Hey guys -

I'm an auto enthusiast that has had quite a few different rides ... i've always been an active forum/community guy in all of the forums pertaining to my rides.


I have a family SUV and my wife has a vehicle .. then I have my daily driver that I don't finance. I'm about to get rid of this and replace it with something else that I can pay cash for. (I try to keep the miles off my financed vehicles more now than ever due to the economy).


I'm looking at an 03' 3.0 with 90k on it. It seems to be in great shape, drives well and from what I can tell, has no issues with anything. I only gathered this from a walk around and quick drive.


The car has aftermarket 18"'s on it ... otherwise completely stock. He was asking $7k for it. I was able to talk him down to $6k.

Is this a decent deal for an xtype with 90k? Is the xtype with 90k going to be a decent daily driver that will be reliable? I would rather spend 10k on something that wont break down on me all the time. I'm a bit concerned with the higher mileage as I've always purchased new vehicles in the past.

I guess my question and concern is the high mileage. Do these cars have decent reliability in the higher mileage? Obviously it depends on if it was taken care of, yada yada yada. I'm more so asking as a general rule.

I owned a cadillac catera back in the day and when those got to higher mileage, the problems came out of the wood work. Is this the case with these cars?


Sorry for the long post and thanks in advance for your response!

 

Each used car obviously has its own history and possible faults. Do you know the service history of this X-type? Getting that info can help you figure out if many of the common problems have already been addressed. 02's and 03's were still kind of in the work-out-the-bugs stage of this car ( I have an 02) - it is important to know if some of the major items like transmission and transfer case have been replaced.

In my experience, once I got all of the major issues worked out early on (about 20 to 30k mi), the car has been rock solid ever since. That being said, when my warranty expires at 95k, I'll probably get rid of it.

You can surf around this board for similar questions (use search feature) that have been asked and you shall find a ton of info.

Good luck and welcome if you take the leap(er)....

 

whosjk, I would ask the person that you will be willing to spend an extra $200 on the car if they will pay for a transfer case fluid change and they tell you the amount of fluid in the transfer case that they got out. This will be able to tell you alot about the most likely failure item of the car. If they come back and tell you that they got 600 ml out, then they didn't do the fluid change and are lying to you (this is the value in the Jag manual and is wrong). If they tell you that they got no fluid out of the car, then it is very likely that the transfer case can fail on you (no lube, tends to be bad). If they tell you that they got out 200-400 ml, then the case will most likely be pretty good and you shouldn't have any issues with the transfer case. With that being said, the transfer case is the weak link in this car and if you get on the gas hard a lot, plan on replacing the transfer case in the near future.

Other than that, the problems are hit and miss with the car. Not any worse that any other car. I have a 03 3.0L X and I love the car. I am up around 98K miles and the car is still running like a swiss watch. I anticipate to get atleast 200K miles out of the car before any major problems.

 

great info .. thanks

 

Considerations:
(1) Is it an automatic?
(2) Has the car had its tune-up (new spark plugs)?
(3) Condition of brake pads & rotors (will they need changing soon)?
(4) Do you know a local independent Jaguar mechanic who could inspect it?
(5) Can your local Jag mechanic change the fluid in the transfer case?
(6) Are there any oil leaks?
(7) Vibration?
(8) Is the fuel gauge accurate?

#2, #3, and #5 are routine maintenance items that will ding you if they're coming due soon (and will add that extra $1k back on to make it a $7k car again). #7 is a nuisance, #8 is another lengthy repair.

I strongly recommend finding an independent Jag mechanic, interviewing him about his familiarity of X-Types, and have him do an inspection. I say that not because of reliability issues, but because it will generally save you $$$ over the long haul compared to $250 oil changes at the dealer. Most dealers I've talked to are only interested in warranty work anyway.

Do check for leaks from the oil pan (a smelly nuisance) or PCV area (ditto). Any leaks from the transfer case will be fatal. In my opinion, your mechanic should change the transfer case fluid and disregard its "sealed for life" status.

If you live in a road salt zone, definitely get it rustproofed. I don't think Jag ever heard of galvanized steel...and if your car starts to rust, just add some hydrochloric acid to speed up the process. Jag's rust warranty requires perforation in order to make a claim, and those who were successful in getting theirs honored had to fight, kick, scream, and raise an online kerfuffle before the dozen "no" responses became a "yes".

I've had mine for 93k miles and plan to drive it into the ground.

--Geoff
03 X-Type 2.5 Sport (5 speed)
06 S-Type R