My 2012 XF has been giving me problems since the start when I got it as a CPO car. The mileage is now at 95000km and have had since May 2015.

A little bit of history would be that the engine was replaced and the vibration had occurred within a month or 2 of the engine replacement. After engine replacement the car was a breeze. It was quieter and stronger than before. Soon after though just all of a sudden I suspected some fuel flow issues. I noticed the car would not pull as hard and after I revved the engine on neutral it would drive as it used to. I had a broken flap in my fuel filler pipe in which a noise would come out of the tank sometimes when filling up. (how did the flap break? Negative pressure in the tank? Did not find out.) The jaguar mechanics removed the part and changed my filler pipe and the sound was gone. My only major issue with the car right now is its vibration problem and it sucks.

At first the vibration did not come as often, most of the time the drive was smooth. Eventually the vibration was always on and was noticeably stronger at highway speeds. Now the vibration is most of the time where I occasionally get a smooth drive even at the same speeds. This issue seems very complicated to me because I cannot figure out whats going on or what is causing it to vibrate (steering and car).

I thought it could be my tires / bad balance so I waited and got some brand new Blizzaks for the winter to fit on my same rims. The tire shop tech mentioned that 2 of my rims were slightly bent but that I would not notice it much. Driving it with the winter tires felt different but the vibration was there. I took it to the Jaguar dealership next to diagnose further. They road force balanced my wheels and the vibration improved dampening the vibration by a lot. The next day the vibration was even worse, never before as bad much stronger at a wider range of speeds. Jaguar dealership took a look at it again and told me 3 rims are bent...2 of them "badly" bent. They offering new rims to fix it. I asked them if they could mount 4 good wheels on the car to test drive and confirm that the wheels are the issue they said no not under my extended warranty unless I pay for 2 hours labour at $165/hr.

I am not completely convinced it is my rims that are the problem but sometimes I do feel it is the rims.

Here is what I have noticed through my testing:

If the car drives smooth sometimes on the same speed range...then could it still be my tires/wheels?

I was thinking of checking the air filters because I have never touched them and not sure if they were serviced recently before I got it. Was thinking engine is starving from its air.

What do you think?

 

More proof that at least it runs better on 100% gasoline..

 

Well, considering you see changes in the symptom when doing things to both the engine and wheels, I'd bet you have a couple problems. My guess is that you should first go with new wheels. If you're worried about cost, tirerack.com does some great deals that include shipping them to your tire shop for mounting/balancing. Another option is to check your local CL or something to find used wheels.

Since there appears to be an engine component too, I'd have your mounts checked.

For further diagnosis though, does the car idle rough? Do you have any vibration when in park or stopped at a light? What about when you rev the engine in park: Does it immediately rev or does it seem like it's sputtering?

 

Which model XF do you have and what are the wheels? Size and type?
The OEM wheels appear to bend very easily - particularly the larger eg 20inch. I replaced mine with aftermarket Rohanna wheels and it made a big difference. So unfortunately I would guess you likely have a bent wheel issue

I have also strangely dropped 2-3 whee weights in the last 6 months. They didn't appear to be stuck on properly and just fell off. Sounds like you've been back to check balancing so maybe not the issue but if it suddenly gets worse that could be the issue. I'm told metal foil tape over them helps to hold them in place...

 

Go to a wheel repair shop first and get an idea if they are beyond runout. If they are they will tell you how much to fix (which will be a lot less than getting replacements unless your stock rims are chrome).

The other issue sounds tough to diagnose, since the symptoms aren't consistent.

 

Honestly, it sounds like you have a vacuum leak or loose electrical connection somewhere, I'd let the car cool and go through check and wiggle every electrical and vacuum connector on the engine and trans, look for any hanging connectors or lines too. You'd be surprised what is missed during an engine swap.

 

Hi, I have the exact same problem... been to rim specialist, they say its not rims... have had the whole front end suspension checked out. Not sure what to do. Were you able to figure out ur problem? Mechanics say its not the engine mounts either.

