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Hi, can anyone tell me when the seam-less y pipes were introduced and how to identify them on the car. Is it obvious with the engine cover off? April 2017 MY18 250 kW. TIA.
The changeover from seamed plastic to seamless plastic Y pipes was spread out a bit depending on market and model but it was generally from late 2016 to late 2018.
Your base model 2017 sits right in the middle so it could have either type.
Yes it is obvious once the engine cover is removed, the top "cross-over" pipe is now in plain view across the top/front of the engine.
The older seamed pipe has an obvious flanged join running horizontal across the pipe while the updated pipe is round and smooth with no flange or join/seam.
Plenty of pics around here but I'll leave it to you to find them!
The changeover from seamed plastic to seamless plastic Y pipes was spread out a bit depending on market and model but it was generally from late 2016 to late 2018.
Your base model 2017 sits right in the middle so it could have either type.
Yes it is obvious once the engine cover is removed, the top "cross-over" pipe is now in plain view across the top/front of the engine.
The older seamed pipe has an obvious flanged join running horizontal across the pipe while the updated pipe is round and smooth with no flange or join/seam.
Plenty of pics around here but I'll leave it to you to find them!
Thanks for such a comprehensive reply. I’ll pop the cover off and have a look tomorrow.
Cheers
Regardless, you need to replace them anyways, either version will fail with age.
Exactly. The seam is ONE failure point. The ends of the pipe are another. They get cooked and brittle because they are directly connected to the metal of the block. I wouldn't trust them if they are more than 5 years old.
Exactly. The seam is ONE failure point. The ends of the pipe are another. They get cooked and brittle because they are directly connected to the metal of the block. I wouldn't trust them if they are more than 5 years old.
Mine is a 2015 R, 32k miles, over 10 years old. Had it for about 4 years. I still have the original seamed plastic pipes
Mine is a 2015 R, 32k miles, over 10 years old. Had it for about 4 years. I still have the original seamed plastic pipes
(Gonna get that addressed very soon).
Interesting isn’t it. Some reports of pipes failing at early mileage and others are still in place after many years and mileage. It should’ve been a recall given the potential damage it can cause if you overheat the engine.
Interesting isn’t it. Some reports of pipes failing at early mileage and others are still in place after many years and mileage. It should’ve been a recall given the potential damage it can cause if you overheat the engine.
Yeah I am sure a whole host of factors combine. Climate, how hard you drive it, luck, etc. It is a pretty common thing for JLR and actually other makes have had similar issues with plastic coolant parts (Porsche, Mercedes, BMW). It is a pretty bad point of failure in that sometimes it doesn't give symptoms until it really cuts loose and drains all your coolant in 60 seconds. Best to bite the bullet and do the PM work for peace of mind, I have waited too long as it is and am probably jinxing myself right now.
Yeah I am sure a whole host of factors combine. Climate, how hard you drive it, luck, etc. It is a pretty common thing for JLR and actually other makes have had similar issues with plastic coolant parts (Porsche, Mercedes, BMW). It is a pretty bad point of failure in that sometimes it doesn't give symptoms until it really cuts loose and drains all your coolant in 60 seconds. Best to bite the bullet and do the PM work for peace of mind, I have waited too long as it is and am probably jinxing myself right now.
Plastic and heat is a bad combo. I had a 4.0 XKR with plastic timing chain tensioners which were a weak point in that engine. Cracking, losing pressure and causing slack timing chains and possible self destruction on start up. I had it retrofitted with later alloy tensioners along with alloy water pump impeller and thermostat housing for peace of mind.
I’ll definitely do the F Type y pipes sometime soon.
The changeover from seamed plastic to seamless plastic Y pipes was spread out a bit depending on market and model but it was generally from late 2016 to late 2018.
Your base model 2017 sits right in the middle so it could have either type.
Yes it is obvious once the engine cover is removed, the top "cross-over" pipe is now in plain view across the top/front of the engine.
The older seamed pipe has an obvious flanged join running horizontal across the pipe while the updated pipe is round and smooth with no flange or join/seam.
Plenty of pics around here but I'll leave it to you to find them!
Definitely the original style seamed pipe unfortunately. Will look into an alloy upgrade kit.
Pretty sure they all are plastic but I could be wrong. Pop your hood and take a look. If it is plastic on a 2024 I wouldn't run out and get it swapped, it should be fine. Not like these things break on 1 year old cars. Depending on where you live I would start thinking about it in maybe 4 or 5 years - then switch to aluminum.
I did not hesitate once my wife got here 2024, and pulled the
hood of and yanked all the garbage plastic parts out and after 1000 miles
I changed the break in oil, now all my metal parts are in and some
Redline water wetter to help condition the waterpump and I'm done,and changed
the isolator with the ZZP one like I've got im my XF
that has lasted over 5 years im XF nice and quiet and reliable
Last edited by dennis black; Oct 31, 2025 at 08:43 PM.
If you have the updated plastic pipes (after 2018 or so), there's not really much you can do. They don't often fail catastrophically, and if you replace them with metal, you still have sealing rings that will compress and leak over time. I'd just as soon replace pipe and seals, rather than put non-oem pipes and still have to pull them around the same time for weeping past the seals. The old seamed pipes would leak and then split wide open, that doesn't really happen anymore, you get plenty of warning about the coolant loss usually.
