X350 Opinions please
Discussion
Hi guys, have owned a few jags before and am considering another. Having trawled the classifieds i am quite amazed how the price of early X350 cars have fallen. I've always really liked them but thought they were well out my league, seems not! 
I'm looking possibly at a 3.0 V6 Sport model xj6, seem to be a good option, reasonable mpg while still being well equipped etc etc.
I've done a little research it seems some early cars had issues with suspension, anything else to look out for?
I would really like to hear from anyone who has had an earlier car and how they found it reliability wise, would also like to here from any V6 owners.
Thanks in advance, Davy.
I'm looking possibly at a 3.0 V6 Sport model xj6, seem to be a good option, reasonable mpg while still being well equipped etc etc.
I've done a little research it seems some early cars had issues with suspension, anything else to look out for?
I would really like to hear from anyone who has had an earlier car and how they found it reliability wise, would also like to here from any V6 owners.
Thanks in advance, Davy.
I had a 2003 XJR.
Virtually faultless in 3 years of ownership.
Suspension was something that had some work eventually, the car was up to 120K by then mind!
At the time it was expensive to get fixed because to replace a worn bush meant replacing the whole arm, now though, the bushes are avaliable aftermarket meaning it's a £50 materials cost rather than £400!.
Struggling to think of anything else that was a problem.
Anyways, it was good enough that I eventually bought myself another XJR, a 2007, which in 1 year has been equally faultless except that I have a catalyst warning light error code I should get sorted sometime, but no rush as it's £1600 at the stealers. I'll wait for aftermarket cats to become available.
In a nutshell, great cars! And I've even found the looks have grown on me, I now see the X308s as looking abit old-fashioned and 'heavy'.
Get one that's been looked after and it'll keep you right for years!
Virtually faultless in 3 years of ownership.
Suspension was something that had some work eventually, the car was up to 120K by then mind!
At the time it was expensive to get fixed because to replace a worn bush meant replacing the whole arm, now though, the bushes are avaliable aftermarket meaning it's a £50 materials cost rather than £400!.
Struggling to think of anything else that was a problem.
Anyways, it was good enough that I eventually bought myself another XJR, a 2007, which in 1 year has been equally faultless except that I have a catalyst warning light error code I should get sorted sometime, but no rush as it's £1600 at the stealers. I'll wait for aftermarket cats to become available.
In a nutshell, great cars! And I've even found the looks have grown on me, I now see the X308s as looking abit old-fashioned and 'heavy'.
Get one that's been looked after and it'll keep you right for years!
Hi, I have a 2003 4.2SE, running on LPG. Bought a year ago with 40k miles, now on 66k. Not faultless, but not bad !
If you are coming from an X300/X308 .. drive one first, I didn't find it as quiet or comfortable as my old X300 LWB Sovereign, that aside a bit of fiddling about with tyre pressures (there is a lot of web info on this) bought the ride down to acceptable. The handling is the trade off, the X350 is miles ahead. The later ones also had thicker glass, to address the sound (it's not bad, but no Lexus)
The suspension problem, aside from bushes is the air suspension compressor. They seem to have a limited life, and an early car will possibly have had it changed by now. Not a big job, but expensive from a dealer. From a specialist part is around £250 plus 1 to 2 hours labour. The problem is with age the compressor takes a little longer to pump up to pressure. The warning light is sometimes triggered before pressure is reached, even though everything is ok. It tends to manisfest itself more on cold damp days.
Other known issues, corrosion .. lots of it. Around panel edges/boot/doors. Gearbox/Torque convertor issue .. often a cheap software upgrade. Lots of owners have experienced misc electrical problems/odd warning lights etc. This can often be traced to what appears to be a bad earthing system (Steel bolts into an alloy body) which corrodes a falls off.
In summary I have a love/hate relationship with my car. Always serviced by a specialist on time. In by 26k than repair I have had a header tank £70, door lock actuator £150, software update £35, normal car stuff i.e brake discs/pads, 2 windscreens (!) 2 Tyres. It is blisteringly quick, and it's not even the S/C version. Great on fuel, even on petrol .. remember lighter than an X type.
When it's good it is great, but sometimes spoilt by the odd warning light that comes on a goes off for no good reason (bit like an old Citroen).
So get a good independent for servicing. Have a look at www.jaguarforum.co.uk and enjoy !
If you are coming from an X300/X308 .. drive one first, I didn't find it as quiet or comfortable as my old X300 LWB Sovereign, that aside a bit of fiddling about with tyre pressures (there is a lot of web info on this) bought the ride down to acceptable. The handling is the trade off, the X350 is miles ahead. The later ones also had thicker glass, to address the sound (it's not bad, but no Lexus)
The suspension problem, aside from bushes is the air suspension compressor. They seem to have a limited life, and an early car will possibly have had it changed by now. Not a big job, but expensive from a dealer. From a specialist part is around £250 plus 1 to 2 hours labour. The problem is with age the compressor takes a little longer to pump up to pressure. The warning light is sometimes triggered before pressure is reached, even though everything is ok. It tends to manisfest itself more on cold damp days.
Other known issues, corrosion .. lots of it. Around panel edges/boot/doors. Gearbox/Torque convertor issue .. often a cheap software upgrade. Lots of owners have experienced misc electrical problems/odd warning lights etc. This can often be traced to what appears to be a bad earthing system (Steel bolts into an alloy body) which corrodes a falls off.
In summary I have a love/hate relationship with my car. Always serviced by a specialist on time. In by 26k than repair I have had a header tank £70, door lock actuator £150, software update £35, normal car stuff i.e brake discs/pads, 2 windscreens (!) 2 Tyres. It is blisteringly quick, and it's not even the S/C version. Great on fuel, even on petrol .. remember lighter than an X type.
When it's good it is great, but sometimes spoilt by the odd warning light that comes on a goes off for no good reason (bit like an old Citroen).
So get a good independent for servicing. Have a look at www.jaguarforum.co.uk and enjoy !
Edited by rswift on Monday 11th April 13:07
Thanks for the replies.
I had become aware of the suspension thing, obviously worth checking. The corrosion issue is a bit more concerning as this would be a long term purchase. Is it a common thing or random cars? I've had a Porsche 928 with ally panels and seen a little corrosion / reaction at seams etc. Is this the same (ie not too concerning more cosmetic) or is it more serious? Any areas more prone than others?
Cheers Davy.
I had become aware of the suspension thing, obviously worth checking. The corrosion issue is a bit more concerning as this would be a long term purchase. Is it a common thing or random cars? I've had a Porsche 928 with ally panels and seen a little corrosion / reaction at seams etc. Is this the same (ie not too concerning more cosmetic) or is it more serious? Any areas more prone than others?
Cheers Davy.
Personally speaking, I would go for a higher mileage car with a good history, as most of the niggles & faults should have been sorted .. and you will save a packet on the purchase price. I have regularly bought cars with over 100k miles, and regularly runs them for another 100k .. my record being the 450k Citroen CX ! (bought at 180k)
Gassing Station | Jaguar | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff