^x2 - my STR is a factory hotrod in my mind, I'll take it over a Cayenne anyday.

Adam I wouldn't call your car junk. The suspension is quite good, the engines are generally trouble free (although all vehicle makes have some that go bad), and the transfer case/tranny are not all that bad if driven somewhat conservatively. If you are on a fixed income I'd probably save your fun money for possible repairs and maybe a cheaper hot rod toy (5.0 Mustang etc) rather than soup up an X type.

 

keep it serviced including t case ,and remember that MOST things that go bad are not junk. But have a life expectancy and wear out. I wouldnt expect many other cars on the road to not need suspension work when they start getting over 100k. Just depends on driving conditions etc.. The original cars had issues with the jatco transmissions. But most all those issues should have already been addressed long before you got it. No problems with the engines at all. The bigger issue i see are people that buy a jaguar x type cause its cheaper to get into, can barely afford to pay for it much less maintain it and fix when the occassional problem does surface. They should have bought a cheaper car to buy and maintain. Buying a luxury car even if it cost you 5k is still a luxury car and carries luxury car repairs for parts. Labor charges are not really any more than a mercedes vs a ford etc... Just more fancy stuff to break and more expensive parts

 

Amen. I bought my 04 X for ~ $9400 and I think I've spent 2/3 that in repairs so far. LOL

 

Whooooo doggie, Hitler barnd Breeder buggies. Actually that's quite funny. What started this was a question about whether ot not to try to add 'significant' HP to an X Type. My vote is no. I love the car, but it is not meant to be a stop light demon, it is meant to be a sport luxury sedan (or wagon), that said mine corners like its on rails, most of the hot rods built back in the day had Jag suspension in the rear. I don't know what Adam is reading but what I think is if you do the maintenance your car will last as long as you want it to. The engines are solid, the transmission is solid, the transfer case is purpose built and will handle the horsepower given it. TC are a weak link in any 4 wheel drive system. Even my old Jeep YJ had to have the transfer case upgraded along with all the axles.

Now I drove a Dodge SRT10 recently, that's a factory hotrod

 

It is not a problem of money, I have that, plus a 1936 Cord boattail roadster and a 64 Cobra, as my security blanket. It is more inconveniences then anything else. I am handicapped and the nearest Jaguar dealer is 28 miles away, does not offer pick up or delivery service like the Mercedes dealer did and honestly I can't drive this far. Their aren't any local mechanics that work on these cars, except my neighbor who is a Ford mechanic and can work on the engine and drive train. Before the X Type I had a 99 Mercedes Benz C280. Besides regular service the car was only in the shop twice for repairs, once for a crankcase sensor and the other for a recall. I had this car from 01 to June of this year. Before that I had a BMW Z3, Before that an Audi A6 and a Porsche Carrera. I could keep on going but I have driven luxury cars since the 80's. I just wrote a new post on the heating system, doesn't work well. I froze my buns off yesterday, until the outside temps warmed up in PM. I also looked at the service records the previous owner left in the car. back in 04 and 05 she had a lot of warranty work done on this car. The engine management computer was changed, Ac fixed, which is still a problem by the way, and several other repairs which off the top of my head I can recall. I do remember one, the vent covers on the defroster outlets on top of the dash were replaced as the popped off. Well the passenger side one is still popping off. I think I will crazy glue it in place. One more I now remember is the front door pull rods were replaced on both side due to hard opening of the doors. They are still hard to open But I think they might be a 2 stage setup, one pull of the handle unlocks the doors and a second pull opens the door, at least that is how mine seem to work.

2 Saturdays ago an friend and I went out to lunch. We took my car. When we got to the restaurant we couldn't unlock the front doors, the back doors opened however. Also the radio wouldn't shut off, even with the engine off everytime I pressed the radio button the radio would switch to the auto volume control mode Also this function never worked before. Finally I decided to try and unlock the front doors with the fob I clicked the door open button and the front doors unlocked. I got the radio to shut off by changing channels, I pressed the button and the radio went off. This failure hasn't happened again. So frustration is more of a problem then the mechanics now. In the U.S. English cars have a bad reputation for dodgy electrics, Land Rover is a good example, they were renowned for dodgy electrics. I also owned a couple of English cars in my youth an MGA and a Austin Healy 3000 even thou I owned these cars over 40 years ago, as I remember they had crummy electrics and mechanical problems.
I went on a internet site JustAnswers.com and wrote a few questions and got replies back from a certified Jaguar mechanic. He was very blunt in the assessment of these cars, he wrote the engines are strong, the TC and tranny are big problem areas and the electrics at times can fail, especially the engine management computer. But mine was replaced according to the Jaguar work order with an updated computer. This site by the way cost $10 a question, so if anyone goes there be prepared to pay.

