Hello all,

I took my rear wheels off this evening in order to install new tires since these have been sitting so long (rescued the car from a field recently) and I was graced with this sight:







That component is both bent and rusted through at the top. I'm not sure when or how it happened, but it obviously needs to be replaced before I can drive the car again.

Can someone help me figure out what this thing is called specifically so that I can go look for one, or can someone point me to the right place to get one from? The passenger side looks fine, I have no idea why only the driver's side is this bad rust wise.

**edit**
I looked on jaguar heritage parts, is this the "radius arm"? There are two options, sports pack and except sports pack. Is there any way to tell which one I've got? It looks like it's still avaliable, even.

 

Yes, radius arm

The Sportspack type has little tabs to attach the rear anti-roll bar, if fitted.

Good use ones should be easy to find or Google the part number from Jaguar Heritage. There are aftermarket replacements. OEM replacements are crazy expensive as I recall


Cheers
DD

 

Good source for used Jag parts

Everyday XJ


Cheers
DD

 

With trepidation, I disagree with Doug on this occasion. This part IMO should be renewed with a brand new part. Also, to preserve the ride qualities of the car, I believe that OEM Metalastic bushes should be fitted. These will be the ones in the arm if you buy from JCP, but not necessarily if you buy from aftermarket suppliers.

These arms are a known rust point, and it is a good idea to treat them to some rust protection inside and out before fitting.

When you get them, if you are not sure how, post again for suggestions on fitting them, as the axle end must only be tightened car on the ground, and there is a special lock washer for that end, as well as the need to withdraw a fulcrum pin a bit to get to the bolt.

Greg

 

Those radius arms are fine-no need to replace.

 

The car has obviously been jacked up at the rear from under that radius arm, it is not the reason it is stuffed but after fitting new part it would be wise to make sure the car is not jacked in that manner in the future.
The jacking points provided should be used. The rest of the body in that area looks pretty rust free in those pics.

 

I've found the best thing is to buy standard bushes and turn them through 90 degrees so that the "air gaps" are not in line with the arm. This is the only real difference with the sports arms. Later cars didn't even have rear anti-roll bars on Sportspack so I wouldn't worry about getting arms with the tabs.

You can buy them fairly cheap new so don't think about buying used ones. and they rust from the inside out, so get some wax in there. The front can be tight on the mount. You'll find some threads on here re this problem. When you remove the old one also check the front mount from inside the car for corrosion.

Good luck

Paul

 

Heh heh, we all have different tolerances as to what's considered inexpensive

Some quick Googling shows online pricing from $231 to $371 each for the radius arms. To me, $75-$100 would be inexpensive, considering what the part is.

But, I may have missed some bargains out there.

Cheers
DD

 

New radius arms:

£58 without bushes
£75 complete with bushes

Don't think about used ones

Paul

 

Bullittandy, please go and get some new glasses. That radius arm is almost eaten through by rust and is dangerous to drive. Surely you jest.

 

I did a little research last night as well and found the tips on Jaguar Specialties as well as a few here (one in the XJ6 section as well) on how to remove the radius arm. It doesn't sound too horrible, I hope that mine is easy but I know that it won't be.

I saw the one on eBay for 75 pounds ($117 US) and that was one of the cheapest that I saw, PTJS1. I wonder what they would charge to ship it to the states? I contacted the seller to find out. SNG also has one for $113, it seems. SNG's part doesn't have tabs and the one on eBay does, so it's good to know that there is a cheap (relatively cheap, anyway) source for both. I'll double check at home to make sure that I get the same one that is on the car.

Thanks for the tips, gents. I appreciate all of the quick help! I'm glad that this isn't some part made with unobtanium, I was worried that I wouldn't be able to find one when I first saw that mine was bad. That's always my fear with this car.

 

Of course I'm joking!

 

xjsman89,

Give Berkshire Jags a ring and see what shipping would be. See their radius arm prices here:

Jaguar Radius Arms

I'm surprised with the greater number of XJS in the US that prices wouldn't be even cheaper there.

Paul

 

It would sure be nice if they were cheaper here Paul, but no luck with that!

They said 30 pounds to ship to the states, so $46. I'll see if SNG has one here in the states, shipping should be a considerable amount cheaper that way.

 

It's true that we have more XJS's here in the US but most of the parts (especially OEM) are made in the UK or other European countries.

When you factor in shipping cost, exchange rates, taxes and fees etc....these kind of parts cost more in the US.

But we cant complain too much because the cars themselves are much cheaper here than in the UK.

Mark

 

Just picked one up from SNG with bushings for $128 shipped. A pretty good deal if you ask me. That's few bucks cheaper than Berkshire and it's in the states so I'll get it quicker and cheaper. It's not OEM but that doesn't matter to me, I just want a fresh arm on there.

I've reviewed the tips and tricks, is it best to have the car on the ground when doing this (at ride height) or should I jack the car up first? From what I could see on the jaguar specialties site he had the car on the ground (the wheels are on blocks in increase height, but you understand what I mean) when replacing the arm?

 

Sounds good!

Is that a Jaguar part or aftermarket? If aftermarket maybe you could let us know what you think of the quality.

Cheers
DD

 

FYI, so there's no misunderstanding, my asking about the quality of the part is not an attempt to cast aspersions of any kind on the seller. It's just that the quality of A/market parts can vary quite a bit and I would like to know how this part looks/feels/fits....and others might like to know as well.

Cheers
DD

 

I understand, Doug. I will let you all know once I receive it. They didn't have the OEM part in stock and beyond that if they did it would have been nearly $200. Not that that's an exorbinant amount, it's just that cheaper is better at this point.

I'll let you know. Whatever it is, it can't be worse than the part I've got now!

 

Right.

Exorbitant is +2500 for a halfshaft (X300/X308/X100)

Good thing they are relatively plentiful, sturdy and rebuildable.