I honestly think this X308 sub-forum is one of the better ones of all car, motorbike and RC forums I have experienced.

It is very decent, with hardly an exchange or thread going sour.
And even more important, there is a group of people here who know their stuff, and tireless answer question after question, dig into problem after problem, all for the sake of a shared hobby.
Sadly, it is a relative small group of people doing so, and I always wondered where all those other X308 forum members were.

But then … throw in a free gauge, and the counter hits 80 posts within 2 days …

How nice should it be if some of those should post a bit more often, just to say how fine the car is doing, how good she looks, a little picture, a ride report, or just about that little piece you bought for her.

Understand me well, I know this is a free forum, no one is obliged to post, but it could be so much better with just a little positive contribution every now and then.
It will keep this forum alive, ready for that moment advice on a sudden broken A-drum is needed.

Happy driving, and happy posting.

Eric

 

I also jumped in for it. I doubt I will ever need it but heck, I thought it would do. But then again I don contribute to topics, participate in forum life and suffer with my car

 

I know I want to do more. I make training and how to videos at work that are decently professional; and I DIY everything. I could maybe do some Reverend Sam type videos for stuff I've done.

If I can remotely train people in India how to use a Computerized Maintenance Management System migrating from a fully paper process out of the 70s; and have it be successful despite high employee turnover and having never went to Madurai India, I may overconfidently feel that I can show how to do anything on these cars lol.

 

Agreed, and I try to stay involved just like everyone, but my response to many new threads here can be summed up in four words, "Use the search option". That is a phrase waaaay too underutilized in this forum. Think beating the same questions to death is why you don't see a lot of the old "faces"?
With that being said, no recent work, but she's out of storage. Need to change a noisy fan motor and the trans fluid after all the beatings she took racing a bunch last year

 

7 years and 5000 posts and I feel like I'm pulling my weight.

I also learn a bunch just from reading posts on the forum.

There are some regular 'posters' that you can count on to 'chime-in'.

It is a community and some are more talkative than others.

bob

 

Reminds me of a saying I once heard "No one's hungry, until there's free lunch" lol.

 

My 2c, but a lot of it is to do with the layout of the forum. Having only one section for every conceivable X308 related issue makes it hard to find what you're looking for when you search.

If it was split into a few sections it might be easier to keep track of things. Eg one for general discussions, one for engine and transmission issues, another for brakes and suspension, another for interior and stereo etc etc.

Instead, everything just gets bumped down the page. Thread titles aren't always clear, and by the time you want to add something to a thread from two months ago, it's 4 pages away and you can't find it.

Still, this is the only Jaguar forum I still frequent. The depth of knowledge and helpfulness of the people on here is second to none

 

Eric, my guess would be a quiet member - a reliable car, until something goes wrong then the forum is always here.
Had to grin at greverrr "Use the search option" - Amen!

 

I was just thinking this earlier this week, in that I usually pride myself in using the search function and only bringing up questions when I find myself finally stumped. But at the same time, with these cars, who out there wouldn't want to show it off or brag a little. There could be other reasons too, though. For example, if someone has moved onto another model, but still might have an XJ in the garage. They might not post much here since they're focused on another ride, but might swing in from time to time to see what people are saying?

I can't even count how many times the information on this site has been helpful, and with the exception of my trip last year with a MAF issue that I had (ultimately solved thanks to my own ineptness). I'm sure I'm also not alone in saying that I know far from everything, and I know less than a lot of people on here, so I also shy away from replying when I have nothing constructive to add.

Regardless, wouldn't trade this forum for anything. It's one of the first pages I open in the mornings.

 

I guess I feel Eric's pain. The car has been gone for a year now (and I miss it; should have fixed the knees first before dumping the Jag!!). But when I first started working on it back in 13, lots of folks were there with advice and help and I was thankful. Some are still active: DonB and Snyder, Bob, Sean, Brutal, others; but it would be nice to know what happened to Old Mike, Danielsand, and a few others. Some moved on to XFs and either sold or parked their 308s.

The forum is a huge source. Gripes: first and foremost, the guys who don't tell us what piece of advice fixed their problem, it is how we learn because as these cars age, problems surface that aren't in TOPIX. Second, ***** on oil, tires, antifreeze and plugs: it's a freaking car! And yes, those who refuse to search . . .

 

You have offered great help and advise to so many on this forum including myself. Selfishly, I am hoping for 5K more of your helpful posts

 

Random photo of my car, just to keep the activity level up:



I don't post all that often, but this forum has been a great, great resource for me. I doubt I would've even bought my car without having first picked up enough info here to make me reasonably confident about what I was getting myself into.

 

I understand Eric's post, and agree the Forum could be utilised much more often. But as a relatively new member I would just add a few observations.

I find it's not always easy to post your questions, mainly because new owners of these wonderful cars don't know half the terminology used by experienced owners, don't know how to clearly explain the symptoms, and above all, don't wish to appear stupid, naive, or docile.

I've had the whole back-end of my car out, in the workshop and fitted every bearing, bush, and joint, including dampers, springs ... the lot. However, just recently I had to post a question back to BobRoy asking what a zerk fitting was, Bob kindly gave me the answer, but way back in my days they were called grease nipples! Similarly, I searched and searched for answers to a non-start problem, I didn't know I had 'bore wash' or that bore wash even existed....until I asked, yet there are hundreds of posts on the subject!

