My friend had a Testarossa out of warranty with the same issue, but Ferrari wanted an an ungodly amount to fix it. He was able wet and stretch the leather back to looking perfect. Granted the Jag and Testarossa have different leather.

 

Live in Florida and 2009 XK is outside a lot! Camel color Leather on dash starting pulling around year 4 (when I noticed anyway). Jag USA VERY helpful!!! Have 32k miles and I am original owner (I think that helps a lot). You don't pay that much for a car and expect it to shrink or come unglued. Heard it happens to Astin Martins too... I was told it is the heat and that the leather was cut too short.

 

Hi
Maybe a dumb question but is the luxury interior the same as premium?
Does the luxury interior have leather dash or vinyl?
I have the perforated seats and no sign of dash pulling

 

I wanted to share some positive news. I noticed that the leather was pulling on my dash in several areas. Like many others here, I take care of the car and was very aware this was a common issue with other owners. I was also aware after reading threads that it could be a very frustrating experience trying to get Jaguar to cover the cost to fix or replace the leather.

I am happy to report that while out of town my wife took the car to a local dealer and they replaced the leather on the entire dash at no cost. The car is a 2010 and no longer under warranty. I didn't purchase the car at this dealer and have never had any service performed there. I was shocked. The dealer is located in Buckhead Georgia.

 

WHAT WAS YOUR WIFE WEARING WHEN SHE TOOK IT IN

 

Not sure, but I will be sending her for all future issues and purchases.

 

Hmmmmm...you were out of town. What else did they replace?

 

Wait a minute, I thought the leather dash pulling issue was just a 2007-2009 problem. This is showing up on 2010 cars?

 

It's only a problem if your wife takes the car into the shop. They'll wrap her up and send her home with a smile on her face.

 

On mine it was pulling near the center speaker on the dash and on the front of the piece that covers the instrument cluster. It is a 2010, 25K miles and spends most of the time out of the sun.

 

sorry to hear all the problems with yur xk's dash. I think ye all should move to Ireland not as hot hear, 20 degrees and were exhausted ,
my 2007 xkr has perfect leather ,dash, seats etc, and has 75,000 miles, i would say its all due to heat shrinkage.
As far as the post 06 xk's i think the internal build quality of the earlier models is far superior. I had a 04 xk 5 years , inside leather was as left factory, flawless, 64,000 on clock, never let me down apart from general service parts. I know the new type drives better and looks more modern, but when you compare like for like parts such as door handles, especialy the inside handles, panels, upholstery, and it is proper connelly leather at it's best,the way front and rear lights are fitted and the dash, you could use it as a table. I would compare the old xk100 to a piece of chippindale furniture, new xk, modern flatpack, don't get me wrong i love my xkr, sleek, modern, stylish, but it still has a lot to live up to it's predecessor, iv'e now had each,technology might have moved on but, build quality needs to be addressed.
Have my xkr 2 months now and new battery fitted all ready, went into limp home mode once and have press button starting problems.

 

Hennessy?

Best,
Tom

 

My new to me 2010 XKR also has two spots where it has become detatched. You think I could get your wife involved?

 

Tom,

Hennessy Automobile Companies owns all 3 Jaguar franchises in the metro Atlanta area, including Buckhead (Hennessy Jaguar Atlanta), Alpharetta (Jaguar Land Rover North Point), and Duluth (Hennessy Jaguar Gwinnett. See: Buick, Cadillac, GMC, Jaguar, Land Rover, Mazda, Rolls-Royce Atlanta, GA | Hennessy Automobile Companies New & Used Car Dealers

I've had my XKR service at both the Buckhead and North Point locations. A few years ago, Hennessy bought the Nalley Jaguar franchise in Roswell, closed that location, and merged the operations into their existing North Point (Alpharetta) dealership. Nalley previously serviced my XKR.

Stuart

 

Outstanding!

It is always fantastic when a dealership fosters brand goodwill like that. But while I am truly happy for you I am also very, very, deeply jealous.

