I'm new around here and have been eyeballing a 2005 XKR Coupe for some time. I'm finally in a position to purchase and have found a couple that have captured my interest. If all goes according to plan, I will be frequenting this forum on a regular basis. Unfortunately the vehicles I'm considering are on opposite sides of the country as I'm in Chicago...both potential vehicles are in CA or FL and would likely be purchased sight-unseen and shipped to me from a dealer.

In any event, most of the XKR coupes that fall within my budget have between 85k-110k miles. So my question is this; how reliable are XKRs with 100k mileage? Assuming the vehicle is well maintained, can I expect to get 200k miles from an XKR? This would be my daily driver (aside from winter months) and I typically commute 35-40 miles per day on the highway.

What key factors should I be looking for/asking about when inquiring about a 2005 XKR coupe?

And finally what is the main difference between 2005 XKR coupes vs 02, 03, 04 etc?

Thanks ahead of time!

 

So, I'm a new owner of an '01 XKR and can say it's such a pleasure to drive and I'll add a definite head-turner as well :P

There are others on this forum who are much more mechanically inclined than myself who can answer your question more completely, but i just have two things to add

You already mentioned it's just a summer/spring car, which is great! This is not the type of car you can trust in the winter. Sure, getting winter tires can help, but with a powerful rear-wheeled drive car, it's difficult to stay on the road. The day I purchased mine i had to drive it while it was snowing, i could barely get it up my tiny driveway! Not only that, but you'd be kicking yourself for ruining the paint after years of salt/sand damage.

If you're a city driver....don't look at the 'instant mpg' view on your odometer, you'll feel your pocket getting lighter at ever accelleration :P I'm mostly a city driver and average about 14.6 MPG.

Neither of those facts dissuaded me, but just be aware!

 

I understand. I've been a Thunderbird driver for the last 16 years...currently have a '97 with a supercharged (Eaton M90) '00 p&p mustang motor (4.6). It's useless in winter.

Nah, I'm not actually in downtown Chicago. Most of my driving is on the highway...but that wouldn't dissuade me either. My T-bird gets roughly 12mpg. Practicality isn't an issue...reliability is.

 

It would be WISE to only buy one with a maint history you can see on paper. Don't just take ones word that the car has been taken car of. Buying a car that you don't see first hand, huum, with it being a Jag also, I would think long and hard on that one. With these cars you must have a wallet full of money to fix them if you can't do that type of work yourself. You are looking at the XKR, it is a little bit more of a beast on working on the motor then the XK8, seems to me the SC covers a TON on these motors and makes it hard to reach NORMAL repairs these cars tend to have.
At 80-110k the car can be just fine and driveable for another 100k but if it has not been maintained, it could be a cluster F that will make you wish you had not got it.
the Front end on these are known for lots of part failure, bushings, shock mounts, and if your car has ADAPTIVE crap on it, some of the front end parts go WAY up in price.
97-02 is the 4.0 motor, 03 and up is the 4.2 motor which is the desired motor as far as Jag having got most bugs out of it by 03.

 

Again Maint history documented ro receipts of work, the 05 is near the end of the series and most problems have been addressed so it's just wear and tear (and yes the suspension probably needs work, 10 years takes it toll on rubber).
I'd ask about the transmission fluid change and if it hasn't been done get them to do it first, it's due at those miles.

And finally what is the main difference between 2005 XKR coupes vs 02, 03, 04 etc? [/QUOTE]
up to 02 the car had a 4.0 liter eng, 4.2 after. Some convenience updates (btooth) and styling. Note the navigation is basically worthless, DVD driven with the latest update 2004.

Do some searches here on the forum on 03-06 and see what folks have run into.

 

I will say again, MAINT HISTORY is HUGE on these cars. I would want it. At those miles you are looking at simple radiator and heater hoses starting to get OLD. On that SC version of the XK8 you are looking at some work to get to the various small coolant hoses.
I would look over these forums closely. Now you will see mostly all THIS OR THAT IS BROKE threads. That does not mean the sky is falling on these cars, just take note and see if it was fixed on your car you buy. If you want, step down to the XK8, with the money you are spending on the XKR you can get a really nice XK8. Sure the power is not the same you will still get the smiles for gallon and folsk will still look at ya and say NICE.

 

Thanks for the replies. I'm not concerned with all of the "THIS OR THAT IS BROKE threads" as I come from another forum. That's what forums are for and these types of threads have saved me in the past.

