I just decided to start a bit of a dialogue here...

My car has had a lot of bodywork. When I bought the
car, I was 16... and upon the pre-purchase inspection,
I failed to identify that the passenger side rear door
didn't fit properly (re-skinned door, as later identified),
and I was slightly suspicious of having XJ8 taillights on
an XJ Sport (they should have no chrome strips).

I also failed to identify a decklid respray. It has reared its
head, and now 40% of the paint on there is garbage. The
bootlid also doesn't fit correctly.

The car has had 2 fenders replaced, as a result of 1 parking
lot dent (thanks, F150 driver), and one because I nudged
lanes into the door of another car. The latter event required
that a bumper cover and fender be replaced.

I recently dented the hood, while pushing down on the bonnet.
I saw a gap width that I thought I could just mush down a bit,
and ended up popping a 1.5 inch dent in the hood.

Someone in my parking lot also just put a huge scratch in
my door, someone with a truck. It is only about 3" down from
the window in the rear driver's side door. The paint is removed
on that particular bit.

Also, in a car wash, a thumbnail size piece of paint just chipped off
two days ago. Right down to what looks like metal. (after a big
road trip)

I am not even going to go into the mechanical/trim niggles at the
moment, but I will say it feels faster than ever, at 58,000 miles.

I've got a curb-gouged rear wheel, and a scuffed front wheel. Not
my fault, but still there.

I just feel really bad about the car. I'm the 3rd owner, and it has
only experienced the decline of multi-ownership. Under my ownership!

I'm a financially dependent college student, and I just hate that
the beautiful body is in this state. I had all repairs done by
Brennan Bodyworks, the local Audi dealer bodyshop, and the
headlamps don't line up on either side... and now, there is no side of the car that doesn't have some body problem.

I really want to get the car straight, but the money is not there now,
and my parents are not interested in sinking the money in.

The interior is ok, but the wood is cracked in 4 front pieces. The wood
is better than any Jag I've seen though, in terms of walnut character.

I am feeling down on the performance a bit, I wish I had waited for an
acceptable XJR, but this has been a great car.

My work hopefully will improve this car--I am now home for the summer, and the front and rear bumpers need to fit in the arches (now they don't), and the front fenders' lower bolts are tucked in too close to the subframe, so the trim that holds the headlights don't meet the shape of the hood.

Anyone else have any such thoughts plaguing their minds?
The styling is the really big "+" of an X308, and in my case it really feels spoiled, when someone asks you what kind of accidents it has been in.

What is going on with your XJ's body?

Ian

 

My 02 XJ8 has a few minor dents, scratches and stone chips, all inflicted by the previous original owner, the drivers seat is also showing signs of wear. But after 150K kilometers what else would you expect.
The thing is, I believe they add character to the car.
Have you ever compared an unrestored older car with one that has been fully restored back to probably better than new ?
Anybody that looks at my car, knows that it is used and not pampered. Mechanically it is in good condition and can still perform when required and to me that's all that counts when it comes to a Jag.
After all, I'm 63 years old, with a few scars and signs of age, but I can still perform when required.

 

On a car of that age, it's the overall impression, the effect it gives. Concentrate on the obvious misalignments.

Get a good colour match and practice with an airbrush to sort out the paint. A 2K base and clear and plenty of patience with the 1500/2000 grade wet and dry paper....Use a high build 2K etch primer too.

With time and work you can sort out many of the little niggles, after all they're jig built so any panel from the same model will fit - there's tons of how to's on the web about body and paint rectification. It's not a black art, just the use of best consumables like 3M, Valspar, Sikkens.

My car's body is perfect and staying that way because I don't park or leave it, I also invested over 100 hours into it, and it reflects that. Although I could tighten the shut lines that little bit, but that's being too ****. If it looks right, it is right.

 

In the last 4 yrs, my car has gone from flawless to flawed. My car is taking a beating being in Boston. The paint on my rear bumper is chipping b/c ppl keep bumping into it when I parallel park. Someone keyed my rear passenger door. Both of my rear seat wood trays have one big crack each. My drivers seat is really worn along with my steering wheel. My front suspension clunks, transmission shifts hard, I get engine failsafe on occasion from the throttle body wire connection (I will fix it when I get the time, spraying wire connector cleaner multiple times has not helped), and I get intermittant restricted performance when I drive over 40 mph due to a vaccum leak (I haven't been able to figure out where that I coming from). My driver's door handle is broken, my tires are bald. My valve cover gaskets leak have a tiny leak, and my steering rack has a tiny leak from a hose. I have a tiny coolant leak from the coolant resvior. My subwoofer is blown. ALL of this occured in the last 4 years (mainly the last year)! I have had my car for 8 years. Oh yea I have a new dent from someone that hit my rear quarter panel with their door. My paint with the exception of the keying and my bumper is flawless however. The silver paint hides the keying, and the rear bumper isn't too bad.

