My front damper plates arrived today, that was quick, I only ordered them on Monday.......and they came USPS!

Not complaining, but I can hardly believe the price, especially as they are for a Jaguar! ($18.79)

Didn't have time to install them today, will probably do them tomorrow.

I don't expect to experience any change, it is more a "preventative" action, or put another way, the rubbers have most likely been in there from new and now would be a good time to change them..


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Drove it for the first time in a week! Really missed it after driving a rental '18 Camry on a vacation. The new car was nice, less wind noise from the aerodynamics, modern bells and whistles, but couldn't hold a candle to the power and comfort of the XJR. Did a couple 2-hour long sections of driving in the Camry and my back was not happy...

My alternator started acting up as well so I need to get some parts to rebuild that one, or cough up for a rebuilt unit.

 

Think I'm going to have to adjust the new door check, it's getting no easier to operate even w/ lube.

 

Found the video I took when I had to replace the passenger side bearing (again) after my ditching. The description is in the video, but short version: I drove to the lake in the car a week after the ditch. Left the house just fine. About 2/3 the way there (it's a 2 1/2 hour ride), started getting the faintest hum on right curves. Ok, I'm familiar with that, been there before. Parked at the lake, and then when coming home, no sooner than I left the marina and now it was more a grinding noise - to where I even pulled over to make sure nothing was dragging. By the time I got the rest of the way home, it was well and truly destroyed. MASSIVE grinding and clanking sounds, could even feel the car catching under corners on that wheel. Parked it, and ordered a whole spindle assembly from e-bay to replace in the driveway since I don't own a press (always used a friends). When I took the removed assembly to replace the bearing, the bb's were completely obliterated. Chunks, bits, shards, and nothing resembling round. But in case you wondered how to tell if your bearing was REALLY bad?

 

Well on my quest to rid the rear of it's last knock, I've deduced that it is the A-frame bushings. So the proverbial hunt for those is now on. Does anyone here know a source that sells the whole sub-frame refurbished w/ new bushings ?!

 

Final days of a 2 week trip from Auckland-Invercargill-Auckland via the Lost Highway through Whangamomoma (Whang as in Fong) for the non NZ’ers

 

After buying some parts today, I understand why people think Jaguar is so expensive...

I needed some ARB bushes for the front. So I opted for the Sports ones. According to research harder rubber and for the 33 mm ARB.

Searching around, to see who has them in stock, I found a page here in Germany. Supposedly the best source for Jaguar parts. Cheap, quickly delivered, customer orientated. Especially because many German enthusiasts will purchase their parts there because 'Original Parts but cheaper'. Well, going by their prices, Jaguar must be really expensive...

This is a quick pic from their website...



As can be seen, EUR 17.64 per piece incl. 19% VAT.

Below is Jaguar Classic Parts' price:
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As can be seen, the JCP price is EUR 8.28 per piece but excl. 19% VAT. So with VAT it would be something around EUR 10.00.

As my dealership isn't in the Jaguar Classic Parts system, they can't sell the parts for the same price BUT even then, EUR 11.54 per piece is not anywhere near the 'cheap, friendly, high serviced, reliable' price.

No wonder people think the prices are expensive! They are...

...if you go by companies claiming to be cheaper!

 

Fitted the new Uro damper/shock plates this morning. Just about the easiest job you can do on an X308, the most fiddly bit is putting the 10mm nut on the lower of the three studs that hold the power steering pump. The right-hand side one is a complete breeze, Less than 30 minutes for both even taking your time.


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Had 2 ounces of shop mixed touch up paint for the rear bumper, it had a couple parking lot scrapes & chips. Looks better thus far (fingers' crossed lol). With the recent paintwork I now notice every single imperfection elsewhere.

 

Well, Lemförder isn't that, what it used to be. Original Lemförder part, purchase from factory (not outlet!). Just a merk 12 months and it is rusty like hell and the balljoint is as sloppy as a sloppy joe!


Oddly the other side was a cheap aftermarket brand. Cost like 1/4 of the Lemförder part. It has withstood my driving (12 months, 30k km) better. Doesn't matter as now the new endlinks are in and the XJR ARB. Boy does this car handle a lot better. Can't wait for the upgraded rear endlinks and bushings to arrive! Body roll has GREATLY been reduced. No need for an XJR now

 

As per post above, I replaced my front anti roll bar with one from an XJR. At the same time I fitted Moog endlinks name the 'Problem Solvers'.

Be prewarned: they will cause a problem when fitting! You will need to replace the bolt which connects the end link with the wishbone for a longer one.

I ordered two new screws and nuts to fit in order to keep the parts easy to service. First removing the bolt isn't easy. You would best remove the steering endlink from the vertical/upright connection. Especially since the screw is fitted in an awkward position. Secondly: consider fitting the new bolt from the front and have the nut behind. Thirdly: buy some machine washers of a larger diameter. The normal bolts won't hold the PU bush properly. You can pull it off which won't really help much when driving

 

I have a hum/howling sound that presents itself in the rear on sharp curves & turns. The sound resonates when I give it gas coming out of the turns/curves.

I've already changed shocks/mounts,tires,rear differential oil & checked the wheels for play/bearing health(they tested good). It tends to come after a series of turns or curves when the car's been running for 20+ minutes or more. Only thing I can think of is maybe the rear diff. breather's clogged as I'm not 100% sure it got cleared during the oil change. Also not sure that it could even produce the symptoms I have. It's getting worse because before it was only random w/ left hand turns, now it's both.

