2003 Jaguar XJ 4.2 V8 SE

[anonymous-user]

I thought I'd start a thread to chronicle the inevitable pain that my acquisition of a 150,000 mile decade and a half old Jaguar is bound to cause.

I've owned several XJs and other Jaguars over the year, although the only one made in the 21st century involved a hate/hate relationship with an S-Type 2.7d. Having initially derided it for it's ill advised styling and poor detailing I have now come to tolerate the appearance of the X350; possibly because so much on the roads these days is so wilfully ugly it looks better by contrast.

It came from Tasker & Lacy, a long established and well known Jaguar specialist. It's far from their usual fare, they live towards to higher end of the middle aged Jaguar market, but it's a car they sold 5 years ago at 70k and have maintained since. I've got a good wad of invoices, including a NSF air strut change 20k miles ago, and front discs and pads. Full T&L service history for the last five years/ 80k miles and a somewhat patchier record befor then.





As I detailed in the Bargain Barge thread the condition is fantastic for the age and mileage, with almost no wear to the interior at all. Exterior is the same, with a few chips but nothing serious. When I viewed it the powerfold mirrors and electrically adjustable pedals weren't working but both are now fine, meaning every single feature and toy still works.

It's an SE spec, registed on Christmas eve 2013. Optional extras I am aware of are the 19" Custom wheels, electric sunblind, and built in telephone.

I'm in Leeds with the car now and very much looking forward to the long drive to Cardiff tomorrow!

[anonymous-user]

Geekman said:

Looks very nice in that color combo.

If an air strut has been changed recently, chances are one or more of the others will be needing replacement soon. If you don't want to spend a fortune on replacing them, plenty of companies such as Arnott and Suncore offer warrantied aftermarket ones which work perfectly fine. They're also easy to DIY change: I did one once in a carpark in a French village with only a few basic tools!

I understand the fronts fail more often than the rears? They seem to be about £600 odd from Arnott, there is a company offering remanufactured ones for £300, and there are the highly suspicious eBay specials for £200 too.

Didn't realise they were that easy to change, certainly less dicey that using a spring compressor but that really is easy. I believe you have to disconnect the battery to avoid having to recalibrate the height, and support the hub so that you don't destroy the height sensors?

Edited by dme123 on Thursday 22 November 13:21

[anonymous-user]

Geekman said:

They do indeed, although rear ones can and do fail as well (ask me how I know!)

When I last checked Arnott they were considerably cheaper than that, in the region of 300 each IIRC. I just bought a pair for my RRS from Suncore for 300, I can't imagine the X350 ones would be much more. Basically any warrantied strut which has been remanufactured with a new airbag, top mount and shock should be OK.

You do indeed need to disconnect the battery: as long as you disconnect it and reconnect it with the shocks in the same position it'll be fine: ignore anyone who says you need to recode it or anything like that. And yes, you need to support the hub but that's very easy to do with any type of jack, even the basic scissor one which comes with the car.

Just watched the Arnott video, looks very straightforward. The rears look like they'd take an hour, including getting that corner off the ground!

At 150k miles I'd have changed the dampers on any other car as a matter of course, but with the damper nicely sealed inside the unit I don't know if these are done in by 100k like a conventional one?

[anonymous-user]

I might be doing it sooner rather than later, the front has levelled itself to “very low”. I suspect one front shock has leaked and when it woke up for its 24 hourly levelling it lowered the other to match. I’ve reinflated it and will see how it looks in 16 hours. As the OSF is new I see a replacement NSF in my future. JustJags sell Arnott parts for £303.

Edited by dme123 on Thursday 22 November 17:29

[anonymous-user]

dme123 said:

I thought I'd start a thread to chronicle the inevitable pain that my acquisition of a 150,000 mile decade and a half old Jaguar is bound to cause.

Lovely lovely car, I had one of these and everyone told me it would be a money pit, turned out to be one of he most reliable cars I have ever owned and a pleasure to drive on every occasion thanks to that lovely interior. Enjoy.

[anonymous-user]

One tank of fuel in. 375.9 miles and a calculated 24.48mpg. I've had lots of high speed motorway runs and given it full beans at every possible opportunity so that's pretty impressive.

It hasn't levelled itself out again, so all may indeed be well. Gearbox seems to be learning how to change gear under proper throttle openings, apparently the PO drove it very gently indeed.

It seems to be loosening up from the exercise, and it is really quite brisk. Muted but quite a pleasant noise, and it is very planted at license endangering speeds. Nothing has fallen off, no serious maladies...

[anonymous-user]

ali_XF said:

Looks lovely. I had a 4.2 sport in 2009, lasted me about 4 years. These big old buses have aged very well. Echo the comment about a grille change- the facelift one from the X358 suits the car but they are quite hard to find now. Love the custom wheels, still one of my favourite designs.