That franchise is familiar because of OVE and Manheim (a former client was an auto importer), so I know where they are. Always a top-notch presentation. Hell, I would make that seven-hour drive for all future service were they to extend that same courtesy for an otherwise flawless—and truly stunning—2007 XKR. It's the weirdest feeling: I can park that car anywhere around Central Florida and people will often gather for a photo op or I will return to the car lot to find someone simply standing at the nose just gawking (at a five-year old cat!). And I'll often join them if time permits, and we'll get lost in its stunning curves and dramatic swoops & haunches, but then this secret embarrassment washes over me [oh, please don't look at the dash, please don't look at the dash, please don't look at the dash...]. That's an awkward conversation: [I swear I spend hours each week finely detailing this masterpiece! I'm not a careless owner—I didn't let the leather go to hell like that. I swear!...] This has happened, and is more frequently becoming part of the conversation with fellow fine-auto enthusiasts stopping for a closer look—so much so that I have begun opting to take my other vehicle should my travels possibly lead me to bystander-heavy locations during hours of daylight. No joke. I imagine it's like having a supermodel wife who—in an ironic, sick twist of fate—has such unsightly teeth that you only take her to the movies or dimly-lit restaurants.

Here's the update on my XKR: the deep, rich, graphite leather has retreated so far that the now-visible white padding beneath absolutely screams in contrast to the dark, otherwise flawless interior. It's visible from 20-feet away and it's obscene (and unstoppable). I'd rather be forced to look at a ding in the gorgeous fender while outside the car than be forced to stare at this wrinkled mess every passing second while behind the wheel. One can't help but to stare. It's right there! [-Oh, man! -Why wouldn't you at least *try* to protect your leather—didn't you know it *was* leather, son!? Yep. I did know. Everything in this cabin is leather. And despite shelling out over the years thousands on protectants, softeners, sealers, and other miracle pastes, wipes, and gels, what lies up *there* is the manifestation of simple physics' interaction with poor design... eh, never mind. Let's take the Range instead...] Seriously, however, it does diminish the experience in a way I cannot further describe without possibly sounding like a lunatic... assuming that I have not already. Ha!

I cannot justify dropping $4,800+ to fix something so (knowingly) poorly designed yet so effortlessly discounted as 'common wear-and-tear on interior trim' thereby excluding its coverage under warranty. Seriously. The questions are 1) who the heck 'wears and/or tears' a leather dash in such a manner that would cause it to shrivel and shrink almost two inches, and 2) who in their right mind would 'wear and/or tear' such a fine automobile? Candidly: I have never before been so offended as when the Company accused me of such crimes, nor have I been so offended by any company since. The Company did, however,replace the canvas top when the rear window fell out (or rather, fell in)—which was a nice gesture, but only after writing the Global Brand Director to directly express my feeling of abandonment by a brand which calls 'home' many of my family members' garages, and has done so for years. I didn't ask for anything in the letter, nor did I complain about the specifics surrounding my then-undriveable-in-the-rain Jaguar, but it made an impression on him or whomever reads his fan mail. Within days the Company authorized a local dealership to replace the top gratis. (Truthfully, I never expected a call; it was an absolute surprise!) But should I have to write a letter each time something so fundamental and prominent as, say, a six-figure automobile's dashboard withers away despite all efforts to preserve and protect it from the Florida sun, to possibly (yet gratefully!) cause an executive to *green light*a wholly-insignificant-to-the-Company's-bottom-line show of brand goodwill? I may be fortunate enough to coherently pen my thoughts without inadvertently offending those at the helm (apparently), but what about those who cannot- or do not have the time to do so? No rainy day driving for those folks, I guess—at least not without first handing over thousands.

I am still loyal to the marque and the corporate family; the recent addition of a new Range Rover to share the XKR's stable is my testament to that, but I would be über-skeptical about opting for anything leather-clad within any new Jaguar to which I may upgrade. [-Yes, I would like a cloth interior in that XKR-S please...]

...regardless, I will always be a sucker for fine Jaguar.

-e

 

It is very important to keep a leather conditioner handy and condition the leather at least monthly. Many Jaguar owners are using the "Lexol" leather cleaner and another "Lexol" leather conditioner. I use both the cleaner and the conditioner, and really endorse the conditioner to kept the leather soft and pliable.

