This is a possibility with an older jag:

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/s...oodbye-134515/

 

Yeah, I read through that. Wow. That stinks. Fortunately, at least I hope so, I bought this car off the 2nd owner, he does a lot of business with the hospital I work for and he is a Christian as I am. So I put my faith that he disclosed everything to me. He had quite a few receipts of things done over the years he owned it. Now, it shows that when he bought the car, the transmission started to make a thump sound and it was replaced at 40K miles, I have all those documents from the Jag dealer in Norcross, but I cant tell if the trans was replaced or some part of the transmission. But I read on some of the blogs were other people said they had their tranny's replaced as well, and apparently from what he told me, this was a common issue.

He rarely used a Jag dealer once his warranty ran out, he used a mobile mechanic for a lot of work, so those receipts were a bit hard to dechiper, but I figured out most.

 

Good maintenance is an important start, but the big thing it seems to me is that these vehicles just aren't reliable over the long haul. Even with the best of maintenance they seem very buggy, compared to other non premium makes. Not sure why, but I suspect manufacturers know the OP won't own the vehicle in ten years so why bother engineering in longevity? But as others have stated, learn to do your own work or it will become too expensive.

 

Tim, don't let anyone scare you off. There is a huge difference from the 2001 MY to 2003 MY and even then onto your 2005 MY.


Even with having 100k+ on your clock if the maintenance has been done (which is sounds like) then you are ahead of the game. The motor you have is pretty much bullet proof. The ZF gearbox same thing, as long as you change the oil and filter if it has not been. If its a question mark on your maintenance then I would highly recommend spending a couple of hundred on filter/sleeve, oil and labor if you are not comfortable DIYing.


There are a few cosmetic common areas to these S Types, drooping headliner, broken vanity mirror cover, chrome lock levers peeling all of which are not that bad and also there are many DIY fixes in the "How To" guides here, a lot of them have beautiful colorful step by step instructions!


Again don't worry and enjoy the ride. There are quite a few of us that can bail most owners out of any type of problems that arise.

 

Hey Rick, thanks for that reply. I know there is always some risk on a car 10 years old. No matter what car it is, even Toyota's, Honda's and so on. I just love the aesthetics of this car. Its black with that steel blue interior with the sport seats and its just brilliant. The power in these cars is amazing, I cant imagine the Super Charged version. Would love to drive one of those just to see. But, I would love to learn to do a lot of this work myself, saves so much money. I am in the Information Systems business, going on 33 years now, so I figure I can at least read the manuals and give it a go, nice to know folks on here will help and I dont mind paying someone to help me out.

Anyone just want to get together for wings or pizza some time until this next get together, my email is tkajohns@gmail.com, I know its in my profile, but hope it was ok to put in this message.

Tim

 

JTIS is workshop manual and free download so you'll have lots to read! Also the tech guides etc are mostly on here too.

 

You live in England, I hope to get over there one day soon. I have always wanted to go and visit and see the country, see London. And I have been on the Top Gear waiting list now for four years. Hoping I get lucky one day .

 

Good luck with TG, think it's a huge list!

 

Tim; I did not see it but if you plan to do your own work we are lucky to have both the factory shop manual (JTIS) and the factory parts catalog (JEPC).

It would be worth your time to get both and install them now. They are both free and on this forum. Look at the top topics for JTIS.
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Expect to have a love hate relationship with your jaguar!
Just saying.... Its the truth....
Its like having great sex with an ugly person Lol u love it but can't stand them
Well I love my jag and the way it looks can't stand the bs I go thru with it.

 

I have heard it can be a love/hate relationship. I dont mind so much on most things, got used to that with my BMW, it can be a love hate with them as well, especially as they get older. I used to say that BMW's nickel-dime you to death, now I say its Hamilton-Benjamin you to death now. No such thing as coins, its bills now. But, the beauty of the car is hard to over look

 

Agreed! Seldom if rarely do you see a "beater" of a S-Type on the road. Even the ones on Craigslist part-out ads look better than the domestic crates with peeling paint, et al. Looks like they did a fine job with the paint, and unlike XJ types of like years, the interiors do not have the usual wear and TEAR - or more like RIP, on seat bolsters and cushions.

