Dear Jaguar enthousiasts,

Let me introduce myself. French, 35 years old, living in the UK for a numbers of years now. Pistonhead. To keep a long story short, I bought myself an XK8 convertible MY 2000 earlier in April, 77k miles, red carnival and creamy interior. Car in very good condition overall, all the electonics works, the engine/gear box both run smoothly. Have a fair amount of history about the car - but not the service / repair bills though. I took a risk, but knew about it. The engine is very likely to be the original, so prone to Nickasil wear related issues and plastic tensionners.

I must admit I fall in love with the big cat. So my objective is to drive it as long as possible and as far as possible, and certainly willing to spend a few quids in it. But I would prefer to maintain the car on my own to learn the car properly. Comestic is second order to me, mecanic is the priority, for the first few years at least. Luckily enough, I have my dad in law very much into the Jaguar thing for the last 25/30 years (XK120, MKII and since recently an XK8 coupé...what a coincidence ! :-) ). That means access to a proper garage in France once or twice in a year with a ramp and any possible tools.

I already got tons of information thanks to this forum and simply decided to register. There is never enough help for quite a complex and intimidating car. My own mecanical experience is limited to several kind of models making, including large scale 1/5 RC models with petrol engine. I quite like electronic and computer related stuff. Helped my dad in restauring vintage cars in my childhood. Relatively competent but still quite a long way down to face the XK8 challenge properly. However I am determined to knowledge up rapidly and got myself various Jaguar Service Guides, Diagnostic and test manuals, Technical Service bulletins, and the (expensive) Haynes.

Should be no surprise to you, the engine will need in depth attention very shortly: plastic timing chain tensionners, water pump, thermostat, belt, gearbox service, oil service, sparkplugs. Had an issue with the cooling system last WE - leak of cooling fluid but no alert on dash, just the message "low cooling fluid". No obvious leak, or damages. Top up the cooling liquid, no problem since then but water pomp, thermostat, hoses...all of that need close inspection and, very likely, replacement. Make a lot of sense to do eveything at the same time - a few days of fun !! Got a quote from a Jaguar specialist at £1,250 for the replacement of timing chain tensionners (upper and lower) and £300 for the gearbox service. Expensive, but expected. Although I could pay it I prefer to be 100% sure about what is done and fitted. A service of the geabox without replacing the pan is not quite a proper service, is it ? I have a lack of confidence with garages I suppose.

I am still after the detailled information I need for the dismentleling sequence, the specialist tools, all the other items I need (includig gaskets, replacement bolts, etc.). So I am likely to ask further questions very soon !!

Thanks for reading,
Jerome

 

Welcome to the forum Jerome,

Good to have you with us.
An interesting intro, just needs a picture.
You have obviously found the tech section, the guys will help with your problems, don't forget to look in your two regional sections UK - Jaguar Forums - Jaguar Enthusiasts Forum & Europe - Jaguar Forums - Jaguar Enthusiasts Forum
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.

 

welcome to the forum and the Jag family - great intro but with all great intro's pics are a must!!! As you have found, the info and support here are outstanding - never alone as help is just a keystroke away. Enjoy

 

Welcome to the forum Jerome,

Great Intro.

Follow Norri's link to the XK8/XKR tech section for help, advice and information. The 'HOW TO' thread at the top there is a good place to start for info on regular issues.

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.

Enjoy the forum.

Graham

 

Thanks for your welcoming messages ! Pics will follow shortly. I have now added a signature.

If the car is in fairly good nick comestically speaking, it clearly needs attention from a mecanical point of view. Basically my "maintenance plan" is to cover the most important things on the engine/gearbox in 2013 and then look at the suspension / steering in 2014 (bushes, shock absorbers, bearings etc..). Of course, I am exposed to serious unexpected issues so the plan is purely indicative. I am quite realistic about that, I read a number of times that, amongst many XK8 owners, there is a feeling of constant worry that never goes away ! I think I already know what that means !

 

The great thing is that my boy does not really worry at all ! He loves the car as much as I do, that's for sure.

 

The time for you to start worrying is when he's old enough to reach the pedals.

Graham

 

Here you go. Sorry, will do the front of the car later. I know the exhaust pipes are too big - but the noise is somehow poisonous.

