I'm going to do change these myself for sure. Is there a write-up on the front sway bar links.

 

I haven't done one.....

 

Hie guys,

Has anyone done this for the STR? I'm about to do the same procedure for my 2003STR. Does anyone know the part numbers or an online seller who has them?

 

The best site where I bought mine is .. Britishparts.co.Uk.. They have parts number with pics ... And also rates are v good .. Check ur self ...

 

Thank You for the very informative How To on my wife's Jag.

I am starting to "speak" Jag after 50 years of working on Chevy's, just havent learned the metric sizing yet !!!

 

your welcome

its an easy conversion

 

You cannot believe what a godsend this step by step explanation is .
Just waiting for the parts to arrive and I will be using this thread as my guide.
Thanks.

 

You are welcome skullbiker

Welcome to the forum. There are many more DIY's located in the S Type "How To " guides.

 

I put in my custom set of Toe Rods today on my 04 STR. This was the second set I built up after the pair I built and installed on my conversion rear end.

Easy installation, but per my plan, I had to enlarge the mounting holes on the hub carrier mount and the frame in order to fit the larger components.

Enjoy the Holidays, and do an upgrade project on your S-type.

 

I know it's an old thread but just wanted to say what a terrific job you did here, with great pics and easy to follow explanations. Thank you!

I wondered if, in retrospect, there was anything you'd have done differently? Or were there any other suspension components you later realized you should have replaced at the same time but didn't?

Getting ready to do this, and other suspension repairs, on my '03 3.0L S-Type. Just looking for some friendly advice.

Thanks a bunch, Steve

 

Hey Steve,

It is pretty much straight forward. The only thing in hind sight is when I took it in for an alignment, the tech pointed out that the big upper bushings (sorry I cannot recall at this moment) on the rear end were cracked as well. I did not notice until the vehicle was on a lift and not 18" in front of my face lying on my back. Some 4 years later the bushings are still cracked and the vehicle drives and rides just fine. As I recall Jaguar wanted somewhere in the $600.00 range to replace the "big upper bushings".

Being in Jersey, start the job a few days early and lube up all nuts and such with PB Blaster/Liquid Wrench. I do not recommend W40 for this application.

Have fun!

 

Good idea about spraying things down a week before you try to work on it. That road salt is a mess.

An old shade tree trick is to use transmission fluid mixed with Acetone. Really thin and wicks into the small spaces good. Works surprisingly well.
.
.
.

 

Thanks, Rick. I'll add the big upper bushings to my parts list.

Just wanted to say how truly grateful I am for your contributions to this forum and your personal response here. I read all of your posts as they always contain so much S-Type wisdom to help the neanderthals like me.

Unfortunately, I have neither the time, tools, nor a good location to DIY bigger jobs like this. I have no garage, can't crawl under my car in a gravel driveway, and poor eyesight makes it impossible to see what I'm doing anyway. So I stick to the simple things like bulb changes, oil top ups and such, and leave the heavy lifting for my terrific Indie mechanic.

Thankfully, he's more than happy for me to bring him parts and instructions from this forum, and then charges me a fair and honest rate for his time and expertise, which I gladly pay.

You, and a handful of others on this forum - tbird6 and tijoe among them - have been extremely generous with your time and wisdom, making it possible for many of us to maintain our cars without having to pay absorbent dealer prices (don't even get me started on the local dealership service writer; what he does is almost theft by deception. He wasn't too happy when I called him out on it).

Again, many thanks for your help!
Steve

 

Great advice. Thank you!

 

Ah shucks Steve.......

I will be honest, I really do not mind the fellow companionship here, especially in our little S Type sub directory. Over the past 6 years I have learned a lot about our vehicles I am glad to "pay it forward" as fellow member Thermo says.

I sure have enjoyed telling the "you can't do that'ers" that oh yes I can and I will prove it. There are also the bashers as of late. When we purchased Joyces Jag, we had our fair problems as well. I was green at these vehicles but coming from GM and Ford world, I have found more enjoyment wrenching on this S Type of ours than almost any other vehicle I have laid my hands on.

Thank you again for the kind words above.

 

But Do NOT ignore the advice about getting the wheels aligned asap otherwise you will learn the lesson the expensive way .......like I did !

 

Yes, alignment always at top of my list after any suspension work. Thanks for the great advice, Steve

 

Finally had to do this.

Just a few things:
1. there's no need to undo the jam nut on the old arm
2. if you put a suitably-sized rod (dowel or whatever) through the arm you can easily then measure accurately from the inner mounting point (i.e. inner end of the scew thread) to the centre of the outer articulating joint, so you can adjust the new arm to be the right length
3. the STR with Brembos has the EPB caliper in the way so you have to remove it temporarily (see workshop manual for details, torques etc)

Rust made it a real pain to get the old arm off

 

Jagv8 is correct.

Looking back some 5 years ago. I cannot remember why I loosened the jam nut. I think I did to count threads to roughly get new arm a close length. Dunno.....

 

I've been running my custom toe rods on my STR for a year and a half and last week I took a look at them to see how they are holding up. Other than a thin film of road dust, they still look brand new. (7000 miles)

On the other hand, I replaced the sway bar links at the same time with E-bay cheap Chinese links, and their boots are already split and half rotted away. They show show signs of rust on the welds. I suppose I need to find better quality rubber covers before the grease dries up.