 

emxnyc,
As the new owner of a 2010 XKR that has two places where the dash leather has air pockets underneath as a result of "shrinkage," you have hit the nail right on the head, and so eloquently. Today, I drove the car for four hours, really its first ride since I brought it home about a month ago, and all I could do was stare at the two bubbles and the resulting wrinkles and wonder if I could take a syringe with a fine needle and inject crazy glue to pat it down. It "colored" everything else I thought about the car's maiden voyage. I have a 2002 XKR convertible with 150,000 miles on it, the dash as well as the rest of the interior and exterior is as nice as it was when new, so it's not as if Jaguar doesn't have the capability of making a long lasting, fine quality product. The issue is really that Jaguar while knowing it has this problem and hundreds if not thousands of unhappy owners, chooses to ignore it rather than issue a blanket recall for replacement. After all, it was only a $90-$150,000 original purchase price.

I am reasonably sure that this will bug me enough that I can't live with it. So, I am facing some choices I didn't really want to face. We'll see what happens.

 

It would be good to see some pictures of some dashes that have gone bad so members know what to look for. Members can thoroughly check their valuable cars before they go out of warranty and out of repair. I have all the Lexol products and will be sure to keep my leather dash conditioned. Lexol has a specific conditional for ivory leather and dark leather.

 

This issue needs to be clarified. First, comparisons of cars with leather dashes (the majority of the 2007 model year and later cars) to earlier models with vinyl-covered dashes are not valid. In the 2007-onward cars the vinyl and the lather dashes look virtually identical except for the grain. The problem of "pulling" dashes is restricted to those which are leather-trimmed (the 2007-2009 cars with the "Luxury" option, and all subsequent cars).
The damage seems to be restricted also to cars which are left in the sun and heat for very protracted periods without regular conditioning. This is a matter principally of owner-neglect rather than manufacturing defect -and Jaguar can be held responsible, perhaps, for assuming that owners are aware of a simple fact: that leather needs conditioning regularly; and leather subjected to high heat and intense sun needs conditioning more frequently.
Cars which are garaged or which are operated in more temperate climates do not suffer this damage. My own 2007 XK has the full leather interior, including the dash. The dash leather is absolutely perfect. Why? I live in an area which gets a lot of sun, but generally moderate temperatures and the car is not left to bake in the sun; in addition, all the leather is regularly conditioned with a non-silicone conditjoner (I use Lexol). I have examined many of these cars in the Vancouver-Victoria- Seattle-Portland area and have never seen one with a damaged dash - the reasons for the lack of damage are as stated above - the combination of moderate climate and owner awareness.
None of this explanation helps if your dash is already damaged by sun and heat, but it perhaps explains why the complaints can be seen to be associated with certain geographical regions, and/or the fact that the owners (either current or previous) have not looked after the leather properly. Leather (like your own skin) needs regular conditioning if it is not to be damaged!

 

I hate to disagree, but this is not correct. You can condition leather til it's as soft as a baby's bottom, but this does not explain "shrinkage." The adhesive used to attach the leather to the frame is what is causing this problem, And this is well documented. The trimming of the leather on the wrap around to where it is glued down is minimal. Therefore, perhaps an 1/8"-1/4" of leather is glued to the frame and then stretched severely around its foam padding to prevent rippling. The adhesive used was not strong enough to hold such a small edge of leather. The breakdown of the adhesive may be hastened by high temperatures and lots of sun, but it's not actual shrinkage of the leather. The leather is stretched to be taut and when the edge is released from its adhesive bond, the leather "shrinks" back to its unstretched size, causing this problem.

This is not a singularly Jaguar problem, over the years I have known many Ferrari owners who have complained of the same problems with even more damage.

Vinyl dashes are typically molded units with the ends glued and with much less stress on the vinyl. The vinyl also has a backing that adheres better than the suede back of leather. If Jaguar (and others) had perhaps trimmed the dash leather to be approximately 3/4" inch to wrap around and be glued to the frame, this problem would disappear as more glue and more surface is attached and the pressure from stretching would be spread over a larger area. But, it is what it is, and those of us with the problem will find a way to deal with it.

I am certain that there are many owners who have conditioned their dashes from day one on a regular basis and still have suffered some of the same problems. It is not simply a matter of neglect. In my car where the shrinkage has occurred, I can feel the area just above it at the top of the dash and feel where the adhesive has failed and the leather is loose on the wraparound.