That's a looker, and rare to see the NASP V8 on a later car. I'm liking this so much that I think in a year or two I might find the budget for an X351.

I've spent enough time to develop a few impressions of the car now:

• Ride is good by modern standards but far firmer and less 'flowing' than the X300s I owned. Admittedly these were on 16" wheels with 225/55 or 225/60 tyres, so 123mm or 135mm of sidewall vs the (very attractive) 19" wheels with 255/40 tyres and 104mm of sidewall.
• Air suspension feels weird and behaves in unexpected ways over certain bumps and surfaces
• Engine makes a nice noise but it's muted. I'm curious what it sounds like outside the car as what I'm hearing inside is all engine noise and not exhaust
• Very easy to drive very quickly, it really settles down at higher speeds and accelerates smartly well into three figures
• Premium audio is OK. Miles better than the standard audio with Ford Focus oval cones that my S-Type had, but coming from the excellent 900W Dynaudio system in my Mk2 C70 it's a bit lacking. It's probably on a par with or not quite as good as the standard system in my old V70 and it's a lot better than the disappointing standard system in a 2 year old XC60
• CD changer is st. It skips on bumps and it skips when you boot it. Not good enough in 2003, I had a DIscman with shock protection in 1994
• Build, fit and finish are extremely good. Astronomical Units ahead of X300/X308 in quality. It doesn't need apologies made for it in so many areas like the older models
• It's a cliche but it does feel like it shrinks around you, doesn't feel nearly as big as it is
• The V6 would be more than adequate for 90% of drivers 90% of the time
• I don't hate the grille as much as some, but given the choice I'd prefer it body coloured with mesh. I doubt very much that I'll spend money on this
• Paint is good but has light swirls, I might sort that out in the summer
• Almost too much seat adjustment when combined with the electric pedals, but I seem to be comfortable enough
• Halogen headlights are not much cop. Having spent last week with the minature suns in the XC60 I might need to address this
• Light is stuck on in the glovebox. First fault!
• Weird red lights above the rear grab handles are distracting
• The heated seats are feeble
• A Jaguar more than six years old without a sagging headliner. I thought I'd never see the day.

So based on my experience so far I recommend one to the bargain barge crowd. Won't rust like a Mercedes, piss oil everwhere like a BMW V8, or be full of poor quality parts that are comically difficult to access and expensive to replace like anything from VAG. Hopefully it also won't have things you didn't even know existed break expensively, like any of the other three seem to do.

Edited by dme123 on Sunday 25th November 11:12

[anonymous-user]

Trouble in paradise! CEL came on this morning, I'll have to get the code reader on it later and find out what it is. Christmas project looms.

I also suspect that at 150k the gearbox would benefit from a proper service/rebuild and I've started looking into this. Don't suppose anyone knows any actually decent auto transmission places in South Wales?

[anonymous-user]

LeighW said:

Just a few notes based on owning mine for five and a half years now:
The suspension doesn't respond well over short/sharp imperfctions in the road, almost skips. That's a known 'feature' apparently.
My CD changer has never, ever skipped. I assume yours is the 6 disc in the boot?
The V6 is pretty good, the only reason I would prefer a V8 is the noise, but since you say you can't hear it, maybe I won't bother!
You can buy the mesh grille inserts pretty cheaply, or you could when I bought mine. I then bought a used surround from ebay and had it sprayed.
Mine has the HID lights - I wonder if they can be retrofitted, as they are really good.
I wonder if your heated seats are fully functioning? Does the back rest heat up on yours? The reason I ask is that mine practically burn my arse on their highest setting!

It is a 6 disc in the boot and I've never had one that skips so easily so it may well be sick. I'll take it out and clean the lens and start from there.

The V8 is quick, and I like the effortless torque, but aside from being a knob I think the V6 would be absolutely fine. From memory the V6 even sounds good.

I've heard that swapping to the HID lights isn't hard, I'll be keeping my eyes peeled for the parts.

Heated seats definitely work on the cushion and squab. My last two daily drivers have been Volvos and I've used VIDA to turn up the heated seat temp as high as it would go, which is quite a bit hotter than the default, so I may have been spoiled.

I might sort out the grille, but first spend is going to be a proper gearbox service/rebuilt and then a suspension refresh. I can't see the grille when I'm sipping coffee in the drivers seat...

Edited by dme123 on Monday 26th November 14:29

[anonymous-user]

CEL was due to code P0101 - "Mass Air Flow Circuit Range/Performance Problem"

I've cleared it and on the weekend I'll clean the MAF wire with carb cleaner and check over the intake system for leaks. Apparently it gave this error when the dealer had it and they swapped on a known good MAF, fuel trims are at basically 0% though which does suggest there isn't an intake air leak.