 

Adam, if you have the cars and money you say you do, what are you doing driving a broken-down X-Type? Since you have the money, take it to a good independent mechanic and have him fix all the problems. Or is this thread just a joke and you enjoy everyone running in circles trying to help you?

 

Adam, while he may have been and is a cert Jag tech so am I and a current Master Jag tech. I work in 1 of the largest dealers in the world and we see alot more issues that frankly some dealers never have the luxury of seeing. Yes there are some electrical issues but by a large the biggest on the X is battery and battery cable issues. rememebr, just cause the car starts has nothing to do with a good battery. Time and time again I see issues cause by low battery voltage and when a battery is tested and fails I recommend a new battery. The very next statement is it was fine when I brought it in, the car starts fine. The computers on any car need a good voltage supply and a 100% battery is 12.6 volts not 12. Many times the car starts fine even at 11.-12 volts. but then you start getting stupid electric operation. I would have your cable voltage drop/resitance checked and an impredance, crank, and reserve voltage test done on your car. A Midtronics testor will do this and a DVOM(digital volt ohm meter). ECU replaced????what ever, very few have I ever seen changed. And the rods on your door handle inside the door are not the problem but the brown/white clips they go into. the rods need to be properly preloaded into these clips or you will still have door opening issues. Remmber that while it says Jaguar, the electrical system is FORD as are many of the parts and tech. I honestly believe that if Ford had not bought Jag they may not even be making cars today. The design and electronics was archaic and way behind the times. This is 1 of the reasons Jaguar/British cars in general got such a bad rap ( LOVE father Lucas!) The tranny is a Jatco(japanese automatic transmission company) Has been used for yeas in Lexus for years without much issue. The 02-03 trans had a recall for incorrect manufacture(again not made by Jaguar or Ford) but other that those we dont see much issue, especially if you compare to the ZF or the Ford AOD in the early Stypes

 

No I'm not joking or making everyone running around in circles trying to help me. I happen to like the looks of the X Type, always did, also with my handicap this car is very easy for me to get in and out of. My benz wasn't. As I said it is the frustration of the vehicle at times that gets me. What it boils down to is I never owned a frustrating car. As I also said I love the way it drives, handles etc. Someone did say you should take it easy with these cars because of the weak TC. That's frustrating, as if I want to do some spirited driving now and then I can't because the TC will fail? See what I am getting at. Or am I taking this too seriously? Also, my car is not a broken down wreck, it is a very nice car and nicely equipped. I am just finding things going wrong with it that IMHO should not be an issue with any car. For example not being able to open the front doors and not being able to turn off the radio?? This is the annoying stuff. If the TC went or the MAS I could see that and accept. But this ****le stuff is very frustrating.

 

Too serious......but i would service the tc with new fluid and everything else. There are several very good threads floating around here somewhere on it. Also remember alot of people are here and in shops cause their car is broken. That doesnt account for the thousands that never havehad a failure..want to find alot of sick people, go to the hospital, same thing

 

Hey Adam

It's something you'll grow into. I'm used to the pain associated with British cars, like Brutal says, you should get down on bended knee and thank the car Gods that Ford intervened.

My very first car when I was 16 was a used 1962 MG Midget. First year of the Midget, it was an Austin Healy Sprite leading up to that. Positive ground (learned that after trying to install 2 8 tracks), then I had a succession over the years of TR7s and 8s. I'm tall and they actually fit me. More recently a LR Discovery. The Midget had the really nasty Lucas wiring, the Triumphs had a mix of Lucas and Bosche, THe Discovery had a couple of weird gremlins with the elctronics.

I had read up a bit on X-Types after looking at a variety of AWD cars, then saw a picture of an Estate and knew that was my next car. I knew it was British but had some Ford influence and hoped for the best. I'm pretty handy with cars so.....

Took 6 months but found my car, bought it after negotiating for a few days. Oddly Jags sit on lots a bit longer than average. Then on the drive home after owning the car for 15 minutes got my first CEL. Next day the first Gearbox Fault, a smarter person would have exercised the 24 hour back out rule but not me!!!

