I've never bought a new car, it's just way too expensive in the Netherlands, especially with the added sales tax imposed on new or imported cars.

But try to read up on the model you're interested in, because maintenance will be your new greatest cost, depending on the car, brand, model, engine, fuel type. There should be enough online resources (UK specific) that summarise these for you. Unfortunately I only know Dutch resources.

Jag's aren't great for reliability. In the States we normally say "but as much Accord as you can afford", which also applies to Acura.

Toyota is often great as well.

We had a 97 Camry with 280k miles we never had an issue with until my kid wrecked it. A 2003 Odyssey we sold with 310k miles to a friend of the family who has it over 350k miles and no issues. We also had a 2010 MDX we sold to a family member with 240k miles and they've driven the hell out of it over the last few years with no issues.

Generally in the UK I’ve learned that what we consider ‘high’ mileage is actually more like average or moderate mileage. This means there’s a sweet spot for cars with around 60-70k miles that are way more affordable than they’d otherwise be, and are usually just as reliable as everything else so long as they’ve been maintained. Like the other guy has said you’ll still pay out for maintenance, but this tends to be cheaper than PCP, lease, or other finance products.

Ex-fleet cars are good for this as they tend to be mostly motorway miles and have been maintained as per contract requirements, so offer a better-than-good chance of being a hidden gem.

The Jags you’ve been looking at are examples of this as a lot tend to be company cars.

From discussion about this with friends, it is felt that exceptions to this rule are things like pickups, vans and other commercial vehicles.

Obviously the usual disclaimers apply - always inspect, look up history, check the service logs and drive a vehicle before purchase. Also, with any second hand purchase there is an element of risk, but lots of dealers offer warranties to protect against the dreaded lemons.

Not sure if it's still the case, but doesn't Mercedes continue to make parts for their cars indefinitely? Their classics are awesome, and growing up in the 90s my dad had an '85 300SD turbo diesel. It wasn't fast at all, but man it was big and comfy, and gas mileage never changed, ever.

Also, in the States, can confirm Jaguars are notorious for being unreliable.