Here is the procedure I used to change the oil on my 2006 XKR.

After phoning around a few places and getting quotes north of a hundred bucks for an oil change, I decided to do it myself for the first time. This is written from a beginner perspective, this is a pretty easy job that is within the capability of anyone who is confident enough to jack up their car.

After looking through the many threads on the forum (and finding many on the merits of different types of oil) I couldn't find one that really described what it was like to change the oil on a 2006 XKR.

This is not the official service manual procedure; it's what I did. This may also work on an XK8 or an earlier car, but I don't have an XK8 or an earlier car, so I don't know. You may want to do differently. So, here goes:

Difficulty: It's about as easy to change the oil on this car as it is on any car I've owned (and I have changed the oil on several). The only thing that would make it easier would be if you could access the oil filter from above or if it was an SUV with enough ground clearance to get underneath without jacking it up.

Time taken: I think an hour for me doing it the first time, I could probably do it again in 30 minutes now that I know what I'm doing.

Materials: Oil: I chose Mobil-1 5W30. I have an unscientific belief that synthetics break down at higher temperatures, and that there is no danger associated with transitioning from conventional to a modern synthetic oil, so might as well. Please debate that point elsewhere! Wally World had a great sale on 5-quart jugs. Get two, you'll need 8 quarts.

Materials: Oil filter: I got the Motorcraft FL2021. This is a Ford OEM part that fits the Lincoln LS, which I believe has the same engine block as the XKR. The Motorcraft FL2021 is completely identical in internal and external appearance and dimensions to the Jaguar oil filter I removed, and both are marked "Made in UK". I guess they are they same filter with different paint jobs. Phone around to find one, I got mine from Advance and paid less for it than most of their "premium" filters.

General stuff you'll need: Trolley jack, Axle stands, wheel chocks, a fairly wide catchment basin, metric wrenches, an oil filter strap wrench (the kind that fits around the filter, not the kind that goes over the end), torque wrench, a funnel, paper towels. Rubber gloves would be a good idea.

Procedure:

Run the engine until warm, then turn it off and let it cool to the point where you can put your hand on the oil pan without burning yourself. There's a good probability that you'll get oil on yourself sooner or later in the procedure.

I parked on a slight downwards incline, so that the car was level when the front was jacked up. I imagine it wasn't necessary to park on an incline, but it was convenient for me. Make sure your parking brake is on.

Chock the rear wheels, then jack the front of the car up using the front center jacking point (see JTIS or other posts for the exact location of the front center jacking point - do not jack on the bumper or on any suspension components). The position of the front jacking point on my car means that the jack is contacting the plastic under-engine shield (earlier cars may be different). I have jacked it up from this point several times without problems.

Re-chock the rear wheels if the wheels have moved.

Place your axle stands under the front side sill jacking points. DO NOT get underneath a car that is not properly supported; the jack alone is not enough support.

From underneath the car, remove the plastic alternator air tunnel that's below the oil filter, it's held on with one 7mm bolt. Pay close attention to its orientation and where the two little tabs go under the front bumper so you can get it back on. Take a picture with your cellphone if you think you'll forget.

It was a little tricky to line up my oil catchpan without bumping into the jack, you're going to want it touching the jack. Something to protect the floor with under the whole area would be a good idea.

Open the oil drain plug with a wrench (don't use a ratchet, it'll get oily). Although you'll get some drips from having the plug partway open, I always believed that a big gush of oil flushes out more contaminants with it, so remove the drain plug entirely. Expect a big gush of oil pretty much directly forward from the drain hole when you remove the plug.

Open the oil filler cap.

When there's only a trickle of oil coming out, remove the oil filter with the strap wrench. I have one of the wrenches that fits into the grooves on the end of the filter, but there wasn't enough clearance to use it, but the strap wrench worked fine. Expect another pretty big gush of oil, it's the kind of filter that doesn't drain when the oil is drained from the car.

When the draining is complete, clean the oil drain plug and reinstall it being careful not to cross-thread it; torque to manufacturer's specification (I forget what the torque spec is). Do not over-torque, you do not want to strip that thread. I'm sure some instructions somewhere say to replace the drain plug gasket before reinstalling the drain plug, but people rarely do; I didn't.

Fill the new oil filter about 1/3rd with new oil and then swirl it around in there to saturate the filter element. Use a little more new oil to lubricate the gasket, then install on the car; if you can figure out how to torque it to the specification on the oil filter than do so, I used the "let it contact the mating face and turn another 3/4 turn" method as printed on the side of the oil filter. That's pretty tight.

Fill with about a quart less than the oil capacity of your car (that would be 7 quarts for an 06 XKR, less for some earlier models). Check level, get the oil level at least up to the min mark on the dipstick. Don't fill it full yet. Check for leaks. Reinstall filler cap.

Remove oil catchment pan and clean up under there. Reinstall the alternator air duct.

Remove axle stands and wheel chocks, then lower the car to the ground.

Turn on the engine, check that the oil light goes out after the normal amount of time, run for a few minutes at idle.

Turn off engine. Wait 2 minutes. Re-check oil level and fill to at least halfway up the dipstick. Check for leaks.

Take it on a short journey, enough to get the engine up to full temperature. When you return, check for leaks, and check the oil level again, topping up as necessary up to the full mark. In total I used exactly the 7.8 quarts it says in the owners manual.

Dispose of the used oil and filter in a legal manner, preferably at a recycling center (most vendors who sell oil are also obliged to recycle used oil from consumers).

