space and interior headroom, especially for the rear seat passengers, (a big complaint with the XJ Series for years).

The traditional Jaguar lines are clearly evident despite the clean sheet new design.

The biggest change for me is the car's color, which is officially called “Seafrost Metallic.” I've never had a car anywhere near this color before. The fact that it's so different from the sea of silver/black/white vehicles that crowd the motorways was a big draw for both of us.

The Jaguar XJ Series has always been universally praised for the design and feel of its interior.

The wonderful interior was my favorite aspect of the XJ8. The seats were exceptionally comfortable on a long trip. I really liked the subtle curves of the dash.

The fuel tank in the old car was positioned directly behind the rear seat backrest, making for an odd layout. The trunk seemed larger than it actually was.

This is Jaguar’s wonderful 4.0L V-8 that made 290 hp and 290 ft-lbs of torque, (Jaguar’s first ever V-8 engine, by the way).

But now the time had come to move on.