But it's coming up on a year now, I'm no Brutal or Thermal but I'm learning my way around the car. I read a lot, have done a few things, This winter when I get my garage back from the Grandchildrens toys I'm doing all the fluids but knock on wood (and I am really knocking) so far every issue I've had can be traced back to a leaking windshield. The point is, it's a car with it's own personality. It's what keeps me owning Europian cars especially English ones. Anyone can own a car that you know will fire up every single morning and perform admirably. It will never do anything really well, but won't let you down either. They're all made in North America, none are destined to be classic, but they will get you there. It takes a real car person to own a Jaguar. When was the last time you saw someone walk up to a guy friving a Taurus and either tell them what a beautiful car they had or just strike up a conversation about British Cars, or even want to look inside. You're driving something a little outside the scope of normal. I like it. I never really know if that dfamn little amber light it going to blink on, or suddenly I have a 1 speed transmission. How cool is that???? I'm kidding there but I'm OK with it, I know because the vehicle is maintained and I don't rat race it that it won't (again knocking on wood) be something catastrophic. Embrace the unknown.

 

That is a nice looking Estate Sidewalkman....

Adam, drive the car. You can drive it hard in the twisties. I would perhaps avoid the full throttle leaps from a dead stop, or at least make that an infrequent thing (really this goes for most cars eh?), but once it's underway, put the power to it and have fun.

I never let the "i don't want to break it" get in the way of enjoying the car.

 

Great piece of writing, my first couple of cars in my youth were also English, MG, Austin Healy 3000. But after those two nightmares, actually the AH wasn't as bad the MGA, at least it didn't leak when it rained. I went American, Mustangs, GTO, Camaro, Pontaic Ford Olds. Then in the early 90's I went foreign SAAB, Audi, BMW, 2 Mercedes Benz's and now the X. As I said I like the X but, and I hate to say this on this board, I really don't consider it a luxury car, not in the sense of a Lexus, Benz, Infinite. To me it is a very well equipped sport sedan. As far as embracing the unknown I've been doing that most of my life. Thanks again U should be a motivational speaker.

 

Yep the ECU was replaced in 04. I've never had that problem but a friend with a Bimmer had his go, so it is something that happens. As I posted the ****le stuff really bothers me, like the front doors not unlocking and not be able to turn off the radio. If the TC went or the MAS I could accept that, but these other things, to me are not. Your post was an inspiration by the way.

 

Can you tell I'm in sales. I do agree with you on the luxury, I've got an X5 too, far more luxurious than the Jag, nowhere near as much fun. We've got recreational property just across the line in the US (WA). And the road is a 2 lane twisty going there, the Jag just grabs a hold of the road and I'm doing 60 in slow to 25 corners (when it's dry) and with the sport model the seats have that extra bolstering so I'm glued in. I finally had a test of the traction control yesterday, I was trying top beat a semi to an intersection where I was turning left. I had lots of room and he was coming towards me going straight through. I pinned it going into the corner from about 20 MPH. You could feel the traction control loosing it's mind trying to figure out how not to spin the tires. Works though!

I looked at the Infinite G35X and M35X prior to looking at the X Type. I really like the M, not so much the G. The G is an Altima. The M is a really nice car, I drove one for a couple of weeks in CA when I was there earlier this year. But I knew I would bore of it pretty fast. Had no personality, but tons of features I liked. I saw a guy yesterday with an Arden packaged S type R. Now there's a car. 465 HP, blown 8, and although the interiors are similar, his was luxurious.

 

I test drove the M35X after I got rid of my X type. I found the same thing, nice car and the features were great....I could really get used to heated and cooled seats. Interior was spacious and comfortable for my 6'5" 225lb frame. 280hp V6 was pretty strong, I liked the interior design, a little odd with button placement but no biggie. The exterior however was a little too boring, car didn't seem to have a soul.

Stumbled on to the S Type R a few days later and it took all of 3 seconds before I knew I was had. You are correct, the interiors look similar (center stack is very similar to an X with Nav) to the X but the STR is more luxurious - has all kinds of options like power adjustable tilt and telescope, power adjustable pedals, etc. and the seats are fantastic. I do prefer the X type's gauge cluster though, the STR's is very plain for some odd reason.

I'd actually rate the X lower than my 07 SAAB 9-3 turbo (60th anniversary edition) on the luxury scale. But much prefer the RWD handling bias of the X than the FWD of the SAAB.

Although how did he get 465hp out of it - twin screw blower or something?

 

Brutal, this post make me laugh my *** off and at the same time made me feel better. SOOO true. I was startin to think my car was crap after joinin this forum. Thanks.

Im in the process of puttin a new engine in my X and sadly after that ill be lookin into the rear subframe work. BUT i still cant wait to get her back!!!!