hirev

Among other things i have found that a fresh battery will work wonders for the check engine light and random misfire issues. That's a top tip, when a car sits with a dead battery for years it is time to replace it no matter if it starts or not!

mosesbotbol

Modern Jags are very battery sensitive! One of most common faults for throwing codes and odd engine behavior. Jags for some reason use a lot battery while parked on locked. Did you go AGM battery?

hirev

An update on the restoration project....Replacing a variety of normal things that were defective at build or just plain worn out after 42,000 miles and 18 years....Rear speakers blown, lots of work to take out interior and solder in new Infinity speakers, cost $100. So I am into this project going on 4 months now. No issues with the car at all....changed out the brakes, all 4 wheels, pads and rotors and a couple of good bleed sessions, these were original 1999 brakes.
cost: $150.00 , that's cause the car shares Lincoln and Ford parts!!! looked at the undercarriage and suspension, it 's an amazing mix of rods and springs and shocks that actually works...the car has lean in corners and it's supposed to....built in travel. I am keeping it stock and enjoying the pleasure of driving such a sweet car,. It can get up and go for it's 4000 lb girth...the v8/5speed auto is getting an average of 19.3 mpg per it's computer. No apparent oil use in 2000 miles.

hirev

Another update, I had the dreaded over heating issue, need a water pump, fan belt, thermostat and related gaskets and a coolant tower made of metal rather than plastic...how much should this cost? Maybe at a Jag shop a water pump service would be $750.00. My son and I will do the work....how about $150.00, because these parts fit a lincoln and tbird of that vintage. Amazing.

hirev

Its been over a year since i got this car and over 5000 miles. I put maybe $3000 into it, which includes a wasted $2000 spent at a Jag specialist. I just got mad, took the car home, and began to figure it out with the help of my son.

It runs like a top every day and everything works except the trunk lights. It's a real pleasure to drive, surely not a roadster in any way, just a nice touring car. I am seeing 18.4 mpg in ever day mixed use. I can keep up nicely with traffic and it corners very well for it's girth. For the cost of this car initially, the fact that many parts can be purchased online or in an auto parts story as cheaply as a ford, and the very nice ride, torque, and features, it's a very good prospect for a project car and an every day driver. I also get lots of comments from folks, it is a beautiful ride.

Cosmetically it's not better than average for a 18 year old car, there is no rust anyplace I can find. the fact that it was garaged all it's life means the underneath is clean, the hoses and other parts are in good nick, and its got a near perfect interior.The Jag forum has been of great help along with what I can find on youtube. Bottom line...I would say I would NEVER purchase a British car, new or used, till I got this thing. Sure, it's not a japanese car or a german one, as much as this is cobbled together with questionable wiring and mechanical s it's fun and rewarding to work on. When you change out the coolant it takes days to get the level just right, same with the oil, the dipstick is smeared when you take it out so it's just an indication there is oil, of which I have not used any yet. I am not worried about the engine timing chain yet, when they go there is noise and you can stop driving it.

I would say if you Craigslist list an XK8 you will find some great values in a nice ride, not what I expected initially.

mosesbotbol

What people think of reliability and ease of working on British cars is generally like 30+ years old. They are the best bang for the buck on used cars and some of the finest cars on the road. You have the 4.2 AJV8, right? Those engines are bullet proof.

eight

Being that I work at a JLR dealership on the service side my view may be a bit skewed. These cars pop up every once in a while and I have my fair share of customer's that have taken it only to me for a number of years. They start to become a headache to own at higher mileages. Nothing can stay sealed it seems. The most notable one would be the transmission electrical sleeve so keep a special eye out for that one. There are write-ups online that will teach you how to do it, not difficult to do but can be tricky if it's your first time.

Definitely great if you can replace the tensioners sooner rather than later. I've had 2 instances (on these motors, not xk in particular) where we had chain slip and couldn't figure out why we were getting camshaft correlation faults and you really don't want to get to the point where you have a mis-timed V8.

You hit the nail on the head with the battery. It is very VERY voltage sensitive and if you can't steadily feed it's voltage hungry stomach, it will pop a check engine light, ABS light, airbag light, etc.

Another common leak is the coolant outlet pipe. Keep an eye out on that as well.

All in all, the one scariest thing is the coolant. Our motors cannot stand to be overheated for any amount of time.

Good luck on the XK though and enjoy it!

mosesbotbol

Is that the plastic tensioner you talking about? The last xk8 engine was the same as the start or the xk engine, no? On my xk, I had to replace transmission pan as it is plastic and cracked some how... ZF part, not a Jaguar thing. I like to do the transmission pan-fluid-filter service before 50K on any car with a ZF "sealed" tranmission.

eight

Minor changes were made to the engines when the face lift happened to the xk but the tensioner's remained the same I believe. The tensioner isn't the plastic one, you might be thinking of the timing chain guides. When doing the tensioner, I do recommend replacing everything chain related except the chain itself. There are kits for sale with everything needed.

mosesbotbol

XK and XKR have to some of the best deals out there on GT. You get so much for the money and they are no lemons with sticky buttons like a Maserati.