I think Brutal fixes them via the screw method (before they break, sometimes).
Yeah, the design sucks and whoever the OEM was should be replacing them free. Can't see it happening, sadly.

 

No, someone mentionioned heating them up in an oven to soften up the sealing urethane? I read so many threads on this topic but I just can't remember who it was.

I'm going to have another look at these to see if I can figure out if his "quickie screw fix" is limiting operation in some manner that will cause a state inspection failure. It seems to me if the screw is used to prevent droop by setting the lowest aim level then only automatic adjustment available to the mechanism after this modification is in the upwards direction??? But I'm not very familair with the exact details of how this piece works.

Bob S.

 

Bob to seperate the lens from the body of the headlamp unit, first you have to remove the front bumper skin (see FAQ section) then remove headlamp unit, remove all bulbs, rubber parts. Place headlamp in oven that is set at 200 degrees for 8 minutes, using some type of oven mittens remove headlamp using a screw driver start prying on the silicone seal, place unit back in oven for another 5 minutes repeat process until the lens is seperated.

Why would you want to do this though? Brutals post about headlight repair does not need this procedure. Also if I might add there sure seems to be alot of owners that did Brutals fix and haven't had to repair again!

One more thingy, there was a member here who awhile back made his own stainless steel replacement part (he is a machinist who had access to a CNC machine). He posted pictures and it turned out great, but very time consuming. I am sorry I don't remember who did it though, and far to many threads for me to search through.......

 

I'm going to have to find that post where one person did the simple screw repair and it was rejected by the state DMV inspection. I don't know if the inspector was just being a ***** and the repair provides a 100% functional equivalent unit or if there is some limitation with this method. I'm pretty sure Brutal also commented about the situation in the thread as well. I remember reading it but I don't remember the details and now I can't find it it, Argh!

Just trying to understand why that would be? I agree with you. Why not just do the simple fix? Yes I remember seeing the very nice stainless adjustment piece.

That's really wonderful about having to remove the front bumper skin just to replace a headlamp unit ...

Bob S.

 

I've had both of my headlight assemblies replaced under the certified select 100K/6yr.
warranty at my dealer with about 52K miles on my STR.

 

Just had my Left Headlamp droop today going to call the dealer Monday morning..still go select till 11/2011

 

Mine goes in monday too. It took them almost a week to get the part in. The front facia of the car has to come off for this. Just a wonderful design ...

My warranty has 11 months left so I bet I'll be fixing one of these on my dime somewhere down the road.

Hopefully I will eventually figure out if the cheapo fix described on this forum will pass a state inspection here. If it's a total functional equivalent I would have thought Jaguar would have produced a professional field repair proceedure based on this?

I'd like to have a close look at the broken one once it's out and compare it with a normal one. A good set of pictures and a technical drawing would sure help.

Bob S.

 

Bob S. and others with warranty, you might want to check the rear tie rod bushings (see attachments) they have been known to wearout. Jon89s went bad somewhere in the 35,000 mile range on his '05 (his warranty covered them), and mine were worn when we purchased the vehicle at 42k. The bushings are visable without removing the rear tire.

 

I don't see any attachments... should I just search the threads?

I'm at 34K on my Select Edition...
I was thinking about compiling a list of things to check out before the warranty expires. So far I've had both headlights replaced ($3K) and both fuel pumps replaced ($2K). Can you think of anything else like these bushings I should check?

Thanks!

 

Craig the pics did not show up? Heres the link.....


https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/s...light=warranty

 

Sounds like a good check list to produce.

I have but 15K miles and if the car is running correctly I can't see how I can realistically ask for new fuel pumps unless there's a recall on these things????

I will ask about the steering studder tomorrow. It looks as though the fluid level is a bit low.

Are these racks known to start leaking?

My gas gauge works very funny at times. I had it go from full to 3/4 after 10-15 miles a couple of times. I'm also not getting the mileage indicated by the trip computer. I've had it tell me I only have 15 miles of driving left yet I was only able to fill it with 13.5 gallons. It would seem that it lies.

