Hello everyone,

I'm about at the one year mark of owning my XK8, so I've decided to share my experience. I hope some of you may find this thread entertaining. I purchased the car for $8,300 out the door with about 115,000 miles from Interstate Motorsport in Pennington, New Jersey. Below are some pictures I took in the showroom. The car was in remarkably good condition, there was some interior wear but nothing close to many lower millage examples I saw for sale. Most notably; the worn steering wheel; cracking arm rest; broken cup holder; burnt out center console lights; cracked shift knob, wood, and plastic shifter plate; some broken plastic covers on the seats; wear on the driver's side door card; and corroded rear view mirror. That may seem like a lot, but the car faired a lot better than others I looked at, and it was the only one in this gorgeous spec!





I had a lot of fun driving to Boston and eventually back to Manhattan.


Parked at a hotel around Lexington, MA

I did discover the shocks and bushings were bad once I got back to the city. The front and rear shocks and bushings were replaced. Shortly afterwards the top refused to go up. It was leaking at both the pump and latch, luckily I was spared the green shower. I had the hoses replaced at a terrible Jaguar garage in Manhattan. I believe both these repairs cost near $5,000 total. I planned to drive the car down to Georgia, but they took longer than expected and I had to get the car transported. I got the car with some damage and was cheated by the transport company, they put a dent in the rear quarter panel and dripped oil on the convertible top. I took delivery of the car at about midnight where it was too dark to see. I was told if I signed I'd still be paid for damages I noticed in the morning, but the driver lied.

Here is a picture I took the morning after taking delivery:



I found a new garage in Marietta. They did about $3,000 of repairs between the cooling system and rear main seal.


British Car Fayre, Norcross

Long story short, the garage I found did the repairs very poorly. They caused me to lose my engine and refused to take responsibility for their mistakes. Luckily, I found an amazing Jaguar shop which I have full confidence in. The engine was replaced with a low-milage example which was machined and rebuilt. A lot of other issues were dealt with in the process, I'm going from memory, but I recall the compressor, engine mounts, and an oxygen sensor were replaced and the upgraded metal thermostat housing was installed. Other parts were replaced as preventative maintenance. The final bill was around $8,500. I had a great experience and am very happy with the workmanship. Other than that, I have new seatbelt retractors waiting to be installed and kits from The Furniture Clinic to repair some scuffs in the leather.


New engine in the car!

Following this, I'm not going to go through all repairs in detail, and again, I'm going from memory, but here are some I recall:

• new shock mounts
• new upper and lower ball joints
• reseat shocks and bushings properly
• replacement driver's side door handle
• new wheel speed sensor and harness
• new hydraulic pump
• new SLM to fix key fob
• new sway bar links
• new tie rod ends
• new driver's side headlight and lens
• new center console bulbs
• hood struts
• two sets of windshield wipers
• rebuilt hydraulic latch
• 3,000 mile oil changes with Mobil 1 Synthetic 5W30

There's a lot more, but that's all the comes to mind at the moment. I am pushing $20,000 in maintenance, over 12,000 miles! Not everything can be blamed on the car, but that's still a lot!

The interior of the car is nearly new. I replaced the center console, arm rest, worn driver's side door card, steering wheel (with an all leather version), shift knob and plastic shift bezel, tonneau cover and bag (missing), floor mats, various plastic trim pieces, sun visors, rear view mirror, overhead console, and a few bulbs. I also added the chrome rings and shifter surround from Mina Gallery. The rings for the center gauges didn't fit properly but replacements are on the way. For me, one of the most worthwhile upgrades was Bluetooth, I used a system called "TranzitBlu HF" which works nicely. I also have a set of genuine Jaguar seat covers as which I'm getting installed soon. Oh, and a Jaguar umbrella and straps.




DCR floor mats


Leather steering wheel and chrome rings


Chrome shifter surround


New shift knob


New seat covers


Surgery to fix my cracked illumination module


Back in the car


Contrasting sable arm rest, I believe this was an option on later cars?


Tonneau cover from Jag Bits


Jaguar umbrella holder


Growler on umbrella strap

The exterior has also seen its fair share of upgrades, especially the rear end. I added the "JAGUAR" lettering, Union Jack Jaguar license plate frame, my silly vanity plate, and big Mina exhaust tips. As for the front of the car, it has new headlight lenses, blue dip beams which give the reflectors an interesting blue color, missing wiper arm plastic caps, and new overriders. All the chrome has been polished and the paint corrected and sealed. I also have new wheels, 19" staggered Whitleys, which I've posted about on a different thread, though they still need tires mounted. As for the ugly antenna, I just pulled the fuse, I rarely use the radio and don't need it in my area anyway. Lastly, I have a "JAGUAR" boot plinth in primer and Mina dual tail lights which need to be painted. There's a few dents that need to be removed, but not a very big deal.


Mina exhaust tips












New headlight lens


Blue effect in headlights


Coventry Whitleys


Solid Adamesh lug nuts

Lastly, are performance upgrades. I installed a K&N air filter almost right after the car was delivered in Georgia, small change but adds a nice induction noise I enjoy. I then purchased and fit the Mina exhaust.


Shiny new Mina under-axle exhaust


I decided to also replace the center muffler with an X-pipe.


I also replaced the OEM brakes and rotors with EBC Redstuff pads and slotted rotors, these give the car an aggressive look, I'm sure they'll compliment the new wheels well, however they do squeak when cold. I also have some Yellowstuff pads I bought off a forum member which I may or may not install soon.


