I have been having a problem with my car since I bought it 1 month ago.

It is a 2004 XJ8 with 62k miles on it.

The car steering wheel shakes and the cars front end vibrates when your hit uneven pavement especially obvious at 40-70 mph. If the street is smooth the car rides like its on a cloud but anything uneven it feels really uneasy.

I have it to the dealer. First they denied anything was wrong. But when we drove another 2004 XJ8 that was for sale with 100K miles and it did not have the shake/vibration mine does, only then did they start doing anything. So far they balanced tires, replaced tires, changed lower control arm (had cracked bushing) and aligned car (4 wheel). Even though the car is still doing the same thing, They said they see nothing else and actually sent me on my way.

Since the service manager kind of threw in the towel, I called the dealer General Manager and complained. They are now having me bring the car in next thursday to have some regional guy look at it.

Today when I was driving the car I was on the freeway and it felt like the front passenger tire was going to fall off it was so bouncy on a really poor stretch of Los Angeles freeway. I am wondering if the shocks or one of my shocks are bad. But when I suggested that to the Service Manager he said if they are bad the car sits really low. I would think that they could still be bad and not have to sit low.

Any ideas or suggestions would be appriciated......

 

Yes the air spring is seperate from the shock. The shock can be bad, but if the air spring isnt leaking its not going to go down

 

What would be the sign(s) of a bad shock?

 

They drink, fornicate, and stay up late
or leak, rattle, and bounce

 

I know it's an old post. I have a similar sounding problem on a 2005 XJ8 VDP. Did you ever get a resolution? There is no suspension warning, but the front end jitters over rough pavement at higher speeds. Steering wheel shakes and shimmies.

 

Bushings perhaps?

 

I had this very problem until I threw on some new Pirelli P Zero Nero tires which alleviated "95%" of the unpleasantries. My former rubber was Nitto, known for an extremely large contact patch, and for turning to "cement" when wearing out. They had also become very noisy, making for a most unJaguar-like driving experience. I still do however have an OEM shock at LF and an Arnott at RF. This may be the remaining 5% bobble felt on some rough surfaces. There is one Member who is THE authoritative mechanic; maybe he knows how to test an airspring. I will make a point to ask my service advisor at OKC Jag.

 

The former owner said he replaced bushings and tie rods while chasing an elusive front end noise. The tires (Kumho LX Platinums) are only a few months old.

I think it's the shocks. My Saab behaved similarly when I first got it, although much more severely, when the rear shocks were shot. Replaced with Konis and 150K mi later never had a suspension problem.

Unfortunately as I've learned the Jag has shocks and air springs integrated into a single expensive module. I was hoping to get some confirmation from someone who's seen this problem.

Springs seem to be fine, no warnings, height is normal. Discussion here makes me wary of replacing the air springs for some $1500 if they're just going to fail later. Looks like for a bit north of $3k could replace the air suspension system with reliable coil over springs/shocks.

As side topic, why is the Jag air suspension system so unreliable? I have an Escalade with air suspension, it's been trouble free and don't see as many complaints about it on the Caddy forum.

 

I actually totaled my Jaguar in a head in accident. Good news it toally got rid of shimmy. Has nothing to due with tires dont let people bs you. Reality is most 2004 XJs I drove had the shimmy. After my car was totalled, I looked to replace it with as 05/06 because they seemed to have less of the issues. I bought an Lexus LS. Guess what no shimmy. Good luck. I had my entire front end replaced. I actually think its in the steering column where it attaches to the drive rack. something is loose there. I was zeroing in on it right before accident. Look toward the steering issue. After changing out all the front end I could, I had zero luck. I suggest luving with it, they are awesone cars
anyway, or you will spend alot of time and money. Gift get the tires. I had several sets nothing made a difference. Good luck.

 

97,

A shimmy is not characteristic of the breed. It just means you and your service staff did not get to the bottom of it. My car runs straight and true and quiet at 65 k miles. To get it to this level I replaced the tires 2 at a time, had 2 bent wheels straightened and replaced 1 lower front control arm.. I also have a tire store that will not quit till they get it right.
You guys can get the same results. All it takes is a methodical approach, good service providers and a modicum of cash.

