My 2004 XJR has 50,000 miles and new tires on it. No obvious signs of problems with the suspension struts, but I was expecting the ride to be a little more controlled. It appears that there are no non OEM sport struts available except Arnott and they do not have the full electronic capability. I would be OK with refurbished units, but RMT have no plans to stock more and do not want to rework mine (according to their online chat). Does anyone have up to date knowledge of where I can get the correct struts without having to mortgage my house to pay for them?

 

The only thing the electronic capability does is change the shock valving to firmer when the car is "busy," like curves, harder driving, etc. I've never driven or ridden in a car with the Sport suspension so I can't make any comparison, but I certainly don't miss the CATS on my XJ8L.

When you say you were expecting the ride to be more controlled, is this a new car to you? That just sounded like it's not living up to expectations.

As for anything else with the electronics, the OEM Bilstein is the only way to keep that. No aftermarket struts includes CATS. As for getting the OEM Bilsteins, I don't think it matters if you mortgage your house... they are unicorns nowadays. They don't exist new, only used, and why would anyone think a 20-year-old salvaged air strut still works?

 

Bilstein still manufactures the OEM struts, so you can still get them new, at least here in Europe. The only thing is that they now do not differentiate between the sports and the normal version, the struts are made for both.

Here's the link tothe Bilstein catalogue:
https://web1.carparts-cat.com/defaul...01&14=4&12=130

Best regards,

Thomas

 

It seems to me you don't like the ride of your Jag and want to change it. You may be best looking into modifying some related cars' suspension (S-Type for example - more to work with and not too hard to do (from what I have read)). Otherwise get another car as I fear you will never be satisfied.

What tires did you put on - that may help. All I can say is your car should drive like a proper Jag unless you put mush on for tires - most likely the Jag ride is not for you.

I think I understand where you are coming from as I had the XJ8, Boxster, XC90 and a 5 Series BMW - all totally different rides. Hands down for eating up highway miles - the XJ8 was the car I took.

 

Wfooshee, thank you for the info. I have not had the car that long and I don't know exactly how the car should ride when perfect. There was more bounce than I expected over rough ground, like when the dampers on conventional suspension start to wear. The tires were ten years old and I replaced them with a set of CONTINENTAL EXTREMECONTACT DWS 06 PLUS. Things have improved as you would expect, but there is still a little bounce there. Maybe the suspension is working exactly as it should, but I've seen many threads that say the ride improves a lot when you replace old struts. Your help is much appreciated.

Thomas-S, thank you for the Bilstein info. I looked into it and found that Rimmer Bros in the UK offer the Sport Bilsteins, but you are looking at over $3000 a set before shipping. Thanks again.

 

DD: I would suggest you test drive any XJ8 (X350) and use that as a base. You bring up a valid point that your actual dampers may be shot even though your air bladders are fine and the mileage is low. I recently changed my struts and shocks on my Z4 (84k), no visible signs of leakage, but they were shot. The internal valves can go bad and leak internally.

For reference on tires - On our XC90 three months ago we switched from Pirelli to Continental (dealer suggestion) and the ride went to mush. Way more wallow although road noise improved. Six months ago I sold my X5 riding Falkens Ziex to my sister, she installed Pirelli run flats before she collected it. The X5 went from nimble to bus like. Again road noise improved slightly, but it was a step backwards to me. She is completely happy as she had no reference. On the XC90 both tires are Volvo approved, per the dealer. On the X5, the Falkens road superior, were cheaper, while the Pirelli were BMW approved.

I guess you need to look at the tires, what was on there before, and what was the ride like (just the ride not the sound). Use that as a measure. Then like I first mentioned, go test drive any X350 you can (the more the better) and decide if it is the Jag ride or the dampers.

One last idea, inflate your tires 5-10 pounds over recommended, and see what happens. Take out the sidewall flex. Drop the pressure afterwards of course.

I hate to see you throw $3k at dampers only to find no change.