Hello All!

A long time ago, when I was a young teen of maybe 14 years old, I saw a magazine ad for a 1982 Jaguar XJS and fell in love. I told myself someday I would have one of these beautiful machines.

Many years passed. Marriage and divorce. Kids born, grew up, and left the house. Jobs, relocations, birthdays, graduations, deaths.

When I stared in the mirror as 2011 passed into 2012, I asked myself, what have I always wanted to do but haven't yet? The answer was obvious. I had kept that very same magazine ad all these years. I dug it out and pasted it to my bathroom mirror so that I would be reminded every day.

I started doing some research. These older cars that I loved that had always seemed out of my reach suddenly seemed within it. I did switch from pursuing the XJS to looking at and falling in love with the XK8. Not that I don't want one (of each!) eventually.

I turned 43 in June this year, and today I bought a 1997 XK8. I have posted two photos. It is a 1997 convertible with two previous owners (according to the carfax) and 65,511 miles on it.

She - I have named her Layla, as I was listening to Clapton on the way down to the test drive - is still at the dealership for a couple of reasons. The driver side tire has a knot in it and at a low speed she wobbles a tiny bit. Also, the boot is jammed and will not open. The dealership says they will have both fixed by Friday afternoon; that's when I will pick her up.

Needless to say, I am feeling a combination of ecstasy and numbness. I will be overjoyed when I drive the car home.

I deeply appreciate the knowledge and expertise that I hope to learn from on this forum, and I look forward to getting to know you - and my new XK8 - much better.

Peter

 

I neglected to mention that I live in Houston TX and bought the vehicle in the Clearlake / League City area.

 

Hello, Peter,

Welcome to JaguarForums.com!

What a great introduction

I know you'll enjoy your stay here as it really is a great bunch of people.

BTW, your car is beautiful!

 

Hey there Peter and +1 on the elcome aboard from Shaune, good to have you here with us

Also, please drop in and visit the regional section for your area, there are lots of members local to you with the same interests.

Some have meets and events planned and its a good way to get to know your neighbour with a Cat
Regional - Jaguar Forums - Jaguar Enthusiasts Forum

There's a really great mix of information, camraderrie and fun here.....

If you haven't done so already you should add your car details to your signature to help others to help you.

I've manually upgraded you to full forum access so you can better view the whole site and all its features
Please Jump on in and enjoy the site.................

 

Hi Peter,

Welcome aboard!!! My wife has named her car Lola...I currently have a few other names for her but that will pass soon enough...lol. Your car is a beaut and I hope you have many years of enjoyment...

 

Welcome Peter,
Aren't the xk8's beautiful. Having said that, you will most likely have some issues with it. This is the place to get all the help you should need. You might start out with the faq's. The more knowledge you can gain the better. They are great cars and I hope you have many great miles with your new purchase.

I pick mine up on Aug. 7th in North Carolina. Looking forward to the trip home.

Good Luck,

 

Thanks everyone for the welcome. I am looking forward to our interaction here. And thanks for the link to regional/local enthusiasts, I'm sure that will come in handy.

Friarshuck; What sort of troubles do you anticipate I might have with the car?

 

Welcome to the forum Peter,

Great Intro. Read the script and running through in my mind who I see taking the lead in the movie.

XK8 looks superb. Follow this link XK8 / XKR - Jaguar Forums - Jaguar Enthusiasts Forum for help and advice. The HOW TO section at the top of the threads there is a good place to start learning about this model.

Remember to add vehicle details to your Signature to help others to give relevant advice. Go to the User ID button on the left of the top menu bar, then Settings & Options under Your Control Panel. Select Edit Signature and enter the details.

Graham

 

Welcome to the forum Layla801,

Good to have you with us.

If you haven't done so already you should add your car details to your signature to help others to help you.

