Jaguar XF X250 V8 Buying Guide

[Lewis's Friend]

Hi all

I'm sure this has been covered somewhere before, and I have tried to search (honest)...!

I'm looking for a buying guide for a mk1 pre-facelift XF. There are quite a few about, but the majority seem to major on issues with the diesels.

I'm currently considering either a 4.2 or 5.0 pre-facelift naturally aspirated car. Is there anything to look out for particularly with these? They seem pretty robust. I have seen mention of timing chain tensioners can need looking at and possibly issues with water pumps on the 5.0?

The other (more general) XF things to look out for appear to be:
- tail gate wiring failing
- check all electrics/toys work
- infotainment can be a problem
- bushes/suspension (as any heavy car this age would need in fairness)

Any thoughts or experiences would be appreciated, or links to a good buying guide I may have missed would be great.

[GeniusOfLove]

Nothing much goes wrong with the 4.2. Thermostat housings develop cracks and weep coolant and... that's about it.

The 5.0 has a rep for chains but I'm not sure it's all that. Direct Injected engines really need clean oil of the right spec (not just the right weigh, the right spec to deal with soot formation and low speed predetonation) and the Jaguar change intervals were probably far too long. The water pumps weep but the one on my XKR made it to 140k before it did so maybe it's not that bad.

They are old now though so you can expect old car things. Both of them can have issues with plastic cooling system components like all modern engines. They really are pretty painless to own.