Im suppose to take delivery of my new XJ next week. I have been asked to be in PHX the following weekend. Was wondering if I should drive it down there from Vegas? It would be a good road trip but don't want to do anything harmful to a brand new engine. any thoughts? Thanks

 

Congrats on your new XJ! Definitely drive it to Phoenix.

Be sure to read your Owners Handbook about "breaking in", and I think you'll find that there isn't anything special that you need to do for the engine. You're 60 and remember the old days when engines had "break-in oil" from the factory that you had to run easy and change at 2500 miles. Times have changed, and new engine tolerances and oil technology have eliminated that break in period. You'll be cruising at highway speeds in 8th gear, so at 70mph your engine will probably be loafing along at less than 2500 rpms. My only advice would be to occasionally turn off the Cruise Control and use the paddle shifters to vary the engine speed a bit - downshift to 7th for a short time and back up to 8th. I'd keep it under 4,000 rpms.

You should take it easy on the brakes and avoid any hard or panic stops.

Enjoy the new ride!

 

2500 at 70? at 85 i'm at 1950.

 

It was just a guess. Thanks for correcting me. That's even less stress on the engine. Nevertheless, it's important to vary the rpms.

 

Chet, like was mentioned, take it easy on the car for say the first 500 miles. Getting the car out on the highway and letting it cruise at 2,000 RPM will get things where they want. The initial take offs should be fairly easy (keep the RPMs under say 3,000 RPMs and let the car roll itself up to speed. Do that for say the first 100 miles. Then as you get more miles, you can start being harder and harder on the engine. But, I would not push it up over say 5,000 RPMs til you have 500 miles on the engine. After the first 500 miles, find a back road and see what the car can do. By then you should also have a feel for what the car will do so when the kitty leaps, you will be ready.

 

Chet I make that trip at least every two weeks. Just a friendly FYI, if you do bring the new Jag down to Phoenix make sure you have a radar detector if you plan on having any fun on the way. They have seemingly increased speed traps as of recently. Don't speed down the hill in Bullhead, the last 30 coming into Kingmon and about 15 miles from Wickenburg on thru Wickenburg have been really well patrolled as of recently. I'm sure it will be even worse because of the Final Four. Congrats on the new car!!!! And show us some pics when it arrives.

 

Thank you! I am picking up the car today. they are putting a new battery in it because its probably been setting around a lot since it was built. it has 15 miles on it so being a 2016 by now that battery hasn't been maintained with good charges. I was pleased they addressed this issue. needless to say I'm a nervous new parent about the car. I've had Porsche & MB before but this is my first Jaguar. Just hoping for good luck on dependability. I've asked them to check all the diagnostics and updates to the info system. anything else come to mind I should address? I appreciate the feedback! Thanks for the help Stuart.

 

Thanks! I plan on taking it easy for a while. I'm never hard on cars and respect them as a piece of equipment not to be abused. I was raised by a man who was a fanatic about maintenance and taking care of things so it will be in good hands. I just want to be sure I don't do anything to mess it up early on that will cause problems down the road. I see this as my last large luxury car as with age we become less able to handle large cars. I'm excited about the luxury and elegance of it but of course apprehensive when it comes to dependability and maintenance. Porsche was somewhat of a nightmare because of all the weirdness with electrical etc. Same with MB. Thanks for the heads up on travel to PHX. I'll be sure to put the radar detector in.

 

Good advice. us old guys take a while to adapt to new technology and the power of these cars. I'm excited to pick it up today. maybe take a ride out to the damn and have lunch in Boulder City just for a warm up. Of course we all know dealerships so I'll probably end up being there most of the day. HAHAHA

 

Chet, enjoy the ride initially. But, that first punch, well, all I can say is "gitty little school girl". Feeling the kitty get on its back legs and spring forward is always fun. I think you will also find keeping the RPMs down is going to be fairly easy (atleast with the 5.0L engine). I find I don't have to take the RPMs up over 2,500 normally to keep up with/pass normal traffic from a stop.

 

And Chet, if you are not going to use this car almost daily, please get a battery maintainer ( not "charger") , and the favoured brand is CTEK. These cars, like all modern luxury makes, require full battery voltage all the time, and if they don't get it, there will be random electrical symptoms ranging from warning lights to window, seat, touchscreen, lock problems, and the issue is always low battery voltage. They have put a new battery in your car but if your use is infrequent or only short runs, the battery charge will eventually drop.
With a maintainer used when you are not actually using the car, you will have no problem.
And modern Jaguars are very, very reliable so there should be no concerns there...and anyway, you have a full warranty.

 

Thanks for letting me know... I had the same issue with a Porsche. Thankfully I still have the charger/maintainer so I'll be sure to hook it up before I leave on trips etc where it won't be driven for a week or so. Appreciate the heads up!