Couple that w/ rear driver's side knocking, I'm getting a bit annoyed lol. I can only mask it w/ the stereo for so long.

 

Ha. You're having all kinds of fun with your car

 

Didn't do anything Saturday, except go to work. However, I did get in a whole bunch of parts over the past 3 days I received the used supercharger and intercoolers that I recently purchased, 5 new bolts for mounting my water pump, 3 new bolts for mounting the water pump pulley, 1 new bolt for the accessory belt tensioner, the plastic coolant line that I broke, the tool for the Norma connectors, a NOS Jaguar power steering reservoir, the proper coolant sensor, the new (ribbed) supercharger idler pulley, the bolt for the supercharger idler pulley, the 3 bolts that hold the supercharger idler bracket on, a new engine splash pan, a complete valve cover gasket kit, a new shift knob to try out, 4 new stainless steel hidden valve stems for my BBS wheels, 4 new titanium valve stem covers for the aforementioned valve stems, 4 new titanium bolts for the BBS wheels, and probably something else that I am forgetting. Lots of new stuff to install Plus I still have to do my alternator at some point

 

The gorgeous ones tend to be a ball lol.

I got a little aggressive on a serpentine road, my car rewarded me by dropping the overhead console lol. It was a reminder to install the error free LEDs to eliminate the "ghosting" when the lights are off.

This week :

Transmission check-up
Seat belt slider trim installed
Thorough suspension inspection

Edit :

These overhead consoles are a piece of work lol. Get the rear seated then the front quarter turn screw/fastener won't catch or vise versa. I'll continue this battle once the sun rises, or throw it through the windshield lol.

 

Yesterday I managed to get a number of parts installed New coolant temp sensor, the remainder of my belt-related components, and my replacement breather hose. Thankfully the breather hose went on without having to take anything else apart. But it was TIGHT getting through that gap near the back, where the intercooler and the supercharger outlet flange meet. The Norma connector barely fit through there, and only with a little wiggling using a screwdriver (gently, of course) And it only fit through there when aimed at a slight upward angle. The connector also picked up some gunk during its journey through the area before the gap, so I had to clean it out before I finished installing it. Getting back to the belts, I now have a fully updated supercharger drive setup Should I add it to my sig as a "Mod?"

I have also replaced every bolt on the front of the engine recently, with the exception of the 5 water pump mounting bolts. Yes, that pile of $44 bolts from the Jaguar dealer in Miami was WRONG. The overall length was 1/4" too long, and the length of the threaded portion was different. That kind of pissed me off. Unfortunately, when I looked back at my invoice, it said that ALL returns incur a 40% restocking fee When you factor in the cost of shipping, it's almost not worth my time to send them back. I did send them an email though, to see if they waive the restocking fee for an incorrect part. They will probably say no, but I figured it was worth a shot. I could probably cut the bolt down to the correct overall length, and then re-thread it to the proper thread length. If I don't end up sending them back, I will probably go ahead and do that. None of the metric Harbor Freight dies that I have fit the threads on these bolts, so I would need to buy the correct one. But those are reasonably inexpensive on their own.

 

Today... let's see. Oh, the intercooler pump decided to pick today to start wailing like a banshee. Conveniently right after I paid off my boat, so funds are at a stretch already, so that's handy. I'll order the replacement this week, but I'm going to try to find the connector and unplug the thing just to see if I can shut it up. It should be fine in the interim, since it's very light driving and I can monitor with Torque.

Oh, and failed inspection because of my 0171 and 0174 that just don't want to go away. I replaced the MAF with no effect, so plus side is, I guess mine was still fine. Love learning those hundred dollar lessons. Time to break down and make a smoke machine I guess. Was hoping to avoid that, but probably should've to start with. What are the odds that my failed brake booster (which I'll FINALLY get to replace this weekend) is a vacuum culprit that's causing that? lol. Yeah, thought about as much :P

Must be that now that there's only 9 months left to pay on it, it wants everything fixed all at once.

 

It's like Xmas at the moment. More and more parts are arriving. My car may look shabby, but I doubt many modern 'hot hatches' will be able to out un me in curves

 

CharlzO ,

On the intercooler pump depending on the year it is the same as the heater core pump and in later years I think they went with a Bosch manufacturer that is alot less expensive as a whole unit by a factor of 3 . Your original pump can be rebrushed with part # A33 ( or a 33A ) X 2 X number of pumps with some of the special electric grease ( can't remember the name now ) on the bearings sitting on the auto parts store . This may resolve your motor noise without sourcing a replacement pump . The repair is very easy to do and alot of post on it and you may want to do it on your heater core pump now instead of when it fails in the middle of winter . Mine has 110 K miles and not alot of brush left .

 

I actually replaced the Aux pump last winter when I lost my cabin heat, and had intended to rebuild my old one. Can't for the life of me remember what I did with it! But I did see the posts on the Bosch replacements, and will be ordering one of those. I figure as inexpensive as they are in comparison to the OEM, I might as well. And, I'm just too lazy right now to do any bench work. Work hours are weird, and with spring/summer coming, my free time will be filled with other things too. I just hit the 197k mark, so I guess it did it's job long enough.