I revisited the air box this week end. After replacing the air filter, it seemed like the bottom part of the air box was loose, and altogether did not give me the Jaguar feel I was expecting. Low and behold, a rubber grommet was missing from the bottom of the box, and the upper rubber post was sheared off. After fixing the post (gluing the rubber part back to the metal base, I was quoted $50 for a new one!) and replacing the grommet, the air box is now secured, and, in my head at least, making the car that much more quiet. Another job that most likely needed to be done just once, and is now off the to-do list.

 

Well after patiently waiting for a call from the Indy garage I decided to call him. There have been several setbacks time wise and parts wise which have led to this delay. Parts failed to arrive and personal circumstances contributed. The two auto boxes are still lying on his garage floor, I have been promised ( for the third time ) it will be ready by this weekend. I am really beyond mad at this point, it was supposed to be a two day job, its now over three weeks! The front suspension has not even been touched yet, he is a two man operation but I never expected service as bad as this. Hopefully I will update soon.

 

This week end, I replaced the pressure hose off of the engine block to the oil cooler. The old one was leaking a bit, and making a mess of the bottom of the engine, steering rack and front cross member. Altogether an easy job. Just dropped the plastic under-tray for easier access, and have a oil pan ready for spills. I did not drain the engine oil as this line end up high enough with the car on ramps. Caveat: the hose I got from Jaguar only came with an o-ring on just one side. As I wanted to change both, I ended up reaching for my Harbor Freight collection for a suitable match. A mechanic's mirror came handy as the bolt and plate holding the hoses to the engine block are awkward to reach. Maybe a couple of hours, including cleanup. I assume this is thermostat controlled, so only a longer drive will tell me if this is the fix. Or just one of them...

 

I replaced my radiator and the inlet air pipe (part from MAF to throttle body).

This is the second radiator I have had to replace in less than two years due to one of the plastic side tanks leaking. Both were Nissens, which is the OEM brand. The good news is I caught this one on sale for $169 vs. the $534 I paid for the last one.

The air pipe (hose?) was a little rough at the opening that goes over the throttle body, so I had to clean it up with a razor blade and sandpaper to make it fit properly. What ever happened to parts that fit right?

No coolant leaks and so far no air leak codes.

Next weekend I'll tackle replacing the part load breather hose. Trying to avoid removing the throttle body to do that, so more research first.

 

Replaced the main battery ground strap due to corrosion and strange electrical issues.

 

Having fought an intermittent no start for several years and not finding any resolution I decided to replace the Ignition Exciter Ring, new one read 33.4 ohms, old one read 37 ohms, now we'll wait and see. Right after doing this I got a code saying my Bank 2 upstream 02 sensor was bad, replaced that with a Bosch 15627 sensor, cleared code, didn't come back and car is running better than its has for some time.

Also broke down and ordered new seat belt buckles, had glued the plastic covers several times, just to have them break again, came down to a safety issue, didn't want them coming apart at a time that they were really needed, not cheap but peace of mind is worth a whole lot.

 

Sort of working on the 2001 XK8 today. Just ordered the bumper overriders (both left and right) from Gaudin Jaguar of Las Vegas. They were $116 each.

It says they fit 2001-2004 XK8 models w/out supercharger.
P/N: HJE6504BC and HJE6505BC

Looks like there are different part numbers for specific models and years of the XK8. So, always look carefully at the compatibility charts if available.

 

I just bought a 1997 XK8 with 40K miles. When should I do the chain ? Should I do just the top tensioners for now?

 

Spent an hour replacing the front anti sway bar bushings today. Fairly simple job if it was not for figuring out what position to be in to reach those 10 mm bolts. Passenger side can be reached from the bottom, driver side from the top. Old bushings seem to have collapsed some. The new ones seem to have a lot of give. Funny part is how much lateral play there is the entire bar before tightening up the clamps. Now, on to a test drive to see if the (minor) low speed front clunk noise has disappeared. Wish me luck.

 

Had a Po304 code # 4 misfire along with the usual Po1316 misfire out of emission specs codes. Replaced the coil, now have a Po300 random misfire along with the po 1316. don't ya just hate peas...


Onto all plugs and a fuel filter. See what happens. Rich " X "

 

This past weekend helped son put a radiator in his Miata. Easy job.

 

I spent the last weekend stripping out the supercharger for the second time , this time to replace the needle bearings.

Thankfully this seems to have very significantly reduced the supercharger 'grumble' to somethign approaching that expected whilst at tickover.

The first time I did it 3 weeks ago, replacing the pulley and coupler had had no effect.

At least the second time only took 10 hours rather than the 20 of the first time!

 

Replaced the worn upper control arm bushings with Powerflex versions. Has tightened up the front end and stopped some noise I was getting.

Would have been a less than two-hour job (at my working speed) except one of the old bushings had disintegrated enough to get stuck in the wishbone arm. Still not too bad though.

We'll see how they hold up, but the installation of the new bushings was really easy despite the minimal instructions.

 

Good job, Mike. Glad to hear the front end bushings work went better than you anticipated....

My wife has been in Florida for more than six weeks caring for her elderly mother after she had major back surgery. My wife probably won't be able to come home until mid-October. So her XK8 will go more than two months without my weekly check-ups. Sure hope she is able to make that 12-hour drive home without any major issues....

 

Nice Mike! added the powerflex upper control arm bushings yesterday and will replace the sway bar bushings this weekend

 

Mounted the "JAGUAR" letters badge on the left rear that was missing when I bought the XKR. Found them cheap on a parting out '99 XK8 locally. Looks pretty darn good, though I had to pull the first "A" and redo it...off line a tad bit .

 

Where did you get your bushings if I may ask? And do you have the part numbers?

 

Powerflex - Performance Polyurethane Bushes and if you Google the part number (PFF27-202) you'll get the best price. The part number given comes with the bushings to do both sides.

Easy to fit, just push in. Use lots of copper grease.

 

today was the infamous octopus hose - I had received the replacement about a week and good thing as today it decided to go south - plastic disintegrated at the check-valve. Caught it in time to return home and shut her down before any damage.

 

Good job. The octopus hose replacement is indeed one task that I fully admit I dread....