My point is that it's not always easy to search for answers if you don't know what the actual subject matter is that's casing a problem! After receiving some advice on bore wash, I was then able to search the Forum on the subject and I fixed it.

Another example. In order to do various jobs on my car, I need the engine and gearbox out. Absolutely no problem using my mechanical experience, but I used a Forum contact to ask if there's anything I could/should attend to while I had the items in the workshop. I got my answers, one of which was to check the A-drum? ... didn't even know I had one, so again I asked questions, I got a picture back showing me what it is and briefly what it does!! Now I do know I have one, I'll check it out!

Having said all that, it is nice to see quality examples in pictures that can inspire us to improve our own cars, and to read what others are doing with their cars. But isn't it a great feeling when you read about a problem, advise on the problem, crack the problem and have someone eternally grateful for your expertise?

 

I actually didn't mention this because people don't jump on every thread.
Some are technicians, some are story tellers, some like to show off (me.), and to each just their own on when and where to post.

But what pi$%^ed me a bit is that on the first 3 pages of the prize draw, 30% of the subscribers have less than 10 posts, and more than a few are jumping in with their very first post.
No introduction, no thank you, no contribution, no nothing, just straight for the gauge ...

I guess King Charles nailed it ... and I guess I have too much time in my hands .

 

How about a minimum post count to qualify for competitions, it's set at 100+ on other forums I post? You know, contributing members get a look in...

 

Even a 10 post minimum would be enough. That's usually enough to make sure they've introduced themselves, and contributed to a couple of threads.

The whole user into thing is weird though. Why would I introduce myself in a generic forum introduction thread, when the only place I'm interested in is the X308 subforum?

Personally I can say I've never, ever gone back to the introductions thread to see who's signing up. But if there was an X308 introductions thread stickied at the top of our subforum, I'd have much more interest in who was signing up

 

I suspect the Intro thing is to try to detect scammers/spammers. Real owners just sigh (or the like) and go post

My take on not knowing the terminology so you can't Search is that it's absolutely OK. Happened to pretty much everyone at some point (maybe before the web existed!) and is always going to affect people.

Bore wash is a great example - you can own a car for years and never be affected, never know the problem can bite you, then wham it does. (And it can occur on many cars, just on some of them it's so rare it probably never will.)

It has other names, too, like so many car things, which can confuse.

Generally, though, we're all owners of one or another great cars and just want them to stay running with whatever TLC (or semi-magic) is needed. I'm always amazed that sooner or later they manage to break in ways not previously seen.

 

I hear ya OP. I wish there was more activity on these boards. While full of information which has been extremely helpful during my 2.5 years of ownership. As mentioned above the search function has been very helpful, but I also feel like it could deter some of the newer guys from posting questions. I know some topics are beaten to death and it gets annoying to talk about the same thing over and over. But isn't this what discussion boards are all about? It's about community focused around a common topic.

here is my favorite picture of my xjr along PCH in Malibu

 

I agree with this, I often see a lot of the same questions being asked that were being asked 8 years ago when I first joined this forum. What really should be created is a sticky with "Common X308 Questions and Answers" at the top, so that other threads don't get lost in the mix of "Thinking of buying a XJR..." questions. Another useful thing would be "X308 Language" or "Dictionary" to help new people learn about what we mean. Don't forget there is a language difference between US and UK English, so even now sometimes I have to google what a something is because we call it something else in the UK. Examples being Trunk=Boot, Hood=Bonnet or E-Brake=Handbrake.

This I also like, I agree with this. I know the site as a whole is a massive Jaguar forum, but I come here to speak about my car and try and help other X308 owners with their issues. I don't want to go to a "general chat" thread to talk about politics, the weather or discuss the pros and cons of butter knives.

But it is nice when something is fixed through a global input of thoughts and ideas.

 

Wow! What a great idea from Stu 1986 re a Language/Dictionary that lists common terms and even complex terms. Something like this would be extremely helpful to new owners (like me) and even long term owners that have never come across a particular issue, it would save so many posts. I have private messaged members regarding terminology and part naming, such a dictionary could give the UK and USA names/description side by side?

Maybe there could also be a section that lists how a posted issue was resolved? Not just a tag showing it's fixed, but a section that lists "How to fix non starting" showing common examples (such as bore wash, bad battery connections...whatever). Only just recently having one side of my car jacked up really high, I put it back on the floor and had Gearbox Fault, Suspension Failure, Engine Reduced Performance, Wrong Part Fitted..after reconnecting the battery. It turned out to be a simple reset button on a sensor behind the accelerator peddle (still not sure what the sensor is called, as I understand Tilt Sensors weren't fitted to 1998 models?). A "How to fix dash warning lights" could have told me the possible answers.

Perhaps my experiences above aren't good examples, I'm sure there could be pages and pages of ideas written by much more experienced people, but maybe discussion of such a dictionary should have its own post, rather than confuse the original issue here from Eric? Wish I was experienced enough to attempt such a post!!

I also agree, it must be great to comment on someone's issue, and fix it