I've owned my 2004 XJ8 for 6 months and 7000 miles. This last week it was consistently in the 40s at night. The car was parked for 4 days and the front was low when I got in. It pumped right up.

Based on what I've read I should begin looking at new front struts. The choice if staying with air suspension seems to be Bilsteins (~$1700 a pair), Arnotts (~$800 a pair), RMT rebuilts (~$630 a pair) and Cardone (~$800 a pair).

Bilstein - Pros original supplier, keep CATS, two year warranty; Cons expensive

Arnotts - Pros lifetime warranty, better price; Cons no CATS

RMT - Pros Low cost, has CATS, lifetime warranty; Cons seem to have spotty reputation and high failure rate.

Cardone - Pros OK pricing, two year warranty, has CATS, Cons don't know quality.

I've read plenty of postings on the Bilsteins and Arnott units. Does anyone have experience with the RMT and/or Cardones?

 

Over time I have replaced all of the struts with Bilstein units. I have rebuilt the rear suspension and most of the front. I do think the Bilstein units are expensive but the ride quality in the car is amazing. Body control in both settings (do you have that option with a non-CATS strut) is so good. If you have the money I would go with the Bilstein units but if you are trying just to keep the car moving (which I can relate to) perhaps one of the others.

 

Arnotts on mine work well, and if the warranty is as good as they say it is, the choice was obvious to me.

 

I only have experience with the Arnotts. Although I no longer have the CATS system working, I take the car on the track and it does not wallow while undergoing hard cornering. When one of my Arnott shocks developed a leak, the company voluntarily sent me a two! They are apparently serious about their warranty.

Tom

 

I went all new Arnott sport struts on my 06 XJR. They're close to the originals, a little more softer on the front, also has a fraction more body role at speed.

One of the guys at Jaguar had the same car and would tell me not to put Arnotts on, he put all new originals on his car. 4-5 months later I asked him how his shocks were and he told me he had to sell his car, something in the AC/heater failed and it was not worth fixing. He wasted all that money on original shocks.

I came to the conclusion of it's not worth the $$$ to put the expensive shocks on a 10-11 years old car, maybe if it was 5-6 year I would.

 

I've had awful luck with Arnotts. I bought my xjr used and the previous owner had a line leak he thought were the struts. Had both replaced with Arnotts ans still leaked...Well they found the leak. And he ended up with struts he didn't need . A few months after purchase the lower mount of one of my struts bent and all of the fluid and air leaked out. Pothole? Not sure.


SO I get two used arnott struts from someone parting their car out. They were only two years old at the time. One was leaking air at the top. I figured Id take my one good arnott and swap them and Id have two good ones....Well the Jaguar gods said no! Before I had a chance the other side POPPED,,as in BOOM!!!!!....So I was figuring now that Ill deal with the one leaky strut and change the one that popped. Well my one good arnott from the original pair is now leaking fluid from the air port!! Seriously???? So I have one popped Arnott, one leaking one(air), One leaking one (fluid) and one bent one. And my suspension bushing wise is fine...Just bad luck I suppose...I didn't bother calling Arnott being I was not the original purchaser of these two pairs. Currently have factory non sport struts and the car is doing well...And when the strut popped....both fenders lips got bent....Not a good year xjr wise!

 

I bought my XJR back in april 2017, It had 2 new Arnott Air struts in them.
I've been chasing down a knocking noise in the front suspension, after replacing all the bushings, Ive realized its coming from the stupid arnott struts.

Stay away from Arnott; they are Pieces of ****.

 

Have you contacted them?

 

Yes I did, and since I bought the car with them already installed, they wont help me. I certainly dont expect a full refund, but they could at make some attempt to help me out. Pretty disappointing if you ask me. The struts are not even a year old, The struts have a manufacture date of december 2016 on them.

This would be another reason not to buy from them in my opinion. I've dealt with faulty parts in the past and have had companies work with me in similar situations.

 

That's EXACTLY the noise I had before my strut actually popped. Make a sharp turn in both directions. If it isn't a smooth radius turn and feels as if the car is undulating a bit Id recommend you don't drive it till you swap struts.


Glad I'm not the only one

 

Sorry to hear of your misfortune; Guessing ORIGINAL OWNER frase comes into play. There's a pair of stock fronts in my garage, the passenger side had a slight leak at the top seal. As far as i know the driver side does not leak. Yours if you like

 

Thats a very kind offer of you But I will likely buy a replacement set from RMT, as they can accept my Crap Arnotts for Cores

 

Wow I had EXACTLY the same problem. Front end rattle somewhere that drove me nuts that I spent alot of time and money looking for, ended up being the crappy Arnotts. Replaced with RMT and it's night and day difference.

 

I went Arnotts on the front of my 06 XJR.... been a couple weeks but haven't even put 100 miles on the car so I cannot really give a accurate review but for the price, 10/11 year old car.... limited driving (2000 miles a year) I felt it was the most cost effective option.

 

Hope mine continue to function as they have so far, our roads are not fairing very well around here. Too much soaking, then freezing makes the roads crack, & buckle, beating the suspension, & bushing's to an early death.

 

The CATS system works in tandem with the Emergency Brake Assist (EBA), Traction Control, and Dynamic Stability Control systems to make the x350 one of the safest vehicles to drive for its time. I recently lost control of my 2004 xj8 on an oil slicked turn and the car regained control in a way that almost defied physics! I don't think I'd give up my CATS.

 

Am not aware of how the Arnotts are that different, they have the same two connectors, one air, one electrical. The ride is always better (tighter) with new shocks, but the ride feels about the same. One of the factory front shocks, had a leaking top seal, is why the fronts were replaced.

 

The electrical connector on the Arnott is a resistor, so no CATS. It is a passive airbag not an adaptive. Bilstein web site has a nice explanation on air suspension systems.

I just found Aerosus struts (German Co.) which claim to be new and appear to work with the CATS. The web site is nice and there is a number to call (as opposed to the cheap eBay stuff). About the same money as Arnotts but if they are CATS compatible that would be a plus for me, 2 year warranty though. I wonder who makes the shock and if the air springs are made in Germany or sourced from China. I will call tomorrow and grill them.
I would go for the RMTs but they don’t do anything to the shock but test them. So I would have a rebuilt air spring on a 13 year old shock. $260 RMT vs $450 for all new Aerosus. I should have kept my 65 Falcon.

Anybody with comments on the Aerosus I would be glad to hear them.

 

The Aerosus struts you refer to were actually made by Arnott - you can see the Arnott A's which are circled. They are /were great struts but do not support O.E. Active Damping functionality (ECATS).

Arnott has since replaced them with separate struts for XJ Jags with Sport and Comfort suspensions. They also have a new internal shock /damper which provides an excellent ride. The air bladder is made by Continental ContiTech (in Germany). The Arnott air spring is not passive - it supports the vehicle's auto leveling functionality.

Arnott designed new struts are an excellent alternative for aging air suspension systems because they provide the luxury, comfort and auto leveling of air springs but replace the older original shock with a brand new shock custom valved to provide a great ride at a much more affordable price. Customers like the ride and comment it is an improvement over the tired old O.E. strut. Every Arnott-designed new strut assembly is backed by a Limited Lifetime Warranty and 30-Day Return Policy in North America and the EU.




Looks like Arnott AS-2710 & 11 which has since been superseded.

 

That confirms my assumption; That the over all ride was very similar to, but better, than the old stock shocks were with one that was leaking air when it got cold. I knew the ride was great, and the compressor ran a lot less than before, rebuilding the pump. But was wondering about what was lost from what i read about the C A T S system not working properly with these shocks