Edited by dme123 on Monday 26th November 21:25

[anonymous-user]

Code hasn't come back (yet), and the air suspension has stayed level while parked for several days so I think it must have levelled itself out on uneven ground the other day. Still enjoying it enormously, despite the frustration of no aux in. Now I want a few dry days so I can have a proper drive.

[anonymous-user]

Wooda80 said:

I'm sure I recognise that car ( the OP's Radiance Red one ) . If you still have the service book, has it ever been into Dunham Jaguar in Stockport or Royles in Wilmslow?

Hi. Sorry, I missed this. I've gone throught the service book and it was at Rybrook Jaguar in Warrington in 2005, then serviced at an independent on Primrose Street in Manchester until 2012, and since then it's all from Tasker & Lacy.

[anonymous-user]

First bit of fettling today. I'd noticed that the bonnet would flutter about alarmingly on the OS, and it quickly became apparent that the catch wasn't holding. After a bit of fiddling to adjust the latch and the adjuster for the bonnet height I took the grille off to have a good poke and it turned out that a push with a finger could release the latch when it was supposed to be locked down.

I believe the cable is under slightly too much tension so the latch can't totally engage, as it doesn't seem any more worn than the NS latch. A bit of a pull to move the cable a fraction of a MM sees the latch engaging properly. It seems to be OK for a couple of engagements and then goes slack again though, I think I might need to replace the cable as it was looking a bit corroded and sad where it runs behind the grille. Bonnet now lines up better too.

Oh and I took the engine cover off to have a look.


Not working latch


Working latch (bonnet open sensor now properly in place)


Dusty engine

[anonymous-user]

OK so for future reference. Bosch pump 0392020073 is NOT a direct swap for the Jaguar electric auxilliary coolant pump (part C2C6517) for the heater and would be a PITA to modify.

With these pumps the hose connector can be very easily unscrewed from the motor and swapped, the impeller in the pump is driven magnetically so there is no chance of causing a leak by doing this. This means that if the hose connector is wrong it's no bother provided your old one isn't damaged.

The Jaguar bracket to mount the pump is just a rubbery thing and can easily be pulled off your old pump.

Pump 0392020073 has the wrong hose connectors but also has the wrong electrical connector, so the advice I had that this was a direct swap is incorrect. If you were determined to get it to work you could splice the loom or make an adaptor I suppose.

I have discovered that pump 0392020034 DOES have the right electrical connector, the right flow rates, but probably the wrong hose connector. I've ordered one for £60 and returned the other one for a refund. If this works it'll save £120 over the Jaguar part.

Edited by dme123 on Monday 17th December 17:07

[anonymous-user]

Fixed it! Not a difficult job, the hardest part was getting the tool on those horrible hose clamps. I think if I were doing it again I could do it without disconnecting the hoses to the pump and just unscrewing the motor body from the top.

[anonymous-user]

Yes it seems to be fine, gets much hotter and I think it's now even left to right. £60 well spent!

I'll take a look at the CD changer for an alignment switch next. It's not skipping terribly, it mostly gets upset by fast roundabouts and so on.

[anonymous-user]

dme123 said:

Trouble in paradise! CEL came on this morning, I'll have to get the code reader on it later and find out what it is. Christmas project looms.

This CEL never came back, however when I was fumbling around with coolant pipes I found it was very easy to pull the air intake off the inlet manifold, it wasn't very tight at all. I suspect this may have caused a small air leak and set off the CEL for the MAF sensor.

I'm still very surprised how trouble free this is being for a 150k / 15 year old barge. They really do seem to have nailed the quality and robustness with these.

[anonymous-user]

When I bought an S-Type years and years ago I really wanted the nav and wouldn't look at cars without it, but now I'd say I'm totally indifferent. The buttons are a somewhat superior way to control the climate and stereo, although the layout is cluttered, but the screen looks neater.

I know cars without the screen, even now that the nav is useless, are usually somewhat cheaper and that's a plus for me!

[anonymous-user]

Minor update! I changed the aux belt, idler and tensioner. It's on the service schedule for 150k miles so it was the original belt and was looking a bit scabby but not terrible. The tensioner felt a bit gooey and the FEAD is definitely quieter now.

I have also noticed over the last week that the NSR tyre was going flat, so I hadn't used the car. I took it to get what I assumed was a puncture looked at, and....



st.

I had noticed that the rears didn't match, I had three PZero Assimetrico (expensive!) and one regular PZero, which is the one in the pic. Both the rears tyres had 5mm of tread so this was a bit of a disappointment. I've replaced them both with Goodyear Eagle F1s as that was the best option that they had in stock in that size.

[anonymous-user]

craigjm said:

Holy st good job you didn’t go out driving on that

Worrying thing is that before it was losing air I'd noticed what I thought was a wheel balance issue at the rear. You know, the sort that you feel at 70MPH so you just power through it and do 90?