Hi all -
I've been taking advantage of this site for a while without a formal intro, so, hello! My story:

I had a '98 SL500, which I loved, but at 145K miles it was beginning to develop the small-things-failures, as happens with those cars. And even though I loved it, it was getting that plasticy/chemicall-y Old Mercedes smell, so it was time to part ways.

My stepfather and I love to go look at cars, so I dragged him out to look at some newer SLK's (not impressed), and on the way back he insisted I stop at a Carmax. I mean the guy wouldn't take No. So there we are, looking around, (stepdad had already snagged the Friendly Cougar saleslady)... and I see this one car.

"Oh, that?" Friendly Cougar says, "THAT'S the Jaguar. Before you say anything I'm gonna warn you: if you drive it, you'll buy it."

Well, I drove it. Didn't buy it - had that crazy Carmax price - but I DID end up buying a certified 2011 XK Convertible in VA, of all places (was in DC for the holidays). I fully intended to drive this car back up to NYC, grab some stuff, then do a winter cross-country to LA, my home. But the car busted a water pump hose... just past the HOLLAND TUNNEL. On the Saturday before New Years' Eve. Thank God I rock-starred a parking space in Tribeca, as my brand new Jag sat there for the next three days before it could be towed.

In my flurry of Jaguar research I came to find out that the headquarters for Jaguar North America was in Jersey, and right near a NJ Transit stop. So off I went, striding in on the next business morning and demanding to speak with the head of Jaguar Land Rover North America. Didn't get that dude... but I did get an amazing woman who was --better still-- the head of Jaguar Customer Relations. Long story short(er): car was fixed. Jaguar North America "returned" my XK to my home, in LA. Transpo'd it all the way across the country. Washed it when it arrived. Also paid for a one-way plane ticket. And the cab to JFK. And dinner the night before.

And I loved my XK, but always regretted not searching for an XKR. So, when I was T-boned (19-year-old in an old Ford Explorer that sustained no damage whatsoever), and the Jag body shop said that while the damage wasn't fatal the kid had crunched the main wiring harness which was itself a 26K repair, they totalled it. And a 2010 XKR convertible with 8,000 miles became available two weeks later.

I LOVE LOVE the car. With a few caveats:
- if I had a do-over, I'd find one with 19" wheels. Not wild about the 20's.
- I've already posted on a thread about this, but I've got some strange vibratey-shudder thing from the rear end on left turns. Differential, I guess.
- speaking of, man that rear end kicks out easy in low gears! Is that typical of these cars or is that part of the shuddering issue, above?
- am getting an occasional, very small high-pitched whine from the dash (or engine compartment) when I accelerate most specifically between 1500-2500 RPM. Interestingly, this is much more pronounced on very hot days. Goes away almost entirely in the winter.
- - I love driving it, and have put 10K miles on it myself already (it's my daily driver, and I drive A LOT). So it's tire time. I've read all the tire threads on here, and I'm choosing between Michelin AS-3's and Conti Extreme Pro DWS. Any thoughts welcome.

So, there you go.
GREAT site, by the way. Terrific postings.
Peter

 

Welcome.

 

Hello, Peter,
Wow! What a saga! One thing your story shows, if you have a problem, go Straight to the top with Incredible confidence (like you own the place) and you'll probably get farther than if you go mincing in the door like the proverbial church mouse.

One of the Mods will be along shortly to direct you to the correct section where you can find help for your current problems.

Welcome to the forums from ElinorB.
(';')

 

Welcome to the forum Peter,

Good to have you with us at Jaguar forums. Your detailed Intro was well worth the wait!

Pleased to hear Jaguar CRC looked after you. Shame about the T-bone.

I can see you've already found your way to the X150 forum so there's no need for a link to it from me.

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

You can also visit the US Western Region forum by following this link https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/western-us-ak-ca-nv-ut-hi-wa-id-38/ to find other members in your region.

Enjoy the forums.

Graham

 

welcome to the forum - enjoy!!

 

Welcome to Jaguar Forums pk4144,

Good to have you with us.
Enjoy the forum.

If you haven't done so already you should add your car details to your signature to help others to help you.
If you need help with getting around and using the forum follow this link for some help Forum Help

 

Welcome aboard.