Noble owner seeking advice

[noble_al]

Noble owner here contemplating an S-Type R. Maybe some kind soul could help me out with a couple of questions before I decide?

First up, I drove one today for the first time, it was an '02 with less than 20k on the clock. The car seemed straight and the experience was an enjoyable one (rapid for a heavy car - as you can imagine, owning a Noble and a superbike I was never going to be blown away by the performance but it was still very pleasing - love the whine of the supercharger at full chat). However, there was a rattle from the exhaust which appeared to come from somewhere under the drivers seat. The chap selling it to his credit had already alerted me to its existence and you couldn't hear it without opening the door (good sound proofing?). The owner then ran it by an exhaust centre who told him it was "part of the baffle having broken off in the centre box". If this is the case, does anyone have any idea how much this would be to replace? Indeed, is it possible to simply replace the centre box or do more parts need to be changed at the same time?

A big concern for me would be that the problem is not with the centre box but with a Cat instead which would presumably cost a fortune to sort out? Is this likely?

If a large amount of the system needed to be replaced would it be a sensible option to go for an 'upgrade'? I've seen that Paramount/Milltek do such systems but can't find a price for them on the Internet. Has anyone gone down this route and if so, how much did it cost and was it worth it?

My second question comes from reading about one or two gearbox issues that some S-Types seem to suffer from, namely lurching and/or snatching? I've never owned an automatic before and have no idea what this is? Should I be concerned on an '02 car?

Any help much appreciated,

Al

[eldudereno]

Plenty of reading elsewhere about the 'lurch'.

http://www.styperregistry.com/JagForum/topic.asp?T...

http://www.thelurch.com/

[P700DEE]

If you buy it you should definitely replace the exhaust anyway Paramount exhausts are about £1K fitted but you might get tempted by a few more mods whilst there

[noble_al]

Thanks for your help guys - thelurch.com makes for slightly uneasy reading and makes me wonder whether it wouldn't be better to opt for a Merc CL 500/55AMG instead? Type R's appear a bit hit and miss on pre '04 cars whether they suffer from the dreaded 'lurch' or not? Sounds like if you're lucky enough to get a good one you won't suffer from it but if you're unlucky you'll end up with a car that's nigh on impossible to cure?

As for the exhaust, the Paramount item sounds great on Youtube. I've also remembered that Arden are responsible for Jag tune ups and do a tasty system or two? but again, they're not so hot on supplying anything useful like gains in bhp and price.

Cheers

Al

[eldudereno]

I was considering buying a Merc CLK as a second car but then read that it's quite common for them to have problems with rust so have now turned my attention to buying a 3.0 S-Type Jag. I've now found that the S-Type also has potential problems, especially pre facelift. The trouble with looking on forums is that all of the problems associated with that particular car are always discussed and very little else. In many cases members will only join up when they do have a problem so they can get the necessary help. What we don't see though are the many other happy drivers who've had no problems at all. If you look close enough you'll find problems with all cars.

Edited by eldudereno on Monday 31st March 18:45

[Triple7]

noble_al said:

Thanks for your help guys - thelurch.com makes for slightly uneasy reading and makes me wonder whether it wouldn't be better to opt for a Merc CL 500/55AMG instead? Type R's appear a bit hit and miss on pre '04 cars whether they suffer from the dreaded 'lurch' or not? Sounds like if you're lucky enough to get a good one you won't suffer from it but if you're unlucky you'll end up with a car that's nigh on impossible to cure?

As for the exhaust, the Paramount item sounds great on Youtube. I've also remembered that Arden are responsible for Jag tune ups and do a tasty system or two? but again, they're not so hot on supplying anything useful like gains in bhp and price.

Cheers

Al

Its a ZF gearbox i.e Merc anyway. Stick with the Jag, I'm sure if you trawled the web you will find equal amounts of disgruntled Merc owners. The CATs won't be massive money and if it were the CATs at fault you would have a warning light lit up on the dashboard. I would go for a 'Racing Green' S-Type exhaust, however this is just the back boxes and wouldn't cure the rattle. Makes it sound like a Spitfire! Great handling car.

G

[Triple7]

eldudereno said:

I was considering buying a Merc CLK as a second car but then read that it's quite common for them to have problems with rust so have now turned my attention to buying a 3.0 S-Type Jag. I've now found that the S-Type also has potential problems, especially pre facelift. The trouble with looking on forums is that all of the problems associated with that particular car are always discussed and very little else. In many cases members will only join up when they do have a problem so they can get the necessary help. What we don't see though are the many other happy drivers who've had no problems at. If you look close enough you'll find problems with all cars.

Exactly. Buy with your heart!