I will drop the belly pan at some point when I can get it on someone else's lift. Mine has a dead collector car on it at the moment. ;>)

So I do want to be proactive but I also don't want to always be looking for stuff that's wrong with the car. Bad karma.

Bob S.

 

Someone else had a bad gas gauge not very long ago and I think it was all fixed under warranty so has to be worth a search
(There are 2 level sensors and one or both can go bad.)

The racks seem pretty good.

 

Bob, I was one of the folks that had a problem with my "gas gauge". I kept running out of gas with 40+ miles left until empty. You can view my thread by searching for "42 miles until empty and out of gas". I spent a bit of time calculating and trying to determine if it was just a problem with the sending unit. My gauge would fluctuate anywhere from 1/8 to 1/4 of a tank within minutes or after just turning it off and back on. As it turns out, it was a problem with my fuel pumps. There are two pumps in the tank and when it acts up like this, it can indicate a failure of one or both. Mine were both replaced under my Select Edition Warranty.

IMO it sounds like you have a very similar issue.

 

Thanks, Rick! Will check mine out...

 

Yes I saw that. The threads seem to go on forever.

At 15K miles? Is it broken or just a design flaw. Two fuel pumps???

My race car has two fuel pumps with a surge tank so I understand why. It's an all Italian car that's now 15 years old with less than 2K km on it. No failures.

I have to be honest. The amount of stupid stuff like this is beginning to worry me about this car.

Bob S.

 

In 18 months on 2 busy S-Type forums I only recall ONE STR owner with this problem. You'd be #2. Hardly cause for describing it as stupid stuff.

 

Hey, let's not forget everyone is entitled to their opinion so in this case, what's being called by him might not be a called like that by yourself .

 

Oh that's OK. This is after all a forum that's mostly focused on "what's wrong with my Jag".

This thread has certainly morphed off topic too. Maybe a moderator could just move that stuff to a "List-O-Crap-To-Worry-About"
I did after all bring it up ...

So it started with headlamps (That design is absurd if a car like mine has the issue)

Rear Tie rod bushings have now been added.

Gas gauge/pump issues. I think I better document this before I bring it up as a warranty issue. But I don't care who you are something IS funny.

Now to wander even further off the original topic ...

Since I will be fixing some curb rash on 3 out of 4 wheels when I replace the brake pads I also started reading about lug nuts that fall apart. So Jag (Ford & Lincoln too) is still using this design that so many on here find faulty? It just seems very strange something as basic as lug nuts is an on going issue for an expensive car coming from a major manufacturer like Ford.

I'm also a bit concerned about turning into an automotive hypochrondriac or being labeled that by the local Jag dealer.

Bob S.

 

Bob,

There's no question that these S-Types have quite a few "standard-issue" component problems and design flaws that must be addressed at some point, usually sooner rather than later. I spend far more time wrenching around with my wife's 2005 S-Type (48,400 miles) than I do with her 2004 Lexus RX330 AWD SUV (103,200 miles) and my 1999 Dodge Ram pickup (58,400 miles) combined. The end goal is to get the known issues resolved yourself so the expenses of doing so are kept to a minimum. The million-dollar question is this: Do we eventually reach a point where we can enjoy years of carefree, minimal-cost driving? A year ago I would have answered that question with a yes, but I'm not so sure today. My biggest concern remains the ZF transmission. These are gorgeous cars that are affordable to acquire but relatively costly to maintain (compared to our RX330 and Ram, anyway). As I've said several times recently, when and if our S-Type turns into a wallet-draining maintenance hog, it's gone....

 

That ZF is utilized on quite a number of cars. Is there anything unique about problems as used on the Jag?

It's my first 6 speed automatic and it does seem to shift a bit too much at times when I'd rather it did not. It surprises me. I don't like that. Now I did recently change the battery so maybe it will settle back down after if re-learns. I'm not a big fan of learning/adaptive software for these systems. It smacks of engineers outsmarting themselves. It' s probably all dictated by emissions/mileage issues.

The car is in for it's LH headlamp now so this afternoon I may be able to finally register it!

It does go like hell and I'm enjoying the ride. Just so long as the lug nuts don't fall off ...