 

Hello again all -

...maybe I should start another thread? Not sure yet. I brought the new XK8 home a few days ago and I love it. I do have some issues with tires and alignment but I'll get those fixed this week. I think I also need to have the brakes and suspension checked out - I think they're OK but I want it done for my own peace of mind, as I'd like to take the vehicle on a 3 or 4-hour drive next weekend.

I also have a couple of issues with some things the dealer said he'd do and didn't ... for example, he said he'd flush all the fluids, but he didn't ... but the dealer is a couple of hours away, he's a one-man operation and a slight bit shady (I think that's my reaction to all salespeople), and I think I'd like to handle whatever comes up on my own at this point.

This morning on the way to the office I saw "Traction Control Fail" followed by "Stability Control Fail" appear on the control panel. The car didn't seem to be affected and I was five minutes from the office so I continued on. When I arrived I parked and turned it off and then started it up again. The warnings were no longer there. What does this mean and what should I be concerned about?

Thanks all

PKB

 

Peter,

Check this link for Traction / Stability Control Fail:

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...stability+fail

In the unlikely event you don't find the answer there, start a new thread on XK8/XKR section.

Have a look in the 'HOW TO's at the top of the XK8/XKR section for information on brakes etc. Same goes - if you don't find the answers you're after, post a new thread in XK8/XKR section.

Graham

 

Hi there, I see you've posted into the XKR section, thats great, as thats where you're lkely to get the best asistance from.

This post is in the new members section and really only intended as a welcome area.

Good luck

 

Excellent, thank you!

PKB

 

Good morning all!

I wanted to give you an update. I've had my car for about two months now. I love it, love it, love it. The car turns heads everywhere it goes. There are a few things I need to have taken care of though.

1. Headlights. the headlights are dim and aren't positioned correctly. I bought new headlight bulbs and I watched the lamp replacement video but I just cannot get those round covers off! The ones accessible from the wheel wells are the ones I'm referring to. They are both jammed and won't move one bit.
2. Shocks. I've bought new tires and had the alignment done, but the shop says my shocks, especially the front, are almost completely gone. I tend to agree. I plan to do these myself in a couple of weeks. I am curious about the state of the shock mounts and bushings so I'll take a close look at these soon.
3. Passenger seat heater. It comes on and goes off by itself, whether there is anyone in the seat or not. It seems to come on when there is forward motion, and turn on and off while driving, and turn off when braking (when the car is pitching forward). When it is on, I cannot turn it off, the button on the dash won't work. However, when it is off, I can turn it on and off using the button. When it comes on I can hear a click, like an electrical relay, somewhere under the dash.
4. The dealership did not have any service records on this vehicle. The carfax only lists "services" but nothing specific. I've driven almost 1500 miles in the car since I bought it, it's at just over 67,000 miles now, so I think it may be wise to get the 60,000 mile service.
5. Inside the convertible top where the hole is for a hand hold, presumably so that you can manually maneuver the convertible top if necessary, the fabric is missing. I feel that maybe someone installed something there at one point. I don't quite know what to do with this or how to approach it. It may be costly to fix, I don't know. Does anyone have any suggestions on where to go or how to repair the inside of the convertible top?
6. Leather repair on the drivers seat. The drivers seat has a couple of spots where the leather is worn and close to a tear. I get in and out rather carefully.

Aside from these things - all fixable - the car is great and I love it. The only down side of owning a Jag is now everyone thinks I'm made of money (when in fact I'm saving up to fix the car). This is a dream come true and every day is somewhat more enjoyable now.

All the best -

Pete

 

Pete,

Good to hear you're enjoying the XK8 and there's nothing major to rectify.

With the seat heater, when you can hear the relay click, the fault is probably with the passenger seat module. These are notorious for the circuit board getting breaks in the tracks and causing strange behaviour with the seat controls.

This section is for Intros and you'll get a better response to solutions for this and your question about the convertible top if you post in the XK8/XKR section.

Graham

 

Roger that - thanks Graham -

Pete