So here's my Jaguar XF blown engine story. I'm not asking for advice or information - just wanted to post it up for conversation.

2011 Jaguar XF which has been fully maintained as specified by Jaguar (all work done by the dealership).

Car configured with the AJ133 Jaguar engine: 385 PS (283 kW; 380 hp) and 515 N·m (380 lbf·ft). See below for other vehicles using this engine.

While driving the car one morning in Feb 2013:

• Car entered "restricted performance" mode (limp home mode).
• Check engine light came on.
• Within 30 seconds engine was running very roughly and there was a fuel smell in the vehicle.
• Car was in traffic on a bridge (no shoulder) with a light ahead about half a mile away and acceleration was very poor as I tried to get it off the road.
• Had to stop at the light.
• Tried to slowly pull away from the intersection to get to the grass and a ridiculous amount of blue smoke came from the exhaust along with a very heavy fuel/burnt oil smell in the car.
• Stopped car and called Jaguar assistance.
• Car was towed to the dealership.
• As I suspected - blown engine.
• Dealer is ordering a new engine under warranty from Jaguar UK (none were available as the factory is build-to-order) and it will be shipped when it is available.

No, I can not claim under Lemon Law (had car since new for 29 months and the limit is 24).
Yes, they are covering a rental car.
No, I do not know how much this repair would cost without a warranty (I didn't ask) but I've heard the engine is roughly $8000 and I can only imagine labor would add couple thousand.

Vehicle repair history:

• Basic maintenance aside, the vehicle has been relatively trouble free and nothing caused concern before this sudden event.
• On 3 occasions (during the first 18 months) the vehicle shut down while pulling away from a stop. The car went into park and turned completely off but started normally. No trouble codes were ever found. The dealer replaced the shifter mechanism as suspected cause (which, I think, was so they could look as if they did something when the shifter could not have caused this issue).
• Car had been getting worse than usual gas mileage (yes, worse than the standard 13-16 it usually gets). I can't give exact number but trips to the gas station were more frequent in the 2-3 weeks prior to the "event". Didn't think much of it though at the time.
• Car had been last serviced (routine maint.) in August 2012 and was not due for anything at the time.

Other vehicles using the AJ133 Jaguar engine aka the LR-V8 Land Rover Engine:

• 2009–present Jaguar XFR, 510 PS (380 kW; 500 hp) and 625 N·m (461 lbf·ft)
• 2009–present Jaguar XJR, 510 PS (380 kW; 500 hp) and 625 N·m (461 lbf·ft)
• 2011–present Jaguar XKR-S, 550 PS (400 kW; 540 hp) and 680 N·m (500 lbf·ft)
• 2009–present Jaguar XKR, 510 PS (380 kW; 500 hp) and 625 N·m (461 lbf·ft)
• 2009–present Jaguar XF, 385 PS (283 kW; 380 hp) and 515 N·m (380 lbf·ft)
• 2009–present Jaguar XJ, 385 PS (283 kW; 380 hp) and 515 N·m (380 lbf·ft)
• 2009–present Jaguar XK, 385 PS (283 kW; 380 hp) and 515 N·m (380 lbf·ft)
• 2009–present Land Rover Range Rover, 375 hp (280 kW) and 375 lb·ft (508 N·m)
• 2009–present Land Rover Range Rover, 510 hp (380 kW) and 461 lb·ft (625 N·m)
• 2009–present Land Rover Discovery, 375 hp (280 kW) and 375 lb·ft (508 N·m)
• 2009–present Land Rover Range Rover Sport, 510 hp (380 kW) and 461 lb·ft (625 N·m)
• 2009–present Land Rover Range Rover Sport, 375 hp (280 kW) and 375 lb·ft (508 N·m)

 

Forgot to add a couple things:

The dealer found coolant in the oil which prompted them to contact Jaguar for direction and they were told a new engine would be on the way.

I never had to argue anything and there was no discussion of a rebuild which I suspect is outside the capabilities of the local dealership anyway. My service adviser told my, "I know you've taken excellent care of the car and we just want to get you taken care of".

I was informed that they "want the old one back" to "see why this happened". My engine will be going back to Jaguar UK (from Florida).

My dealership has been excellent in terms of their service. I didn't buy the car there but at a different local dealership which has since closed). I, in turn, have been very patient with them and am enjoying my loaner. I honestly don't care if this repair takes six months.

I can not fault either the dealership or Jaguar for the way they've handled the situation thus far. It sucks to have this happen but they are doing their best to get it right. That said, if it happened during the first 24 months you bet your a$$ I'd be going after a Lemon Law claim.

 

Head gasket failure. This fault will occasionally happen if you build enough engines.

 

You are getting a new engine! You are starting basically as new. I wouldn't complain except the fact that the new engine warranty will expire when the car's original warranty expires.

 

Sorry to hear about the issue, but great to hear that you are being taken care of.

Note: They only started offering the 5.0L engine in 2010 (for the XF at least) so your breakdown above isn't accurate.

 

2010 model year in the US can mean a 2009 build date, and often does.

The "2009" came on stream in the Spring of 2008, I bought mine in July but I was dealing on the car in April. The earliest build dates for the XF were late in 2007 in the UK. North American version production probably began in late 2007 as saleable cars hit the car show circuit in very early 2008.

 

Agreed. Things break.

According to the tech the cause did not appear to be the head gasket though. They mentioned "weak spots" and related it to the "casting process". They were, however, not certain (hence the engine going back to Jaguar).

I originally thought head gasket but it went so fast (usually those are a bit more gradual and there are symptoms?)

 

Sure, that's fine, nearly everyone understands that cars are manufactured before they are sold and driven. The year is most commonly used to denote the model year, not the date of manufacture. Having a table that references something in a misleading fashion isn't helpful.

 

That's my point. Only in North America is there such a thing as "model year". Everywhere else the build date determines what year the car is. The registration date determines when the car was officially put into service ( I think that's called "titling" in the US but not in Canada). So the table isn't misleading, it's accurate. Model year on the other hand is getting to the point of fraudulently misleading in North America with new models being released nearly a year before the designated model year!

 

So I have a 2007 XF/SC?