 

I just spoke to Kris at OKC Jag service who knows of no cronic airspring issues with the 2004 model year. She informs me that you can test the airspring system by firing up the vehicle, allowing it to rise to proper height, then, measure the floor to upper fenderwell dimension (or some point on the vehicle), then re-measuring after 24 hours. A drop in ride-height during this period would indicate an air leak. This of course gives rise (no pun intended) to all kinds of questions about how long it takes to leak, and how quickly the onset occurs. She did not say anything about any other method for "testing" the unit (absent any faults), or how long it takes for the car to deflate when the system is working properly. She did however acknowledge that the airspring system is designed to inflate upon starting the car (which means it's designed to deflate over some period of time 24hrs +??), and that a shock fluid leak should be visible, and an air leak should be audible ("hissing" sound). Also, a trans service is $400.

 

LOL, GET A SECOND OPINION CAUSE THAT ONES W R O N G

 

What size are the wheels ?

The 20" wheels have to be balanced dead-on, there is no margin for error, and also if damaged or distorted from road shocks can affect the ride quite badly, as I found out when I started to use my car last year. It's now on 18" and no trouble. Your trouble seems like wheels to me, but others may disagree.

 

Guys Jaguar is lieing to you. Just like Toyota did for years.

Its juts most people don't care of they are so used it.

There is an issue with the 04/05 XJ8.

When I was looking to replace mine drove around 25 of them and at least 1/2 shook and shimmied over bumps.

Again Its not a shock issue. (even thought they stopped using air shocks on front jags only the rear, kind of funny) I had shocks/arms etc changed on mine. Nothing helped. Plus, I think it can be different problem causing issues on different cars.

Good luck to all with the problem. Again, my technician was narrowing it down to the steering wheel shaft issue. But thats is when the car was totalled.

Good luck

 

I have a 2005 "R". I notice zero front end shimmy. Additionally, I've driven various "R's" from 2004 and 2005, and have never noticed any shimmy from any of the cars. This could be an issue isolated to standard XJ8's and VDP's only, but that doesn't seem to make sense, as the suspension bits, as far as I've learned, are not specialized for R's.

97jaguarxj6, if there is any validity to your claim, it seems to me that it would be related to certain cars that received defective suspension bits, and not endemic to the model.

 

its not "defective" but stacked tolerances
if a car manages to recieve individual parts that are perfectly fine by themselves and say on the high side of tolerances. then you can end up with a car that feels looser than another, but doesnt have defective parts

 

Any idea what can be done to evaluate and fix the problem? Sounds like it could be wild goose chasing to pin it down!

 

Try swapping each wheel front to back on each side and see the effect. If none, then it is not the wheels and one needs to look further. If the symptom is reduced or changed, look at the wheels very carefully, and the tyres too.

Don't rush out and spend money too fast !!

 

Here is the "second opinion" someone suggested I get; it's not so much an opinion but fact based on experience. I just got off the phone with the service manager at OKC Jag. Long story short, the cars come in from England with the suspension locked down in "transportation mode". The dealer then utilizes a proprietary device which electronically unlocks the suspension for normal use. In order to test the airsprings, one must bring the car back to the dealer, who will then lock down the suspension via the car's computer. A gradiated measuring instrument is then attached to the lug nuts, and spans the axle to wheel well gap, the car is fired up which allows the suspension to attain max lift, and the axle to fender dimension is noted at all four wheels. The car must sit for two days, unmolested, and the dimension is again taken. A drop of 3 mm or so is ok.

 

you want a 3rd opinion based on opinion/fact from a master jaguar tech with 14 years of jaguar dealership and factory training????
He reffered to jaguar tech bulletin jtb00067. Its time consuming and prone to failure. Plus what to do if you dont have the "proprietary" software????
There are other answers, and it doesnt say "tech certified" under my name for nothing