 

I had a vibration issue on my old V6 XF a few years back - dealer said it was tires, then rims, the gearbox mounting, then propshaft - I had all those items replaced and at the end of the day, it turned out the left side engine mounting had failed - they could have saved me thousands if they'd diagnosed it correctly to begin with.

With the car idling, rev the engine quickly ie. jab the accelerator and lift off immediately while you stand in front of the engine bay. If the engine pulls drastically to one side, the mounting has failed. A little bit of movement is normal, but if it's jumping to one side, mounting is buggered. It can drive one nuts after checking wheels, propshafts, tires, gearbox mounting etc. After that the car was solid and had more power too because it could transfer ALL the power to the gearbox instead of quite a bit of torque being lost in the jolting from side to side.

 

just wondering but did u get a shimmy? And was it a consistent viberation in the seats panels and steering or was it occasional. Did it get worse at higher speeds?

 

Yeah, it was a constant vibration that started at 70mph and got worse the faster I went. It didn't shimmy. The car was stable, but the vibration came through the pedals, floor and seats. Rear passengers could feel it too. I kept telling the dealer it came through the seat. They sent a technician to my house to drive with me on my roads. They even had a technician drive with me on the freeway who said he could feel it. But still it cost me a fortune going through their trial and error repair process instead of diagnosing it properly.
And the very first time I complained about the vibration, I told them to check the engine mounts.
The vibration just suddenly started one day on the freeway and let's face it, tires don't do that, neither do wheels.

 

Interesting. Its been 4 months since I've been experiencing a shimmy and viberation through the foot well, pedals and seats. Its not so much on the rear seats but more in the footwell. And steering wheel as well.

I have been getting the run around trying to figure it out :/ I also get a thud sound when the car is cold and i accelerate exactly at 15kph. Not sure what that is or if its connected but it can be felt in the pedal and heard as well. The way i accelerate doesn't change it. The car can roll up to it or can even be floored and u will always get the thud. Happens one time and goes away.

My guess is the wheels are bad and I am going in for a road force to check it out again.

If anyone knows what that thud maybe let me know! The driveshafts and other suspension parts were inspected and I was told they are in good condition.

 

To follow up I did get it fixed eventually after so much stress.

What I think is that some of u guys were right that it was multiple issues.

Took it to rim repair shop and they found bends in all 4 wheels, but 2-3 of them were more prominent. They quoted me a discount if I do all 4. Got the bends fixed and it made a huge difference. This means after my engine replacement I must have hit some pot holes not realizing that this is not an suv and the Jaguar rims are low profile / weak (245/40/19).

I still noticed vibration as I drove on and was not satisfied. Took it to another dealerships and they said no fault found car drives fine. So frustrated I contacted JLR North America they helped me out with rental car costs as I took it to a further dealership far out which claimed to have the best mechanics. They were actually good and they replaced the Drive Tensioner (P/N: C2D21150) under warranty. The mechanic said he noticed the car shaking, the steering wheel shaking on idle at a stop light. Opened it up at the shop and saw the tensioner was the problem. After this my car was fixed. Such a struggle but was worth it. Was about to just get rid of the car happy I still have it and enjoying it till this day.

 

Thats crazy because about 2 weeks ago i thought about doing my drive tensioner and belt. The tensioner was bouncing under stress.

Just got back from the rim shop and they road forced them to better numbers.
4,5,15,17

and now i think i am going to do the tensioner. The mounts are good and i need to do the tensioner anyways.

To add onto it;
idle vibration that goes away once driving
more vibration after about 100kmh
I get shimmy randomly when its colder out.

My theory is that the belt does not hold tension to run the pump and its probably slipping as after about 150kph the car steering feels better too.

Just a question to you,
Did u get shimmy ever? When it was hotter out did it affect it?

 

The thud at 15kph is nothing to worry about. The anti lock brake system does a self test as you accelerate the first time you pull away. So it will clunk once each time you drive it.

 

Thank you for that. A mechanic told me that too and i did think that it had something to do with brakes.

update: Ordered drive belt tensioner and belt. 2 days until delivery. Costed me $250 almost in parts

will update the forum with results!!