I just have a couple questions. I've learned a lot working on our 2000 S-Type, but I know this isn't near as advanced with the amount of systems in the car.

So, just to get started, what in particular should I be looking for up front? The car in question has just under 75k miles.

Do all VDPs have air suspension? Reading some of the threads on issues has caused me to take a step back.

My plan is to use it as a daily driver and do as many repairs as possible by myself, which I've always done. We've had the S-Type around 4 years now and it has overall been a great car. I've actually been driving it daily since I sold my 2004 GTO.

 

all x350s have air suspension, unless someone has taken it off. It appears to be troublesome in places that get cold.


Any bubbling of the paint, usually around bottom edges of the doors, and corners of the boot lid, or anywhere that metal meets a rubber seal, need specialist paint repair, as the aluminium is corroding.


At 75k miles, the brake disks and the suspension bushes are either worn out, or have been replaced.


It might be a good idea to change the transmission fluid and back axle oil. They are nominally sealed for life (or at least until the warranty runs out) so it is rather a tiresome job. Same with the supercharger (if you have one) turbine lube. You suck out the old with a syringe. You will want to change the brake fluid. Is the oil clear yellow, and the coolant clean and orange?


If it doesn't have a comprehensive and verifiable service history, or if the ink is still wet, keep looking for a better one.


See if the self-folding mirrors do, and the passenger side mirror looks down when you put it in reverse. If not, it has not been lovingly cared for. Test all the toys.

 

I just retired my 03 S Type R with 92k mi for a 2006 Super 8 with 33k mi.

Best to get an after market warranty which covers bumper to bumper.

These cars need lots of maintenance/repairs to maintain the luxury ride. At 75k mi parts are in need of replacement.

 

That's why I wonder if I should grab something more basic. The S-Type is simple enough and I haven't had major issues with it. I am buying an additional car and not trading in the S-Type, it's been great and my wife loves it. I did see an '03 XJ8 with 83k miles on it but was going to write it off due to age. I know this is completely different than a 2006 VDP and the XJ line saw a major revamp in 2004, but would probably be exponentially simpler for me to work on. I'm going to take a look at a few cars this weekend.

 

The X350 series of cars are just as DIY maintainable as the previous models, but some parts can cost a lot especially where the aftermarket doesn't supply them. Mind you, that can apply to the previous model too.

The air suspension seems to give a lot more trouble in the US compared to us here in damp old England. I am in both British clubs and the air suspension gets very few mentions in the magazines. Even so, in the US the system is still pretty reliable. One air suspension part that doesn't last long is the Wabco air compressor. This is due to the piston seal wearing out. A member on here sells a DIY kit to replace this seal (bagpipingandy) at very few dollars. An individual air spring is the costliest item, but Arnott Industries in the US do respringed originals or steel coil replacements. The air spring diaphragm is the part Arnott replace, the shock part of the spring lasts a very long time, it is a Bilstein, after all ! Of course if the shock is found to be leaking it is scrap, so Arnott wont rebuild one of these, or accept it in part-exchange, at least that is my understanding.

The suspension is almost the same as the S-type except for the air springing, and parts are normally interchangeable. The bushes do wear out quicker than you would expect. I call this "unfair wear and tear" !! However a quick look on the aftermarket will show many suppliers with parts at far less cost than a Jaguar main agent. Individual bushes are now available, again on the aftermarket not from Jaguar agents.

The aluminium corrosion issue is not a car-killer like rust, but can look very unsightly, and can be expensive to repaint at a shop as aluminium demands some special techniques. As my car is 11 years old now, I have started to repaint any I find myself using spray cans as the cost of taking it to a specialist is too much in relation to the value of the car. My technique is to scrape away the white powder corrosion, paint with very rich zinc primer, then stop up using acrylic stopper followed by normal painting. It's worked well so far.

 

Ah...that's not much of a test. The dip function in reverse can be turned off, I turned it off in mine and you will struggle to find an X350 that's been as cared for as my car...

For the OP, did you see the sticky thread at the top of this subforum?

Don't be put off by the sheer volume of threads about the air suspension, I am pretty sure that every single X350 in North America has been on this forum by now and their suspension fixed, we've had that many threads about it...

For what it's worth, my XJR has 170'000kms / 106'000miles on all four original shocks, just had to replace the compressor 20'000kms / 15'000miles back, just a few months before bagpipingandy came on the scene with his seal kits...

 

I did now! Thanks.