I do most of my own work/maint on my own vehicles, aside from oil changes which I don't mind paying the extra few bucks for the convenience.

I found another candidate 05 XKR coupe with 53K miles and a carfax that indicates regular maint performed by a Jag dealer. That's the best I've found so far, as far as maint is concerned.

I don't think I could downgrade to an XK8. As stated, I currently have a 97 Thunderbird with an (aftermarket) supercharged mustang engine. I'm kinda used to having 350 hp on tap. They styling on the XKR seems more aggressive too.

On that note, jamdmyers, you mentioned that the styling of the 05 was updated when compared to previous models. Can you specify what exactly was changed? Its hard to pick out the subtleties in low-res pictures. Or maybe I misunderstood your comment...

 

My '01 XK8 has 125k+ on the clock and is my daily driver. It has been reliable and not too costly given its age.

That said, I do most of the work myself, saving the big jobs for the independent mechanics (motorcar man on this forum).

Check the stickies on the main page. They have a section on what to look for in these cars by model.

Good luck!

 

Just a thought. I see that your looking at cars from Florida. I just spent a month in the southern half of Florida looking for another Jag. Boy was I disappointed in what I saw in person. Sun baked paint, (red turns to orange in the south) dry rot in the seals hoses and seats, sun faded dashes & tops, torched clear coat on the bumper covers. Also those are the cars that most tend to blow the top hydraulic hoses because of the constant baking they take. Personally I think your better off with a northen car that's been stored winters and not subjected to sun beating. I would not recomend buying from photo's or sketchy descriptions. At the least pay an independant in the area to inspect before you buy.

 

if a dealer has done the work, call them and see if they can give you some details. Some do it others don't.

 

I spent a lot of time looking for an XK8 last year after my previous car was totaled by an illegal immigrant hitting me. I live in VA and of course could not find a single XK8 for sale within easy driving distance so I ended up buying one sight unseen. I finally got one from NH and had it shipped.
I had the seller take lots of extra hi-res pics of various things. There was no maintenance history on the car other than the warranty work done to it by dealers. You can call a dealer with the VIN # and if you catch someone there in a good mood they will tell you all the work done to the car under warranty as its on their national computer system. So you can find out some history that way.
Buying a car sight unseen is a real crap shoot. Even with the pics and grilling the seller on several occasions I still found things wrong that the seller had outright lied about. For instance the paint looked fantastic in the pics but there is a 6" spot where someone was to aggressive with a buffer and the paint is real thin there. That was never mentioned and it didn't show from the angles he took the pics from. And other stuff like no freon at all in the AC system though he said it blew "ice cold". That and all 4 tires were down to the cord and he said they were "Like new".
But the car was in decent shape overall. It must have been stored during winters as there is no rustout anywhere and it still has original paint. Also from 2002 to 2014 it only had 40k miles put on it so it wasn't someone daily driver year round.
So no matter what a dealer or private seller says and no matter how nice the pics look be prepared for a certain amount of misrepresentation.
So I couldn't even drive my new to me Jag because it wouldn't pass VA inspection. The car had a month old NH passed inspection sticker even though it had 4 bald tires, no emer brakes etc. Guess they are lot more lax with inspections there.
But the way I look at it the misrepresentation could have been MUCH worse and I sort of consider myself lucky it didn't have anything fatal wrong with it. There were 3 others that were close enough for me to drive out and see in person and each was higher priced than what I got and they were all in worse shape than what I ended up with.
Good luck on your search.

Dave

 

My out of state purchase I had pics, carfax. The dealer out of FL (I an in OH) said his 25 years SEASONED JAG MECHANIC looked it over and found it 100 in great shape car.
Well it got to it needed all the coolant system hoses, the front end clearly needed bushing work, back tires were bald, rearview mirror hanging on barely but since fixed.
The car mechanically was fine just that fringe **** I saw upon first look the Jag Mech missed????? Chance ya take on buying a car off ebay.

 

Majik lasers
My 2002 XKR convertible has been my daily driver for 5 years during which time I have added approximately 100,000 miles to the 60,000miles that it came with.
There certainly have been repairs and maintenance but an awful lot of smiling along the way. The differences between years are essentially relegated to pre-4.2L (2002 was the last year of the 4.0L) and post 4.2L 2003-2006. The 4.0L cars had plastic secondary tensioners, which were prone to cracking and breaking which usually resulted in a trashed engine. So, if you look at 2002 or older they need to be replaced with the latest generation of metal tensioners. 2003-2006 models had this issue addressed in the 4.2L engine. Most other changes were slight cosmetic ones.

