I just got off the phone with Arnott's tech guy who told me that the vehicle with Arnott air shocks won't lower at highway speeds or raise when you slow down. First things first, if I'm not mistaken, XJ8s with OEM shocks should do that? Or I got it all wrong?
I just bought an '05 XJ8L with bad front shocks, and read here that Arnotts are best replacement.
So my question is - do XJ8 lowers at highway speeds and ajust stiffness and more according to how you drive it, and if so, will it do the same with Arnott shocks? Thank you

 

The air shocks will do it based on the ride height sensors. He probably misunderstood and thought you were asking about the Arnott coil over shocks.

 

There are also two types of arnotts air struts. The new ones and the rebuilt units. The new ones do not retain the CATS functionality. The rebuilt units do.
Arnott does not seem to be providing rebuilt units anymore but you can still find some on eBay. I have replaced 3 of mine with rebuilds over the last couple of years with no issues.

 

The arnotts do not adjust the ride stiffness like the OEM shocks. I don't see why they would not lower, though, as that function is based on the ride height sensors and not the shock stiffness. The shocks trick the ecu into believing they are adjusting.

The lowering is at very high speeds, like over 100mph, so if you're going that fast you likely are distracted by more important things than noticing if the car lowered.

 

I have often wondered about this lowering of the car, because it only lowers above 100mph, and the places where one can drive legally at this speed are very few, even German autobahns have lots of speed restrictions in place now. The real joke, though, is the technical notes say that lowering is inhibited if you are towing a trailer. Yeah, right, at over 100 mph !!

The Arnotts don't have the Soft/Hard damper setting the Bilstein OEMs have, and that is necessary for the CATS system to work. However, I don't think the CATS system is really necessary, frankly.

 

Agree with Fraser and other previous posters.

1. The XJ won't speed lower until you reach 100 mph.

2. The new Arnott air spring units retain all air suspension functions, but they do not have the CATS shocks. There is a plug on top which has a dummy load so that you do not get a CATS fault on the dash. That said, I am very pleased with the 2 front units I put on this summer. Better ride than the car has had in 50k miles. I don't even notice the CATS missing. From what I was told, the new shock is a Bilstein unit (as was the OE) however it's a fixed valving between comfort and sport. Frankly I wouldn't bother getting a remanufactured unit, no 10 year old shock is going to work well at this point.

 

Hm, like I said, I just bought the car and don't know much about them, like the thing that the car lowers at speeds higher then 100mph, which is RIDICULOUS
So, seems like Arnotts are pretty good option. I just found one new OEM Bilstein on Ebay for $850, and the guy who sold me the car found one used OEM in good condition (no leak) for $325. Pair of Arnott shocks goes for $850 on ebay, $1100 if you order them through their website. I c that the passenger front one was previously replaced, so I don't know if I should change them both with Arnotts or buy just one oem....

 

Thank you all for all the info

 

When I bought a 2004 XJ8 for my wife some three years ago it had one bad/leaking front air shock.. The non-Jaguar dealer was deathly afraid of it and couldn't even get it wholesaled so I got a good deal on an otherwise nice relatively low mileage car.

I lived with the leaky shock for about 4 months until it go it destroyed when a tire blew. Anyway I scouted around (including here) and decided on a remanufactured Arnott (they were still making them back then and they still offered a 'sport' shock with CATS capability. Since it had a lifetime warranty to the original purchaser I gave it a shot, Easy enough to install if you have access to the right tools and watch their video a few times.


Anyway about a year ago one of the rear shocks started leaking and I had to make a decision. Replace just the one (Arnott was no longer doing remans so only old stock that a few of their dealers had), install two new air shocks in the back, get three new or 3 old stock remans, or live with a lowrider, which my wife would have been unhappy with

I ended up getting rid of the air shocks completely as I knew that if I didn't I'd eventually be faced with replacing not one or two but at least 3 of them at a cost considerably more then it was going to cost me to convert to a good set of coil overs. It ended up costing me $1150 for a complete set of front and rears and I'm glad I did.


Maybe 50 years from now a 2004 XJ8 might be a low dollar collectible but by then I'll be long in my grave and my XJ will have become a pile of aluminum beer cans at a frat party at some college or university somewhere so originality is the lest of my concerns. Besides I get to drive my XJ8 in the meantime.

Your mileage will, of course, vary

 

This is what I did as well. It just wasn't worth the hassle to get stranded again.

 

A whole set of new arnotts are now less than the $1150 you spent for your conversion. There was a time when a single strut ran $3k, making coil replacements a viable option, but that is no longer the case.