Interesting detail. I may have some insight into the suspension issues. I had a later model Pontiac GTO which was built in Australia and also sold there as the Holden Monaro. In the US we were having rear springs collapse and some complete failures of bushes. The Monaro wasn't seeing many of these issues at all. The best anyone could figure out was the amount of force being used to strap down the cars for the boat ride over. The issues seen in the X350 don't seem as widespread in comparison, but may have a small amount to do with it.

I feel a lot better knowing there are available affordable DIY fixes for some of the suspension issues. Most VDPs here for sale right now are over 100k miles. The only other one here below that is the older body style, a 2002 with 85k miles. Both cars are immaculate inside and out, but for obvious reasons I am much more interested in the '06.

 

At 100,000 they might have had the suspension bushes changed twice. Here in UK you can get exchange wishbones from non-Jag sources, which are very convenient.

I mentioned the mirrors because they are not part of the Jag service schedule and get neglected. All they need is to be cleaned out and lubricated once a year or so, or they jam. It is an easy DIY job (protect the door paint with a big cloth before you start). You may find appalling amounts of corrosion and grit if they have been neglected.

 

Everything looks good on the car and we've agreed on price. I may be bringing it home tomorrow. I'm going to give it another go over before making it official.

 

Now that IS interesting...even more so considering that the officially documented procedure for strapping down an X350 is by the wheels only; you are not supposed to strap down at the body. The danger is if the car tries to raise itself, the straps will not let it, so it keeps pumping air into the shocks. This could be a reason for premature failure of the airbags, but the cars were shipped in "transport mode" which is supposed to prevent any suspension movement. It sure is an interesting theory, and it would explain why the US cars have way more failures than the UK/EU cars.

High mileage wouldn't put me off (mine is also high) but you just have to be prepared to spend a bit more on maintenance and fixing the little things...

Actually that's a good point, I cleaned out the mirrors on mine, so much corrosion & crap came out of them. I still get a bit of a stain on the passenger door when it rains heavily, it all comes out of the weep hole at the bottom straight onto the door panel...

Good luck.

 

I'm already sticking some money aside to have the Arnott conversion parts ordered if anything happens. I don't want to throw money into the air suspension if I can avoid it. As far as differential fluid and transmission fluid changes, that is easy enough. I just did coils and plugs on our S-Type, so I'm familiar with the design used, easier than some GMs I've done. I have done suspension work on a couple cars now and I'm not too concerned about swapping for the Arnott equipment when the time comes. In the last 4 years we've put around $3k in the S-Type mostly from a module that had to be done at the dealer. I was psyching myself out at first, but I've finally decided to give in and go for what I really want and stop compromising.

 

To add to Cambo's info.
New vehicles were all shipped in "transport mode" that prevented the using up the air supply.
There is a loop on the suspension power connector in the boot that is removed by the dealer as part of this procedure

Cheers
34by151

 

it will be interesting to hear how grimy the fluids are that you suck out. Shame there is not a magnetic drain plug. It might be worth changing it twice, so that the first change helps wash out residual grimy fluids.

 

For the diff? I thought it didn't have a drain plug and I was going to have to remove the rear of the case. As far as the transmission goes, I'm planning to pull the pan and replace the filter while I'm in there and clean the magnets off in the bottom of the pan if it has any, then perform drain and fills every 20k miles afterwords instead of replacing all fluid at once.

 

I just got home with the VDP. It's in very good condition. Air suspension is in great working order and the transmission is smooth and seamless. It will need new tires soon, but for the price I got it for, I don't mind.

 

I do have one issue. Dome lights. It's the textbook footwell lights work and the fuse keeps blowing. With the overhead console removed and fuse replaced, everything works fine. If I put the panel back in even with a new bulb it still doesn't work and the rear lights flicker. If I press the center dome light button the fuse instantly blows. I cleaned and tightened all the connections to no avail. Has anyone had the overhead console be faulty? Maybe someone has an idea. Thanks in advance.

 

Sounds like a short somewhere. I haven't had this problem with the X350 but when I was putting LED's in my X-Type I managed to short out a bulb in the sunvisor, which blew the fuse. Doesn't sound like an easy fault to track down...

 

I'm an electronics guy, I'll get it figured out.

 

Pulling the front overhead bulb fixed the blowing fuse issue for now and all the rest of the lighting works now with a new fuse. It has to be either an issue with that module or a short in that circuit. For the time being that will work until I can take a closer look. I mainly wanted the rear lighting to work for my kids and the floor lighting in front will be fine for the short term.

 

So how do you like your new XJ other than the finicky bulbs??