If properly maintained, these cars can easily surpass 200,000 miles. Mine is approaching 160,000 miles, looks essentially new and runs beautifully. I bought a 2010 XKR coupe just to insure that my 2002 XKR convertible didn't have to carry the load all by itself.

If the car you're looking at is anywhere in the So Cal area, there are a number of us forum members who would be happy to inspect the car for you. I have done so for another member in Maryland. Just let us know.
Ted

 

Not to be a contrarian, but last year I purchased a 97 XK8 in beautiful shape inside and out and drive it every day without worry. The car was advertised on Craigslist for $6,500 and I paid $6,000 with 55K on the clock. Carfax, new tires, cold AC, top like new, recent (last 5 years) service records from Jag dealer. The car now has 58k. I realize that I have only driven 3k and, while maybe I should, but I do not worry about the tensioners or hoses or the other things. (They may have been changed for all I know, but I have not checked.) The car runs and shifts perfectly. I did not think that I got a special deal as there were several in this price range at the time. With the help of this forum, I did replace the rear subwoofers, which now sound great. So now I have $6,083 invested. Just did not want to leave out the older cars from the discussion. My $0.02.

 

Not just the 05, over the years there were small changes in front grill and some body blending, you need to see them side by side (in pics) to understand. Also there were a number of options on various years you may want to look into, such as 20" BBs wheels, Brembo brakes, Special Editions. Not all X100 were made the same ex:Jaguar XK (X100) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

Not to be mean, not my tone with this post but you are playing with fire with the thought that since the car only has 58k on it and runs great and looks good that you are not concerned about the tensioners. They do not sorta go out where you can keep driving it, you will lose a motor if it goes. May be low miles but it is still coming up on 20 years on the road, many heat cycles to have one cracked, waiting for the next crank of the car to skip a tooth and ya hear the CLANK CLANK of the chain, shut off motor right away and had it towed home (that happened to me, the motor not damaged) or the driving down the HWY at 70 MPH and the thing breaks (and you DO lose the motor).
I would be looking at those puppies. I think you are asking for trouble, just saying.

 

I'd be watching the hoses at least also. If one goes the dummy needle gauge does not tell ya a thing till she is well on her way to overheat stage. valley hoses, octopus hose. This is not a old 350 small block that can handle a overheat.

 

As others have said, these tensioners are great until they aren't. When they aren't they are VERY expensive. Your best case is likely ONLY bent valves. If it's just that, you can probably fix in your garage by yourself for under $500. Pay a shop on a AJV8 for head work and add a few thousand to that number.

Honestly, your 97 would not be worth fixing (unless DIY) even with 60k miles if the tensioners toasted your motor. Spend $250 and replace the secondaries at least. Maybe you're right and they have been replaced! You now know and can take photos to document (increase resale of car).

A 1997 MY car is at minimum 18 years old. I would be on my 3rd set of hoses if it was my car. I replace all coolant hoses every 10 years. I have bad burns on my right arm from a coolant accident, and I've replaced head gaskets on overheated cars before (luckily iron heads so more inconvenience than anything). Hoses are cheap and can save at worst, burns like mine, or an overheated motor.

That 1997 with a new water pump, tstat housing, hoses and tensioners will be a long term reliable car. Then all you have to worry about is the a drum in the transmission and XK8 maladies like convertible top fluid gelling and burst hoses.

 

The tensioners on my '97 went when the car was only 5 years old with 57k and it bent 2 exhaust valves. It was under warranty then. I have no idea what generation they replaced them with even though metal ones where available then that doesn't mean they used them. And as I have no records for the car from 2002 to 2014 its also possible they went again during that period and could have been replaced again. If they are still the ones the dealer replaced in 2002 they now have 40k miles on them and even so I am ready to see whats in there and have already bought the parts in case they are not 4th gen which I doubt. I want the piece of mind to know it wont be a parts car one day because I didn't check it out.


Dave

 

Just to be clear up my previous post, I do plan to have those things (tensioners, hoses, water pump, coolant tower) checked/replaced at my 60K check-up, along with the fuel filter, anti-freeze, spark plugs (even thought they are not due until 100K). If my attitude appeared to be cavalier, I apologize. I know that a failure of any of these systems can have serious consequences. With that said, my attempted point was that these these older cars can be a great value.