Hi everyone, hope you're doing well!

I'm the new owner of a 2003 X308 XJ8 in Zircon Blue with 87k miles in Michigan.
I used to work for JLR in the UK till 2017 so I thought it was time I buy a Jag.

The car has an interesting history, it spent the first half of its life in Florida, before coming to Michigan. It did most of its mileage down there and as such the body is rust-free and in great condition.
The actual interesting part is the first owner seems to have been a rather naughty fellow and the car was seized and auctioned by the DEA along with a bunch of other cars, yachts and houses. Over 100 people in 4 countries were arrested as part of this guys "organization".
Even though its what I lovingly call "Florida pensioner spec", the first owner seems to have been more Tony Montana than Tommy Bahama...

The owner before me only had it a few months but started on a long list of work to get it up and running as it had been sitting in an old fellows garage for years since coming to Michigan.
Its had a lot of front suspension work, VVC parts replaced, some transmission and AirCon work.

I've replaced the rear wheels and tires with ones that now match the fronts, Replaced some missing plastic trim pieces, given it a good polish, new keys and handbooks etc (it only came with a single key, the old fellow lost the rest when his kids moved him to a home unfortunately). Im planning to re-dye and fill cracks in some of the leather (steering wheel and drivers seat) but the rest is in fantastic condition. Im also replacing the radio with a Joying 6.2" unit and I've had the dash apart to replace the reach motor cable in the steering column (lots of cuts on my hands from that not-so-fun job).

As the maintenance history of the car is a bit murky, im planning to do a bunch of preventative maintenance. Obviously oil, oil filter, air filter, fuel filter, plugs etc...but a question...should i consider a gearbox service (fluids, fliter, gasket etc) and new ignition coils? The car drives fantastically, the only thing i think is its running a little rich and needs the MAF cleaned.

Basically I think my question is "I'm bring the car back from a long slumber, it seems to be running great but what things should I check/change to make it as bulletproof as possible?"

All the best from Rochester Hills, Michigan!

 

Welcome to the forums ZirconXJ8,

Great car. I had the same one in black. I expect the exterior to stand up well but the interior also looks exceptionally good for 87K and ex-FL.

Follow this link https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/xj-xj8-xjr-x308-27/ to the X308 forum for help, advice and information. The 'HOW TO' thread at the top is a good place to start for information on regular issues. You can also use the US Midwest Region forum by following this link https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/us-midwest-39/ to find other members in your region.

Please read the guidance for new members ( https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/n...ned-up-241802/ ) which answers many of the most frequent questions about getting started.

Enjoy the forums.

Graham

 

Thanks Graham, much appreciated!

 

Welcome aboard.

 

Hello,
Congratulations on your new Jaguar! Pretty Car it is too.
Welcome to the forums from ElinorB.
(';')

 

Welcome to the Forums.

 

Welcome to the forums.

 

Welcome to Jaguar Forums ZirconXJ8,

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 to the forum - enjoy!!!