I have just gotten used to thie issues since I have had the car for so long. It's the new normal for me. It's a 12 year old car with 102k miles, so my car's exterior and interior condition is about as good as it can be. Basically everyone's car in Boston that is older than 4 years old is in worse condition than mine. People still think the car is flawless when they see it or ride in it. I keep an eye on oil levels and power steering fluid levels, and coolant levels, so my hood is open once every 3-4 weeks.

Once I get an oil change, have my transmission fluid level checked and get some new tires, I'm going to be driving from Boston to Houston (a 29 hr drive). I'm praying that there won't be any surprises along the way.

 

Do you both feel better for listing the things that've annoyed you about your Jag's?!

I guess I take it for granted, working on cars isn't difficult. When you fix stuff on them it's a win. The forum is here for getting your car fixed. It's that element of sleeve rolling and dirty fingernails that I think you need to get into! Man up and sort your to do lists out. Planning is the key.
Another young gun on this board approached me for some advice on a rather bigger issue with his car, we got it back better than ever with a bit of engineering and graft...

Information advice and a virtual cold one awaits the brave.

 

I wish I could work on mine to save some $ but I'm in school and the garage I park in does not allow me to work on my car. I have to sneak under my hood and work quickly so so security doesn't see. I have no tools and no access to a lift. Basically SOL.

 

I'm 19 and I don't like my car to have problems, I have done on my XJR the following activities, most within the past 4 months:
rear bumper removal to repair surface rust
entire rear seat etc removal to replace subwoofer
entire center console removal to install scangauge in the ashtray
instrument cluster out to tighten steering wheel mounting
cleaned all 4 wheel speed sensors
spark plugs
lots of oil changes
and with the help of my dad taken the supercharger out to get it rebuilt

The car needs: repair on the driver's seat, the rear diff is starting to make noise, pass front door has lots of tiny door dings in it (I know the girl who parked next to me in hs was careless with her lexus SUV door)

all of this has been very educational and in my mind fun to do. This forum has helped me get it all done, for thousands cheaper than paying a garage, and i've learned something. The best thing about this stuff is the more you do, the less intense it seems. a few days ago I had the entire front bumper off a volvo to repaint the secondary intercooler. it wasn't imperative to do, but I wanted to do it so the car would look better.

my general plan is to keep this XJR for my entire life, hopefully I will be able to do that. once I graduate and get a job in 15 years time or so I hope to be able to restore the XJR to close to original condition

 

My fingernails get dirty often with this car to make improvements,
I also wash it a few times a week to keep it happy(clean car= happy car). I haven't got
the funds to sort out this stuff! As far as basic mechanicals go,
I have friends with garages at school, and my own garage when I'm home
in the summer...

but I am not a bodyman, and I can't do paint. I also can't re-finish
wood, and I definitely haven't got the cash to pay someone just yet. To me,
this thread is a prelude... this summer, I can finally get the car
back to a state where I'm proud of it.

Now the first goal is painting my rear trunklid. A few hundred $, but
ok. Next? Full set of Michelin Z-rated rubber. Still deciding... Pilot
Super Sport, Sport A/S, PS2... not sure.

Repair alloys next.

All along the way, taking the car apart and re-fitting it to a good looking
spec. The bodywork is unacceptable by my standards... it should be
absolutely impossible to tell an accident has ever ocurred, in my book.

Jaguar XJR02--Unless I am able to insure (and buy) another Jag, I don't know if I would want to keep it forever! It is far too slow. It is also not worth the investment to make it faster, with XJRs being well within reach.

My parents philosophy doesn't generally involve me continuing to have this car
anyway. So there is that battlefront.

Sean... I have done tons of stuff with this car. You have to understand, there
is a limit. Luckily I've whittled my problems down to the cosmetic!!

The cosmetics "to-do" list just keeps growing with every parking lot, it seems...

PS... the panels do not fit perfectly. None of them have. In fact, one of the fenders
I bought off an X300 turned out to have been repaired when the XJ6 was new,
and will never look right on the car without major metal work.

The first fender came off an 03 XJ8, and the fit is a good 97% though.

 

My 99 XJ8 4.0 isn't the prettiest of XJ9s, but it goes like sugar off a shovel. It really is very fast, a lot faster than factory. Mainly down to the fact that it has received various treatments from Sean B. There is a new scuff on my right hand side where someone in work caught it the other day, that along with various minor battle scars should be rectified in the next year. But it has done 150,000 miles, yes miles, so its bound to have some battle scars.

It's big, it's clever and I wouldn't have any other car.