How can the ride quality of the Jaguar be defined? Some say the the 2004 Jag rides better. If better they mean stiffer then yea. Not sure about the new 2011-up XJs ride but many sites report it to be even stiffer than the 2004s, more like the Maserati Quattroporte or in layman's term a sports tuned sedan.

Now my question is going to the opposite of the spectrum. What kind of shocks would fit my style and make an even smoother (softer) ride? And Bilsteins are not the answer as they are too stiff for my taste for a replacement. Yea yea I know about "oh it will affect handling and yada yada." But there is no highway in america that is a twisty turny race track where I will be taking turns at 80 mph anyways. I rather have body roll of a 90s Cadillac Fleetwood than feel every piece of gravel in the road for "handling" purposes. I heard KYBs are pretty soft. Any experience with them?

 

My 2003 XJ8 is like driving a marshmallow, and I like it like that! I have no idea what shocks I have.

 

You could probably do with more sidewall which means moving to a higher profile tire on a smaller rim.

 

what are some alternative sizes for the stock 16 inch wheels to increase sidewall? my car rides well too but have no idea what shocks are on them and when replacement time come i dont want to move down in ride quality but rather improve it, if possible.

 

what about Koni shocks? How are they? And KYBs too.

 

The 16's are already the smallest diameter usually fitted to the X308. The XJR came fitted with the 18's, 40 series tires and stiffer springs. Rides like a buckboard.

What tires are you running now?

BTW, Bilstein offers a rebuild service. Perhaps you could get the present ones rebuilt and ask for softer valving.

 

I figured 16s was smallest aint ever see 15s or below on a X308 and after some digging, dont even look like they would fit over the brake hardware.

I'm running Michelins right now. Stock factory size.


And where are these Bilstein rebuilders and how much does it usually cost. If it isnt less than $75 per shock then sounds like buying new ones of a softer setting would be more economical, especially when you factor in shipping of the shocks, and the fact that the car would be out of commission while they rebuild the shocks and if having to ship, sounds like a couple of weeks to a month.

 

Stock factory size ... not a clue what that is.

Someone else posted the link to the page at Bilstein USA a couple of days ago.

 

neither do I off the top of my head.

I'm not sure shipping shocks off for rebuild is feasible. I depend on that car for transport and cant have it down for very long periods of time. Compared still being able to ride while waiting for new shocks plus I wont save a single dime if not that route being more expensive then just buying a set of four softer shocks. My source is in Arizona with free shipping compared to shipping and paying for it to travel to California, 2-3 days to get there and 2-3 days for rebuild if I pay extra $35 on top of at least $65 a shock and no telling how long without rush service. and 2-3 days to get back, buisness days of course. That's looking at least6-9 buisness days or about two weeks or so.

So you know anything about the KYBs or Koni shocks?

 

Hi Blackwolf, I have a 1999 XJ8, have just changed the rear bilstein shocks (PITA) and would not consider them hard at all. At the age of our cars, I would be looking at replacing the suspension rubbers, front and rear. What is the opinion of more experienced techs to this solution?
Tyre pressures seem to make a big difference to ride quality.

Pete

 

My experience with KYBs (Jag and non-Jag) is years old so might not apply, as I haven't researched their products recently. But, at the time, KYB offered various choices, from mild to wild so to speak. I found the base/entry level choice to essentially be a plain vanilla shock which gave a soft ride on the XJ6 I owned at the time.

Not sure what KYB offers now but if you go that route make sure you're not buying a high performance model.

Koni shocks are usually performance oriented and probably on the stiffer side of the scale

Cheers
DD

 

yeah checked out those rubbers. Besides that little stop thing, the rubbers look brand new and looks to been replaced recently. And last week I asked the guy at the place I bought it from and sure enough he had the records when he did the work Jan. of this year.

The car is not riding rough but I feel like there is softer shocks out there giving that bilsteins are not exactly know for pillow soft shocks even the comfort ones, and that is assuming ya can find a set for front and rear.

Looking at schematics of the rear, these shocks dont look much harder if harder at all than the ones on the rear of a W140 S500

Already tried al different types of tire pressures and yea, one time got a tire replaced and they inflated the tires to the 100mph+ specs and you can tell a difference. Good for constant 100+ mph but I aint going to be running those speeds anywhere in the US that I know of.

I'ma buy me a set of KYBs and go with them for a soft smooth ride and leave bilsteins alone. Fifth car that came with bilsteins and each one rode much much better when switched to something else, even off brands. I probably wont bother with Koni if they are said to be stiffer than even bilsteins or on the stiff side. And given the relative term of stiff as many people say a corvette ride smooth and I think it rides like a wagon, so when people say it's a little on the stiff side, that usually means it's stiffer than a petrified piece of wood.

 

Agree, it's a jag, not a nascar circle racer! I once took the front end off an old xj6 that had just been replaced but got totaled in a rear end - pic-ur-part. After that the jag ran like the best luxury car I ever had. Got a 99 Cad Seville SLS which is very very smooth and handles like a great sports car on twisty roads. Trying to get my 99 jag xj8 to ride as quiet, smooth and responsive as the Cad. I'll chime in once I complete my suspension rebuild with a diary of events.

 

stick Monroe shocks on it they are cheap use the better ones on the front o,reillys

 

Hi
My opinion is to switch the tires from 18 to 16". On my car now i have 255 45 18" this size is better in ride quality than 255 40 18. I drive most of the time in the city so the road are not so good as the high way road specially in my country.

If i feel a difference between original factory size and this 255 45 18 a tire like 225 60 16" will be like driving a Mercedes S class in my opinion the softer car i ever drive.
Never use a run flat tires if you want comfort. Check if your tires are run flat, if you have them on your car change them with regular tires.
Do not change the shocks if are in good condition, you can check them in a specialized work shop. I used KYB G shock II GAS on my last car a BMW 735, very good shocks but stiffer than OEM oil shocks. Another trick is to use less air in tires. Check the tire pressure.

Good luck

 

I just replaced my rear shocks with new Bilstein and the ride is a little stiffer than before, I also have 18" rims. The cars does ride softer with the original VDP 16" I just don't like the old man look to well. I have heard these can be swapped out for air suspension for not to much $$$