The 2003 XJ350 ( 3.5L V8 NA ) developed a ZF transmission fault late last year.
Very nice car to drive, only reservation was the ride always seemed slightly inclined to sway compared with the suspension in the XJ-Ss and the XJ6s.
I decided to give the car to my stepson after we pulled the ZF and had it rebuilt.
Around this part of the world modern Jags are very thin on the ground. The default choice for the luxury end of the market is BMW, Merc, Audi and Lexus.
Jaguar would be a distant fifth after Lexus. The ratio of sales for the other brands to Jaguar is:
Merc X15. BMW X12. Audi X 6.5. Lexus X 4.
Land Rover scores X 3.5.
The most convincing reason for most people to buy a Jag is brand loyalty, so I started looking for an XF to replace my XJ350.
I have never bought a new car in my life since I can save plenty buying a used one and have no problem maintaining and fixing cars.
Not many used XFs were available and I was wanting the 2017 update version.
I would have been happy with a V6 NA Portfolio, preferably in a lighter colour and preferably with barley colour trim.
So much for that - used XFs are not common and hence choice is limited.
On the used cars websites I looked at a 2017 ( 3 year old ) XF 2lt in what I thought from the photo was black.
Black I do not like, but I noted it had a very low 6,800km on the clock and a reasonably low asking price.
The car was not selling, and nothing else was remotely of interest so out of curiosity I phoned the advert number.
This was the story:
The phone was answered by the nephew of the owner. The owner was in his late 80s and had bought the car new just before he was laid up with a serious medical condition, hence the reason for only 6,800km.
It transpired the car was not black but metallic grey. That looked more positive. The trim was dark charcoal or whatever which to me is near enough black .
The owner was being a bit cantankerous with the nephew, expecting a higher price than the nephew was telling him was realistic.
The nephew was getting a little pi##ed off with this and filled me in with the back story.
His uncle was Jewish and had been one of the very few to escape the Polish holocaust. Hence he would not countenance buying anything German and usually bought Jaguars.
It was very unfortunate he bought his new XF at the time he did and obviously was expecting a much better price for a 3 YO car with a very low 6,800km.
If it had been a 3L engine it would have sold much easier, for in Australia most drivers go for larger engines in this part of the market.
The nephew said if you are serious to buy I will knock $5,000 off the advertised price so I can get this problem out of my hair.
The deal was done, not my ideal colour combination but at half the new car on road cost it could be tolerated.
I would not give the car a score of 10, more like an 8.5 out of 10.
The mechanics are generally O.K. but the software is a bit dubious.
Strange things happen from time to time. The wipers often operate dry on start up in my garage.
Now and again the entertainment screen does not show the reversing camera.
The LED indicators on the dashboard and gear selector are far too dim to see in average sunlight, never mind bright Australian sun.
The engine management should be better. The 2L engine is fine on light throttle cruising but even a slight gradient will make it labour where it should simply change down a gear. There are 8 gears to play with after all.
There is plenty of poke available when the turbo kicks in. Once again engine management can be wrong footed when moderately taking off from traffic lights, it can suddenly engage the turbo and risk banging into the car in front.
I did take the car into the local Jag dealer for a free service under the extended warranty. I mentioned the few software problems and asked if there was an update to the engine management. The answer was the latest 2021 XF was more refined but I could not get that update for a 2017 model. Really Jaguar, you are not helping sales with that lack of foresight.
I have to say the styling is pretty good. In general modern cars have ho-hum styling but the XF is a cut above the average and better than the competition.
All the same, tell anybody you just bought a new or newish Jag and they think you are a bit strange. What is wrong with the German cars that everybody else buys ?
Good question. Jaguars just suffer from a perception of being less reliable than German cars. The truth is they are probably on a par with the German cars but Jaguar have not really convinced the buying public.
If you buy a German car you are buying the best, what can possibly go wrong ? Plenty for some unlucky owners, but that makes a negligible dent in a strong reputation.
What little TV or other media advertising Jaguar pays for does little to dispel the myth.
Enough of the grumbles, I can live easily with the XF and most of my Jags last me for at least 15 years although the advent of electric vehicles may change that.

Now to questions.
1) Where do I get my hands on the best repair manuals and wiring diagrams - just in case ?
2) Which is the best scanner ?



2017 XF 2lt in metallic grey - nice looking car.

 

Howdy,
Nice first post and Congrats!
Start here for the official JLR docs and resources:
https://topix.jaguar.jlrext.com/topix/user/legal/form

Although I don't own it, I believe the iCarSoft JLR version is the entry point for compatible scanners.
Other members will have more capable suggestions that do even more iirc..

Enjoy your "new" x260!

 

Thanks for the info.
I ordered the scanner you mentioned.
The one for my X350 was quite old and I gave it to my stepson along with the car.
I have registered with Topix, so I am guessing that allows me to download maintenance & repair manuals.
I have not figured out exactly how I can get what I need.
The subscription varies from GBP30 for a day to GBP450 for a year but does not explain the significance.
Could you download all you need in a day ?
Or is it more to do with release of TSBs ?
No great hurry on this issue.

Last week coming home as a pax in Isabelle's Corolla we actually followed an XF in metallic grey, same as mine, for 1 km.
XFs being rare as hen's teeth, following an XF is equally rare.
Yesterday by coincidence ( estimated 1 in a million ) in exactly the same place we followed a metallic grey XF being flatbedded somewhere.
A portent of things to come ? Surely not.

 

Ha! Amazing Luck..

The subscription seems outrageous given the lack of clarity on what/how the documents can be accessed.

I have the free subscription so I get an email daily with fault codes, tsb offerings, Manufacturer Bulletins, etc.. in the US.