Like all "lux" brands, each has an expensive Achilles heel. Early S-Types have plastic where it really doesn't belong....like in the ENGINE! Rear-mounted batteries are crap. And from this forum, there are other areas. However, ask anyone who's had to deal with BMW electrical ghosts, or Infiniti Q45 Plenum hoses, or Cadillac Northstar head gasket or Circuit 100 failures, we're all in the same boat. It's the only way some of us get to drive a $50,000 (or more) for $2,500 or less. Add another $2-3,000, and you may get that "new car" experience for 10% of the cost! (you can even get an air freshener that "smells" like a new car. Spray liberally and impress your friends that don't know any better.

 

Whatever you do, do NOT hope and pray for great gas mileage. I acquired this vehicle to keep miles off my '98 F-150 (because a new one is close to $50,000 - even more if I want a Raptor - which I do), which only gets 13.6 MPG. It's a truck.

My 2002 ST 4.0 reported 16 MPG average. With only my 200lb carcass in the seat. I don't have that heavy of a foot, so I wonder if anything else is going on. It's close to 100K, so tuning up is next in order. So, don't expect econobox MPG.

 

>Rear-mounted batteries are crap.

Why do you think that? I've always thought it was a good idea. The weight is distributed better with it back there and I kind of think it is more accessible than in the front.
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My karma just ran over your dogma
'08 Jaguar S-Type 4.2

 

These must be "vented" batteries, which limits the pool of battery manufacturers. My ST has been in the family for 9 years, and has gone through 6 batteries in that time, all having one cell dying. Yes, it is nice to have it in the trunk, where it allows us to have that nice, sleek XK-120 inspired hood. I just think the form factor of the battery (configuration of the cells and electrode plates themselves, being shorter than conventional ones) lends them to early failures. I wish that Optima would make one for these series of cars - They just seem to last longer, and are by design, deep cycle. These start my truck after 30 days of inactivity. I had to buy a portable jump starter, and use it on the ST after only 5 days of it being parked.

 

You probably have a draw in your system or water intrusion if its going through batteries like that. Most members here have gotten 10+ years out of the original battery or are still using it. I sold my STR last year with the original battery in it, and that car would sit for weeks at a time and still fire right up. I just replaced the original battery earlier this year on someone's 2000 S-Type with less than 25k on the odometer as it was finally showing signs of failure.

 

10 Years on the ORIGINAL battery? Incredible! My wife bought the car off a lease back in '06, and it already had an aftermarket one installed. The "H20 Option" was standard in my old Caddy Seville - and I haven't heard about that being a problems in the S-Type. I do, however, see many posts about excessive current draw, so maybe there IS an inherent problem with battery drain. I know that in Fords, their AutoLamp module is a high-failure item (I'm on my 3rd one now) - and one of the downsides of turning that feature on is, you guessed it, excessive current draw, and dead batteries within a few days.

 

My S-Type will be 10 years old come May and is still running strong with its original battery. The key is to check the cells and top them up at least quarterly. Monthly is better during the hot summer months. I've done that since we acquired the car in December 2008. It will be interesting to see just how long this battery will last....

My wife's XK8 will also be 10 years old come May. I had to replace its original battery in September 2012 after we acquired the car in February 2012. I believe its original battery was essentially neglected by the first two owners, therefore it lasted only 7+ years....

 

Mine's on a 6-7 yr old battery.

 

I agree. It seems to be one annoying issue after another lately. I've been driving 30 years now, and I've had close to 20 cars, I don't remember having the amount of issues with any of those cars as I do with this one, and some of them were older too.

No major issues, but enough frequent, annoying ones of which I hardly have the time to address! I can't imagine owning one of these cars without being mechanically inclined!

A nice looking, nice driving car, and hey its a Jag,but boy is it an interesting car to say the least!?!!