If mileage is low, what about scratching that v8 itch, whilst there are still some about?
Youre the 2nd person to suggest it, and I see the reasoning.
But very few roads left round here I can actually drive it on properly, and even with low mileage not sure i can go back to that sort of economy.
I never speed maxed (165mph iirc) my old motorbike in the 10 years I had it. Never even tried. But I certainly used its acceleration regularly.
I guess if I can a modern v8, the situation would be the same - as you say, opportunities for top speed are very limited now, but I could (would, obviously!) use all its power to get it up to a sensible speed off every roundabout and corner
Had I known, shortly after getting the XJ that my mileage would drop dramatically from 20k to around 8k a year, I probably would have bought a v8. Ah, the benefits of hindsight
. I'm still tempted to swap it for one, but now I have this threat of a 130m a day commute again.
The other option that goes through my head, if you mostly only need one car in the family, is for the second to be a little non descript, cheap to run/maintain, dull boring shitbox that does a gazillion miles to the gallon. Though, somehow, I couldn't imagine you nipping to the shops in a Hyundai i10
. Its a silly option anyway, as if your miles are that low, and you can afford it, get something you want rather than hate. You only live once.