 

Welcome aboard....... good to have you here with us here at Jaguarforums

Any useful site information you may need such as how to post pictures, edit signatures, add videos,
use the search facility etc, can be found here within the following link Helpful_information

Please also take the time to check out the regional section for your area!

There are lots of members local to you with the same interests with info on local dealers and possible meets.
Regional - Jaguar Forums - Jaguar Enthusiasts Forum

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

 

I finally decided to go for the safest option for the replacement of my thermostat housing (leak of cooling fluid): visit my local Jaguar specialist. The gearbox has been serviced as well, great results: smoother and less slippage. New brakes at the rear, handbrake sorted, anti corrosion treatment underneath. Did not come cheap but really happy with the results.

My engine below, after a good clean using the Autoglym products and a fair amount of elbow grease (no water at all used in the process, too worried for the electronics)

 

And finally the best angle

 

Georgeous car Jerome!

 

Great angle - but it looks so much better without the bins.



Graham

 

So true ! Thanks for hiding these atrocities !

Got a replacement key from a Jaguar dealership today.

For information:
1) £136 including VAT for the replacement key itself - order accepted by Jaguar after proving my identity & address. Delivered in 4 working days by courier (+£14 incl. VAT).
2) £84 including VAT for the programming of the key at the dealer

The guy told me that a new fob would cost me £126 (presumably excluding VAT) and an extra £84 to program it. I am sure, there are cheaper, but less straightforward, solutions which do not involve a Jaguar dealer. But, still, watch after you keys !

 

Jerome,

That's a serious increase since the last time I ordered an XK8 key in Oct 2006. The key was £40.80 and programming was £50.

If you need a new fob, used ones are readily available from eBay etc and you can program them yourself. Just be sure to get the correct series number of fob.

Graham

 

A few fresh news.

Back a week ago, by pressing the button to take the roof down, one of the pipe feeding the top convertible latch just got busted. Niagara falls of green Pentosin fluid in the cabin through the overhead console...rather unpleasant as you can imagine. Fortunately I had a towel to hand to protect the trims and fabrics.

The replacement part - hydraulic pipes which come in pairs - costs just below £200. The car is now with my specialist for repair. It may take 2 or 3 days to finish off the job as it is labour intensive. So I expect a bill of at least £1,000. Apparently it is not that unusual for the hydraulic pipes to fail, simply because of aging.

In the meantime, I have ordered the most comprehensive timing chain kit from Barratt and the appropriate timing tools. I plan to tackle the job next week - replacement of primary tensioners, secondary tensioners, chains, water pump, belt tensioner and driving belt. I am pretty nervous but an experienced mecanic will be looking over my shoulders. Wish me luck !

So quite a lot of expenses at the moment. But not bad enough to be gutted

 

Ouch! You have a higher "gutted" threshold than me.

I can confirm from the many posts on this topic that the hydraulic hoses are a common failure. A search on "green shower" will bring up lots of info.

You'll find several detailed posts on timing chain and tensioner replacement in the XK8/XKR FAQ's which may help.

Graham

 

Thanks for the kind offer Graham, but I think I have gathered all the documentation I need for the time chain tensioners and I have spent a long time to review the details. From a theoritical point of view, I am ready ! Now let's prove to myself I can do it the proper way :-)

Actually the work on the hydraulic hoses has been completed in a day, the car is available for collection - Non stop work from 8am to 4.30pm today. Rather impressive, compared to what I read here and there on the forum. Fingers crossed, it will now work as it should !

 

Hi Jerome, I like your photos, and your enthusiasm. Keep it up! Best wishes fir a smooth timing chain and tensioner refresh.

Steve

 

My engine has now got its new timing chains, blades, metal tensionners and water pump in place ! Success !!

The top plastic tensionners were badly cracked, as the blades, so it was definitively the right time to fit the upgrade (mileage = 79k)

The job is fiddly but not as difficult/technical as I feared. The most annoying part, by far, was the removal of the crankshaft pulley. It took us a few hours to get over it. We did not have the special remover thus we had to fiddle around with our own remover, with liberal use of penetrating fluid and heat. Some damned brute force was necessary to get it out. Was a real pain in the neck (to stay polite).

It may sound stupid but the removal of the dipstick was also a pain and some persuation was required.

Apart from that, patience and organisation are the main skills to have, as the parts get together in a logical way.

Pics to follow when I am back to the UK. Cheers