Well - tonight - I traded off my Jag. Since Thanksgiving she's been in the dealer's shop for warranty work most of the time, and, has been sitting there now for 3 weeks - waiting for additional parts to show up from Jaguar. Wife and I came to the realization that it was time to part with her. My wife flatly refused to look at a newer Jag, and , really wanted a small SUV. I didn't want to give up the sporty performance that I enjoyed with the S. We ended up finding a vehicle that satified both of us - a Mercedes GLK350 4matic.

I've certainly enjoyed participating in this forum, and, appreciate all the help I've gotten over the course of owning 3 Jaguars. Best of luck to all of you.

Regards:
Oldengineer

 

Best luck with your new Mercedes , you know you can always visit and post in here

 

Old Engineer, its a sad day. I have enjoyed your input here and I still think of your airport story awhile back and get a good chuckle out of it. Enjoy the new MB. Do stop in time to time to say hi. Good luck to you.

 

Bet a full exhaust mod on that MB will git yer nuts swinging again for a Jag? Oh shucks, we're gunna miss ya Old Engineer. Visit us for a laugh or two.

 

Good luck! Hope to see you back one day!

 

Bye!

 

Best wishes for a better ownership experience with your new Mercedes SUV. My sister has a new one and enjoys it thoroughly thus far. Hope it runs like a champ and stays out of the shop for you....

 

Which year and model did you have?
It was still under warranty what made you guys give up on it or did you really want the the convenience of a small SUV?

I have a Suburban and a station wagon. I use those capabilities a lot. If my STR was the only car it wouldn't work for me so I can understand that.

Best of luck to you.

Bob S.

 

Al Bundy: "You'll be back..... they always come back..."

Good luck!

 

Take care and good luck with the new car... See you over in the mercedes forums

George

 

Bob:

The car was a 2006 S VDP that would have gone out of her certified warranty in October 2011. Our local Jag, Benz, Land Rover, and Volvo dealer has been pretty good since we started doing business with them in 2003 (3 Jaguars over the time period). We knew we'd have to do something with the car in late 2011 (either replace or extend the warranty). The recent rash of problems and the difficulty the dealer was having getting the needed parts made us realize that, even if fixed, we wouldn't be comfortable using it for our long trips in the future. The dealer knew we were upset about the Jag, and, made us an attactive deal package on the Benz that both wife and I liked.

Regards:
Oldengineer

 

Thanks for informing us on these points. I recently waited 3 weeks for a RH HID headlamp assembly. The first one for the LH side was there in less than a week in September. I was supposed to take it in on Monday but the entire Northeast has been crippled by snow. I was wondering why this was the case since things seem to break so often. Your post would seem to indicate that there's a parts supply issue. Do you think this due to the new owners of Jaguar or what? A 2006 VDP is not an old car. I have quite a number of local friends who have had Jags for a number of years and they all pretty happy with their cars. Not being able to trust the car for a long trip is not a good thing. Then if the parts take a long time ... I might be tempted to say ta-ta to Tata as well.

Bob S.

 

Wow, Oldengineer. Will miss your insight and contributions. Glad you have a good dealer to deal with. Mine is good as well and sells Jaguar, Land Rover, Maserati, and BMW. I've considered going the same route as you with either a LR2 (Volvo platform and drivetrain) or BMW X3. But don't know. The parts availability has been an issue with Jaguar in North America even before Tata took over. The main issue is the low volume the North American market presents. There aren't parts issues if you live in Europe since there are much greater sales in those markets. Honestly, I wouldn't expect them to stock a bunch of stuff for so few cars. I also don't have issue if my car ends up sitting at the dealer waiting since my dealer provides a nice loaner when it is in the service department, warranty or not.

Before you blow us off entirely, please share pictures of the GLK. I like those and would like a gander....

Good luck and enjoy the new ride..

 

Stuff like this doesn't surprise me with Jaguar. Ray Catena in Edison has about the worst parts department you will ever see. The guy had no clue what IMT O-Rings even were on the 3.0 motor, and I ended up looking up the part # on my phone for him. Even then he seemed annoyed at taking the time or effort to make a $10 sale. Mind you I only use the dealer for "dealer only" parts, but Both Reedman-Toll in Langhorne PA and Ray Catena in Edison NJ have been horrible as far as over the counter parts.

Princeton Mercedes is usually great, and when I pull the SL in I always get a smile or someone making a compliment etc.

Now, in your case where you have a newer, in warranty car, there is NO reason that you should have to wait 3+ weeks for a headlight. What if the car had a fender bender (knock on wood)? Was it supposed to be laid up for 3+ weeks just for a headlight? Even if the part is in Europe, modern air freight (which they should eat in a situation like this) can have the part here in 2-3 days.

Just my .02 of a dollar.

George

 

I had a C350 that I bought from Fletcher Jones in Newport Beach. Huge inventory and I got a great price. I had the car six months and took it back. Too much time spent in the shop trying to resolve an issue with the new 7 speed tranny. I don`t miss it.

I do, however, understand your situation. My Jag is paid for and will stay with me. It is no longer the daily driver (never in the winter) and I will likely buy an A4 come spring to drive year round.

My Jag is reliable but at the point where it`s going to require a lot maintenance. Hence, the decision to drive her less. Still, think about the replacement cost for car with 400HP, handling and a heritage? She`s staying with me.

 

In my case they weren't sure why it was taking so long. It's not a big deal in this case but if the car was stuck at the dealer and apart for 3 weeks I'd be annoyed as hell. Yes I get a rent car at $5 a day which is great but that deal might not run for 3 weeks.

You can probably expect worse than this with the Maserati George. But ask the guys over at Maseratilife in a very pointed manner about this. BTW, Classic Coach was able to get me Lambo parts from the factory pretty quickly but they weren't bulky items either. They have stuff coming from Italy all the time. But AFAIK no loaners ...

 

Oh I'm sure it would be something similar or worse. However the Maserati was never intended to be my daily mode of transport. My S-Type, and or future STR if I make the jump are. Granted if the Maserati was to become laid up for a month during the already limited open top driving season I'm sure it would raise my blood pressure a few points...

George

 

But George, Maserati's are supposed to raise one's blood pressure. That's why you buy them ...

 

True, although there has to be some distinction made between exhilaration and angst...
Seems like the Maserati is capable of providing sufficient doses of both.

George

 

Now you've got it! I think the modern ones are much better at being "real" everyday cars than say a Ferrari or Lamborghini or the Maserati's of old.

Besides, if you buy one of those I can teach you the secret Trident handshake.