New EBC Redstuff pads and slotted rotors


And installed after breaking a lifetime of seized bolts free!


Yellowstuff pads

As of late, the car has been pretty solid, though in the last few days it's developed an issue charging the battery at idle.

As for my to-do list, in order:

• suede headliner, a-pillars, and visors
• paintless dent removal
• replace seatbelt retractors
• repair all scuffs in leather
• restore wood
• new shifter illumination assembly with working backlighting
• new front under tray and clips
• remote top
• real gauge
• new convertible top
• working boot plinth
• brembo upgrade, yellow calipers?
• downpipes
• jewel tail lights instead of dual tail lights?

Being home gives me a lot more time to work on my car and I plan to use this thread to post any progress I make.

Thank you all very much for the help over the past year,

Jacob

 

Great post but I'm reserving judgement on the choice of outfit.





Graham

 

Hahah, I work from home and was gifted a few sets of the same pajama pants. I was just noticing I work on my car in them often. What can I say, they're comfortable.

 

Lovely details Jacob.

Like your commitment to your car and I’m a resto-mod enthusiast too so like some of what you’ve done. Not the PJs though.

I too have had different experiences, good and bad, with different professional garages working on the Jag. Bad Mechanics who wrecked your engine, obviously they don’t know the intricacies of the AJ-V8 Engine and gearbox. Only I mechanic here in Bahrain I trust with it.

Your To Do List will probably take more than another year.

 

I also have had my '03 for about a year. I have to say that I haven't spent anywhere near that much since acquiring my car. So hats for to you for your due diligence to keep this thing working and looking good. I haven't had to take it to anyone yet as I do most of my own work depending on what I run into. Those crooked shippers and shops should go to jail.
I only go as far as the mailbox in my jammies. But who am I to judge, LOL Beautiful car. TM

 

Kudos for your commitment. It sounds like it will be better than new, if it's not already. Even for what you've spent it will be a bargain.

 

I admire your positivity. Good luck to you.

 

Thank you, you're right, after all the money I've spent the car seems to be much better. One large side effect of replacing the engine is that I've had no issues with leaks, broken rubber parts, etc., I can't imagine how many breakdowns it prevented.

I should admit, every time I get a $1,500 repair bill I start to think I should of just financed a very late XKR, but when I clean up my car I quickly lose that mindset.

 

That's exactly what I thought they were but held back from suggesting it!

I'm all for comfort too but remember to change before going for a test drive.

Graham

 

Great thread and sentiment. I have a '97 coupe and feel the same way. what ever it takes to keep it in top shape. I also had a Mina under axle exhaust installed. It gives the kitty a nice growl. My only problem is finding a good mechanic since I'm mechanically inept.

 

Found some old pictures from the listing, nothing too special.

 

Now I don't feel too bad. I started with a '06 Victory Edition convert. "Knocked the price down" from $16,000 to 13,500. Then I found that it needed a brake switch, paint, Body control module, and assorted other 'fixes'. I replaced the Elm 'Nav' dash with a 3 gauge (RealGauges) walnut dash. I am now up to $18,000, and still need paint, want to upgrade the exhaust, and maybe a mesh grill and windscreen for open-top driving.
Fortunately, my wife doesn't watch my charges and costs, too closely. She still cannot understand my interest in 'Old Cars' (Old guys like Old cars???). Hopefully the IRS will not take all my car $$$'s.

I thought the PJ's were just a 'Georgia Thing'.......

 

Where did you get the new seat covers and convertible top cover from?

 

If it is any consolation I am over two years into my car and finally have run out of things to reapair or replace. I think that blue with the ivory interior is a great color for the car and I really like the XKR wheels. I noticed you are planning to change wheels so if you are thinking of selling those XKR wheels I am interested. Good luck.

 

The seat covers I got from eBay, they're genuine parts, not replacements, paid only $500! The tonneau cover I bought from Jag Bits. Topsonline is a good source since true Jaguar seat covers are rare and usually much more expensive.

 

Thank you, I do plan on selling the wheels as it would be a shame for them to sit in my garage. One is bent but maybe it can be straightened, I'll check.

 

Made some progress on my todo list. I found the front under tray (HJE6484AB) for what I thought was a very good price, $220, at Britcar, https://www.brit-car.co.uk/product.p...__jaguar___xk8. Turns out it's pounds, $310 USD! Didn't notice until I paid, over $100 less than any other source but still more than I realized. Jag Bits has a clip set for a decent price, should look a lot better, my current under tray is sagging and the previous owner secured it with silver bolts!

 

Had my wheels ceramic coated today, I really love the Whitleys. Also had the engine bay cleaned by my neighbor since the pollen is gone, he knows what he's doing but unfortunately he must of gotten some water somewhere as the engine is sputtering! Fingers crossed it evaporates overnight. Engine bay looks good.





edit: I got the chrome door handles ceramic coated too, the paint is as defect free as it gets, I got the car corrected and keep it sealed, I was hoping the ceramic coating would hide scratches since they can't really be polished, I think it made it better but not fixed. They're definitely shinier though.

 

Lookin GOOD!!

 

Well, I let the engine dry, still stuttering pretty badly, also smells like the cats are bad when I give it some gas. I have a code for a misfire on cylinder 1 and got the blinking check engine light when I drove it around the neighborhood. Letting it dry with the hood open and if it's not better mid day tomorrow I'll take out the coil and plug and try to fix it with an air compressor.