Hi gents!

My automatic X type’s radiator has given up and is leaking quite a bit. I am having it replaced Thursday and my mechanic says his book says 2 or 3 hours, which does not match up with what I have read here. Of course he has a lift and is not doing it in a garage.

is there anything I should watch out for in advance? Does his time estimation sound right? Thanks

 

Spike, having a lift, I can see it taking 2-3 hours. Granted, the thing I would be wanting to know is that most mechanics based their hours worked on the time estimate by Jaguar. Others do it by the actual time it took. Which way does your mechanic charge? It could work in your favor if he only charges you 3 hours, but it takes him say 6 hours to do all the work. But then, it could also hurt you if he charges by the actual hours worked and if you are planning on 3 hours and he takes 6......

 

The average cost for a Jaguar X-Type radiator replacement is between $651 and $1,021.

• Labor costs are estimated between $321 and $405 while parts are priced between $331 and $616.
• This range does not include taxes and fees

 

Jaguar Warranty replacement time is 2.3 hours.
Real world time should be WARRANTY TIME MULTIPLIED BY 1.5 (warranty time, times time and a half) (Warranty Hours X 1.5 = X)
Add to that 15 years of time gone by (rusted,stuck,corroded,grease caked aggravation) and I would think 3.5 to 4 hours to be fair.

Just my opinion and 45 years experience working on Jaguars.

 

Thanks guys for all the replies.

took about 3 hours on the lift and the bumper had to be removed. My radiator was quite literally cracked. Got a new Niessens radiator and new OEM foam around it and everything seems to be working great

 

…..People might read all my recent posts and think I am making this up , but this Nissens radiator installed 13k miles ago in 2021 failed today. Exactly 3 years to the date……While at the car wash. First really hot day in Houston pssed 90 degrees ……Car never overheated according to the gauge, but the air conditioner got a bit warm (presumably from all that hot coolant hitting the condenser). It happened quickly and all the coolant suddenly was on the floor and there was still a tiny bit left on the reservoir , so at least I know I wasn’t driving like that for a period of time.

I have been reading on some BMW forums that Niessens radiators are absolute garbage (and now I know why) but what do I go with instead? . I will have the car towed to the mechanic tomorrow since this is not something I can do at home , but I don’t want another play-dough radiator that will fail in the next couple of years.

any advice appreciated.

 

My radiator had a slow leak - I noticed the foam surround was wet at the bottom after changing the engine oil.

DIY isn't hard - Its time consuming for sure, and not really practical if you don't have another car.

Note that although radiator comes out of the bottom, the car doesn't need to be lifted very high - see pictures.

I tried an after market aluminum radiator, but that didn't fit with the Jaguar bottom hose fitting. Instead of rigging up an alternative bottom hose, I decided on a replacement radiator from Jaguar.

Took 2 days elapsed after new radiator arrived. Total effort was around six hours with regular tea breaks




Battery and airbox removed



Jack stands supporting radiator - not the car!



Old radiator removed with cooling module attached.



I write everything down to plan the job and make sure I don't need other parts. Here are my notes:


17-Oct-23 38,343 miles
Radiator leaking from plastic sides.
Ordered replacement radiator. Decided on Aluminum aftermarket from Amazon. $274.76

21-Oct-23
Remove radiatorDisconnect cooling module from radiator
Disconnect bottom hose

22-Oct-23
Painted radiator support bar

24-Oct-23
Aluminum radiator arrived.
Beautifully made, but Bottom hose connector not compatible with factory fittings!
Processed return via Amazon
Ordered genuine Jaguar radiator via Harper Jaguar $472.04

2-Nov-24
Jaguar radiator arrived - very well packed

4-Nov-23
Installed new radiatorFit radiatorElectrical & Surrounding EquipmentStart car
Bleed cooling system
Check for leaks
Fit front bumper
Connect bumper wire harness at left
Fit front wheel arch liners
Fit front under tray
Refit front wheels
Lower car to ground
Torque lug nuts to 80 ft-lbs
Check coolant
Reset clock


HTH, Dave

 

The OEM radiator is under $400 on this website. I don't know anything about that website, I have never ordered from them. Seems like a very good price.

 

@DaveAllen Great write up, well done. Should be helpful for others into the future. Clear, concise and with PICS!!

 

BTW My quote from Harper was $388 plus shipping + tax. I paid $472 delivered. So its worth looking at all the extra costs to get a total price.

HTH, Dave

 

Thanks for your replies. I went ahead and dropped of the car last week at the shop, I am too busy with work and life to take that on. Sadly, because of the storm from hell we had last week in Houston and your standard Jaguar Specialist timeframes, I won’t have the car until the end of this week. If that. Should have taken it to my “regular” non Jaguar shop, but I didn’t want to have to sit there and watch blow by blow to make sure everything was done properly. Oh well live and learn