The belt only slips (if it does) when cold. I don't believe it slips once warm. If it did the belt would wear out quickly. They don't.

 

Yes, I am still plugging away on the car. I keep meaning to add an update.
I have been focusing on suspension and brake upgrades. Since I work 300 miles away from where the car is, progress has been very very slow.

Back to this thread... Another positive for newer STRs, is that if the car is older than 7 years old, it is much more difficult to get a car loan at the lower interest rate, and terms longer than 3 years. There is a 2004 STR I would like to purchase, (8 years old) but I want to finance it rather than use up all my cash. Besides, interest rates are so low right now, I'd rather have a payment.

Regarding buying another S-type, my 97 XJ6 is getting tired and I want a new steed to replace it.

THIS IS A FANTASTIC THREAD!!!! Keep up the comments!!!

 

fog lights block the air tho the front facia. they removed the fog lights for that reason on 05+

 

But what cooling issue? There are no problem reports of any on here, are there?

 

No they were removed because Jaguar changed the position of the engine oil cooler on the STR. The 2005 and up STR's have two separate oil coolers mounted where the fog lights were on the 2003-2004 STR's. The older STR's had the oil cooler sandwiched in with the radiator, A/C condenser and P/S cooler. It was just getting too much so for improved engine oil cooling they upgraded to the two separate units.
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I love the styling from"05"-"08" in my opinion, The re-designed front bumper, the tail lamps that sit flush with the curves in the rear but the best part is how the hood has a much broader V shape that spans out to both corners of the hood, I do wish they had kept the brembo breaks though they looked a hell of alot nicer and sportier than the ones they replaced them with. I was thinking of getting some used brembo R brakes off ebay but I usually like to keep the original equipment on mine especially since the "07" model didn't have em.

 

I have an 05 STR and it absolutely does NOT have VVT but my 2003 did. The engineers at the time said they saw no improvement in HP with the supercharged engine. I guess in 06 six they figured out it was worth something to add it to sc motors.

 

The Technical Guide specifically states it reduces emissions. The emissions laws got tighter so this seems to be the reason. At the same time they added SAIR (secondary air injection), again to meet tougher emissions laws. I doubt this matters to anyone thinking of buying an STR...

 

06 was the first year for STR VVT. IMHO, the 03-04 are unique with their more agressive styling compliment of Brembo brakes, driving lights, unique rear lamp covers, and spoiler that spanned across the rear trunk lid.

 

Yes, I meant the Technical Guide for 2006. Ref JTP1050

 

Will the newer Aluminum hood fit on the 2000- 2004 S-types?

 

NO. For 2005 they changed the front fenders and hood and grille. It's not much but it is different.
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Yes, and No... They really changed a bunch up there. You would need to change the front fascia as well. Now, I don't know if the front supports changed. Now the two things that didn't change and may make it work are the headlamps and front fenders. So, that means that from the outside at least, the hood and fascia will line up with the fenders... If they will actually bolt up is another question.

Edit: Depending on what you are looking to do, this may make a difference as well. In 2005 the washer nozzles were moved from the hood to the wiper arms. So, you would have to either adapt the new wipers to an older car or drill holes and mount nozzles....

Here is a 2005 and up nose shot off the net...




And the earlier car...



While the fascias look the same, note that the grill mounting and angle is totally different.

Also, keep in mind that Jaguar did a major rework of the car for 2002.5 / 2003 (depending on market). Most of those changes were invisible to the naked eye but resulted in a tighter chassis and better fit and finish. Not to mention that they also redid the suspension and stuff. Probably one of the best indicators of what changed is an accurate body repair manual. If they list a different part for the 03 and up car, then it changed. And like many others have said... the 05 and up cars were mostly cosmetic changes. And.. yes... VVT was around on the naturally aspirated cars before 06 but NOT on the supercharged until 2006.

Another trivial note.... 2005 was the last year for body color trunk trim. All future R's had chrome trim across the trunk lid. So, since 05 was a refresh, it was the only year like that.

 

Thanks for that!! i stand corrected, the front fenders did NOT change with the 2005 model upgrades.
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as far as i can tell, the changes were front bumper(parking assist were added), fogs lights removed, new design aluminum hood(no windshield washer spray were hidden on the wipers), new 18 Vulcan wheels(same size) , new rear bumper, new tail lights(i prefer the old one), revised trunk lid, new spoiler(shorter) interior : new gauge cluster. welcome to add if i miss anything

 

LOL! I thought for sure they changed the fenders as well. My first "find" about that is when I parked my 05 next to an 03 at the dealer. And sat there checking each line.... Even the little curve up by the A pillar is exactly the same..Mike, the service manager thought I was nuts... The one question I don't know though, are all the mounting points underneath the same? I bet some of that stuff changed in 03 with the refresh... so, you may be able to get away with a swap of 05 parts on to an 04, but would they work all the way back to 2000?

 

The rear quarters (wings) are also totally different. The only carry over panels were the window frames, roof, fenders(front wings), and doors. I'm pretty sure the plastic sill covers stayed the same as well as the glass. There were a few different seats used through the years, but those are real hard to tell the difference.

 

Aha - finally noticed Jahuar brochure says the 2008 model STR has 395 i.e. no extra HP.

Here's the first place it's in the brochure. (The whole PDF is too large.) It's also in a table later in the brochure, same 395.

edit: looks like a full brochure is http://jaguar.brochures.tagworldwide...80_en_OINT.pdf

 

Go back and read my post #20.
Since you can see All the worlds brochures I am sure you can pull up the US version of 06 That I have in my hand. 400 HP on my stated page.
The one from 08 must be British and says 395PS what ever that is.
Take a look .

 

Whatever you do it's not 420 so an extra 20 did not appear.

PS is a standard unit. Try it in Wolfram's Alpha and choose which kind of HP you like