 

Be aware that the X350 does NOT have air shocks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The units are AIR SPRINGS with Hydraulic DAMPERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Trivial 'nit-picky' descriptions maybe, BUT 'WORDS HAVE MEANING'.

This FACT was drummed into us at Jaguar training when the X350 was introduced.
Someone in the class made the mistake of saying AIR SHOCK!!!!!!!!!!
That sent the instructor on a RANT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

bob gauff

 

I'd be inclined to agree with you only if we weren't worrying about failing components on a 10+ year old car. Yes, all struts and springs eventually fail, but when the car can't hold itself up halfway across the country on a trip, that's a deal breaker.

 

Is your Arnott experience positive enough to work with an Arnott marketing rep to create a short 'User Story' or 'Success Story' ... ?

If yes, reply to this message or send a message to greg at gf7446@comcast.net ...

The 'User Story' would require 15-20 minutes on the phone and then approval of the finished written piece, which would post on the Arnott website ...

Arnott gear and a future discount on purchased product would be an incentive we can offer!

Thanks ...

greg

 

I've had my car since new, and the first strut failed after 10 years. Not only that, the leaking strut held enough to get me 1200 miles home without sinking to the stop. I can handle a 10+ year mean failure rate, and the mode of failure is not catastrophic. Not to mention, these struts have a lifetime warranty. The struts are only one of a thousand rubber parts that can fail...I can't be worried about preemtively replacing parts on the "chance" they will fail.

So, if you want steel springs on your car, by all means do it. My point is that cost is no longer the driving factor for doing it. As with any mods done to a car, realize the ramifications and do not be upset when it comes time to sell a coil car and you can't find a buyer. It is similar to the old Chevy engine swap on the V12 Jags. Nobody who wants a Jag wants it with a Chevy engine!

 

Kind of like your rant!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I suppose they would rant when I call my hood a bonnet, my boot a trunk, my fender a wing, and my hood a top. Technically, we are the customers, and the customers are "always right"...!

 

Mine was catastrophic failure. Overnight it wouldn't even come off the bump stops and with no way to repair it in the local area in less than two days I had to leave it there. Just my standpoint, but if I hadn't have swapped to coils then the car wouldn't be allowed out of my state again.

I'm just saying that if you had my experience I very much doubt you'd arrive at a different conclusion. I'm not trying to change your opinion, just explaining how I arrived at my conclusion. On top of that considering I had to fly to a small city in Iowa to pick the car up and there was no way I could work on it myself there and no one would touch the air suspension. Personally I have no intention of selling my car sooner than 5 years from now and with what we know for Jag prices it won't be worth dirt by then anyway. It's a small piece of mind for me and I think I had an oncoming CATs fault issue, because the air suspension rode bone jarringly hard on the highway so the coils worked out to an improvement in ride quality.

I know my results are not typical.

 

A quick look at Arnott's website shows that the new front and rear air shocks cost $552 each plus shipping. That would easily ad $15-20 to the cost of each shock so say $570 @ or $2280 for a full set.

Yes, there may well be some retailers who will discount then so perhaps you could get a set for $1600-1700. You might even be able to find a retailer who has 4 proper Arnott remanufactured units that would be close to the $1150 price of a coilover conversion. That's a choice you, as the owner, have to make based on the depth of your wallet and your likely period of ownership, and it is a valid choice for those who want to keep their cars just as they cam from the factory.

In my case this is my wife's daily driver, it's now 11+ years old, and I don't want or need a call with her stranded however many miles from home because of a failure either from a shock, the pump, or any of the other sensors, adjusters, modules, and pressure lines that make up the system. At least not when I have an affordable and proven alternative. Since I did not remove any of those pieces a future owner can, if he or she wishes, return to the air suspension.

While I can't guarantee that I will never get such a call I CAN do things that minimize the chances of that happening.

 

So I just want to make sure that I am following correctly:

If I want to retain the full functions of the CATS... My 2 options are:

1- Re-manufactured Arnott units?
2- OEM (Dealer)

Why do the new "air shocks" lose the CATS functionality?

 

The cats sends a signal to the shock that tightens up the valving, making a stiffer shock. The arnotts simply do not have the internal solenoid and extra valving.

In general, though, the arnotts look better made, they ride better, and they eliminate the funny "thwucka thwucka" sound the OEM's always make on washboard road surfaces. I think arnott found a way to make a better ride without the complex cats....but that's just MHO.

With a bit of web work you can find the arnotts much cheaper than list with free shipping. A blown air shock does not leave one "stranded". You merely have a rough ride home.