Spoke with GM this morning and he agreed to let me keep the loaner until 5/23. We had a very nice conversation and they will be paying off my lease in full on Monday sending Chase a check for 96k and change. He said he hopes they can get me back as a customer someday and I said that would be fine with me. I also told him I hope Jaguar will use my experience to better their QC and finally track down the cylinder head issue and identify a suspect VIN range to which he agreed. He congratulated me on the new 13 SL and we will part as friends once I get full confirmation next week the lease has been paid off...I like happy endings and hate fights, life's too short but I relaize sometimes they are necessary.

 

I'm glad they resolved it to your satisfaction.
I know there are many of us totally satisfied with completely trouble-free XKRs. Its a real shame that it was even possible for you to have had such a bad experience. Its especially sad that anyone could leave this forum with a credible reason for thinking a Mercedes (or any other brand) is a better choice than a Jaguar.

 

Thanks Niz, I was hoping they would have offered a replacement but I understand their concern as until they can track down the full nature/scope of the cylinder head issue I could end up with the same defect again.

I miss my poor car and those comfy AC'd seats. The MB dealer is testing another car to see if they can soup up their vented seats for me since they're not cooled like the Jags, keeping fingers crossed.

 

RJC,

I checked out the SL, and while you're sure to feel comfortable back in a German brand, hopefully you've looked into their reliability. The SL's appear to fall rather short of other Mercedes models, and trending lower while some others were improving. I was interested in the C-Class for my wife last year but was put off because of its reliability ratings (and awkward dash and controls), and recall the G-Class were generally rated poorly. I was also put off by the Jaguar XF's reliability ratings, which led to the 2012 JD Power ratings that were based on the 2009 XF and XJ models that you often reference. Just a heads up, especially considering the 2013 550SL is first year of a new generation and may be more prone to issues.

But reliability ratings are just one of the things to factor into a decision, but not base one on unless you're simply looking for a basic car to get you from point A to B with minimal risk or reward. In the XF's case it turned out to be little things like replacing a defective shift knob and explaining to customers how to open the electronically controlled glove box. Both were easy fixes, but affected all of those vehicles and therefore the JD results. Those '09 XF issues are now long resolved, but form the basis of your 23/27 crusade. Owners of the XF love them, despite having dealt with the issues, and I suspect SL owners are the same along with the many other high-end cars that had issues.

So in the end you pay your money and you take your chances no matter what you choose, or what you think the ratings indicate. The worst thing that will happen is you take it to the dealer and they'll fix it under warranty. Get the one that moves and excites you, the one you can't take your eyes off or get out of your head, and the one you have confidence in. Hopefully over time you'll look back at any problems as a mere inconvenience on the road to automotive bliss in the car you chose for all the right reasons.

I really hope SL owners love their cars like we do!

Bruce

 

Thanks for the thought Bruce. When I look at ratings I look for consistency and trends, it's no guarantee but it helps put the odds in one's favor to a point. Who would have thought an engine that's been in production since 2009 would be having serious issues with cylinder heads, but any parts supplier can cause a problem no matter the tenure of the design. I’ve considered the SL being a first model year run but the powertrain has been out since the 2011MY in the CL550 then other models for MY12 so that helps. Unfortunately the SL's seats do not cool like the Jags and I need that feature to help cool the burning in the back of my legs from the epidural nerve damage. If I could only get confirmation from Jaguar they tracked the batch of heads and corrected the issue I'd get another XKR in a second as I've always said I'd give them another shot.

 

Alpine Jag just called and they are switching me into a brand new XF Portfolio to use as a loaner until 5/23 with cooled seats! These guys are really trying and I'd love to figure a way to get another XKR from them; maybe once they get a replacement they can test it in the shop everyday for a week or so and if no misfires then were good. What do you guys think?

 

That does mean you'd take the XKR instead of the SL or get both?

 

I'd love to try another XKR. Wish we could have just done a collateral exchange for another car in the first place but I understood their concern; perhpas if my idea of testing the car for a week or so in the shop prior to delivery makes sense to them maybe we can do someting?

Won't do both, my piggy bank would explode lol

 

RJC, you can't be serious! You've probably been black listed by Jaguar world-wide! If they've read your threads here that an absolute certainy!

But I do know of a 2012 getting a minor engine hiccup fixed that'll be available soon It was gently used and painstakingly sorted out by possibly the most critical owner to ever sit in a Jag, and is sure to be the finest example of an XKR that ever was. It even has a set of the highly sought after Pilot Super Sports on it. The car has extremely low mileage on it, and will put a silly grin on any face. I've considered buying it myself, but 2 silver verts in the garage might seem a bit silly to some.

So at this point you'd have to talk to the dealer to see if that's an option. You just might have become his worst nightmare, and when he said he'd like you back as a customer down the road he might have meant waaay down the road.

Bruce

 

My dearest Bruce,

My threads/posts have stated nothing but 100% FACT which Jaguar can easily verify and I've always said I had confidence that both the dealership and Jaguar would end up doing the right thing, contrary to what some others here thought. I also never took the legal threatening route which was also suggested by some (maybe even you); and it all worked out letting me out of my lease and even keeping a loaner (now an even upgraded one) with the GM and sales mgr both saying we hope you'll consider us again...and I might just do that. No one likes losing customers especially when the customer did nothing wrong and got stuck with a bad example of their product. For the dealership and Jaguar to be able to turn a negative customer experience into a postive one would be a true win-win, while establishing the potential for a much longer term and rewarding relationship for all involved.

Necessity of new cylinder heads or replacement engine on a brand new vehicle is NOT indicative of a minor hiccup my friend...

 

RJC,
I think u should just stick with getting the SL. After your experience with your Xkr, you will be constantly worrying about something going wrong in another Xkr. Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

Could be OC..we'll see how it all evolves.

Thanks for the well wishes.

 

This is better than watching TV !

RJC you should just walk away now and be happy with your new MB. I hope you find peace with it, although as you have had something like 50 prestige cars if I recall correctly from an earlier post, then it won't be long before you have something fresh to complain about with the SL.

Sorry that you have a knackered back, but to harp on about it in nearly every post is a little tedious.

Good luck with your new ride.

 

I'm not going to add to what others have already told you here.

But ask yourself this:
How are you going to feel driving your SL when someone in a silver XKR vert passes you?

Something to think about.

Mike

 

If you are considering another XKR, try Warren Henry Jaguar in North Miami. I felt better working with them as opposed to the folks at Alpine.

 

You're killing me Mike!

 

51 is my age and 32 was the number of cars but that trend has slowed since I've grown older and was injured

Thanks for the good wishes

 

Hey ICE, good to keep in mind but Alpine has done well by me imho, the new loaner they gave me today is a brand new 12 XF Portfolio with cooled seats and 16 miles on the odo...very good of them to do this as the loaner they first gave me didn't have cooled seats. Every loaner has run great, no miss or stumle when cold at all.

What did you finally decide on?

 

Another option is to get the SL 63- very good reviews thus far. a lot of added performance over the SL550. However, they are not cheap!

 

Thanks OC. Apparently the new 550 is a fast as last years 63 due to the new 550's 516 lb ft of trq. No doubt the new 63 with extra AMG engine pkg will be unreal.