This is the advice I would have wanted to see before attempting it the first time myself. Good luck!

 

Good write-up. I recommend a set of shallow ramps rather than a jack and jack stands, simply for the ease and the extra space you have underneath, but that is just personal preference and the fact that I've always done it that way. I had to get a different set of ramps for this car because my Father's old metal set was too steep and tall and would have destroyed the front air dam.

 

Good write up.I tried to get up onto a pair of wooden blocks but didn't manage it.

I think I will use the jack to lift, put the blocks under the wheels and lower down then when all done reverse off.

My blocks are abouy 4" thick with a chamferred front.Perhaps motorhome RV blocks would do.

Cheers Al

 

Nice write up. I changed oil last year and probably spent more time jacking up and down to make sure all the oil came out since the drain is forward on the engine. I actually jacked up the rear once just to make sure---I think Nigel Thorley's book "Jaguar XK8" mentioned to do this. I would also recommend to grease the drive shaft "U" joints. Good Job!

 

One suggestion - change the oil filter first, if you drop it into a pan full of oil you'll get a nice big splash.

 

Great write up... I buy the Oil from Walmart.... Castrol 5w-30 this is what Jaguar recommends,,, It is actually on the filler cap....

I give Franky at the shop $25.00,,, he throws it on the lift and he provides the filter and changes the oil,,, checks the brake pads( I ask him to,,, so I can clean the RIMS)

I also get to clean up the bottom of the car and do not have to touch the oil... Not that I mind...

Hey where are the Zirc's for the drive shaft,,,, I cannot find any for the life of me...

 

No zerks on the driveshaft (at least not from the factory) but the halfshafts have a fitting on each joint.

 

"but the halfshafts have a fitting on each joint. "

Where exactly are these,,, I have NO IDEA must be a mental block probably staring them right in the face...

A video or color coded stick figure diagram might be needed to get me thru this one... Changed the oil on Friday and Kinda looked for them and did not see any...

And like I always say,,, GGRREASE EM UP LADDIE...

Appreciate the help...

Thanks

 

Damn it! See what youve done to my mind now.

 

"Damn it! See what youve done to my mind now.

"

Ah,,,,, Yeeeahhhh.... HMMMMmmmm,,,,

Okay....

I tend to have that effect on people...

OOOoooops,,,,Sorry... LOL

ITSssss SAULGOOD...

 

Look at the thread titled "Pics for rear alignment shim...", post #7. In the illustration #3 points to the universal joint cap and retainer. The universal joint looks like a cross, with four legs even though only three are depicted in this illustration. In the nook between two legs of each cross you can find a grease zerk. You may have to rotate the wheel/axle in order to see and access the fitting in order to lubricate.

 

Thank you I will hit them next time I get it on the lift...

I appreciate that,,, I am familiar with the U joints But for some reason I did not see them... and It's clean as a whistle under the car...

Must have been thinking of some else then...

I blew apart my U joint at the differential on my 69 Camaro R/S Nailin a Hole-Shot off the line... One of the loudest noisiest things I ever heard.... DID it at P.B.I.R. back in the day before Dick Moroso bought the Place....

 

On the subject of zerks and grease fittings... the oldest car I have owned was an '82, and even then I thought those things were sealed for life.

Is it really necessary, or does it fall into the category of, 'it can't hurt, so why not?'

Thanks, Marc

 

'Sealed for life'/'Lifetime lubricated', what a concept. Who's life, the part's, the car's or the owner's? Once the part fails its life is over, even if it failed due to lack of adequate lubrication. If something has a fitting count yourself lucky and lube it with the proper lubricant at the specified intervals. Lubed for life only makes assembly for the OEM easier and cheaper, it provides no benefit to the consumer.

 

Just a follow-up, I did an oil change with a Motorcraft FL-2021 today and it is different from the old FL-2021 that I had that was identical to the Jaguar filter.

I went ahead and did it anyway, the new Motorcraft looks like a pretty good filter, this is just an FYI that now if you purchase the Motorcraft FL-2021 it might look different from your Jaguar OEM filter.

 

Just purchased 2005 XKR convertible with 29k miles and I'm preparing for schedule maintenance and this thread is very helpful. Thanks.

 

Good Job with your narrative and safety issues. The only thing I would add is to have a new oil drain plug on hand as if the rubber gasket on the plug is damaged you will have a new one on hand. I could not buy just the special O ring, I had to buy the whole plug. The other little thing is to take the plastic guard off when doing the oil filter. There is only one screw that holds it on, side it off and then slide it back in when your done. I also used the same check list that the dealer used to complete checks during and oil change service. Doing it yourself can save over $100.00 from the dealer. Especially if you use synthetic oil.


2006 XKR


Bob

 

Thanks Bob.... i like the idea of a spare plug and making the area more accessible. OEM filters appears to be a little harder to locate but the Fram FR5618 and Bosch 72209 filters could be another options. The Motorcraft pricing is priced better. I have a pair of old steal ramps i've used for years that may not work, therefore, i'm in the market for something new. Thanks for the extra tips. Rafi

 

"I give Franky at the shop $25.00,,, he throws it on the lift and he provides the filter and changes the oil,,, checks the brake pads( I ask him to,,, so I can clean the RIMS)

Wish I had a Franky near me! Oil changes are hateful chores, even though they're quick and easy.

 

My 9000lb 2 post lift has been the best investment yet.