I have followed in the footsteps of some 'giants' who've pioneered the research of putting an early hydraulic F-Type rack into an XKR. This is not an exhaustive how-to guide but a few notes for install.

I have a RHD car so needed to find a rack with the number EX53-3200 BD. Mine is a rack made in 12/2013. Mine came with the outer and inner tie rod ends. I kept the F-Type inner rods as they were solid and put on brand new outer tie rods for an XKR.

The dimensions are the exact same between the two racks. There are three bolts holding the rack on to the subframe, an electrical clip for the servo control and one 10mm bolt holding the steering flex joint to the rack. The F-Type splines are exactly the same.

Technically it doesn't matter where the wheel is positioned when placing the rack back on as it's keyed. If you try and roughly match the length of the old rack to the new then you won't likely do any harm on the way to the alignment shop.

I recommend getting a friend to help you place back in the rack. I went in from the right hand side of the car so I could fit the larger side of the housing in easier. If you had the car on a lift you could take off the large A chassis brace and you'd have a lot nicer of a time. Lots of wiggling otherwise.

The hardest part for me was getting the outer tie rod ball joint nuts off. They were on TIGHT and required close to 100% of my strength to take off using a socket wrench with 6mm Allen key and a big spanner (21mm IIRC). There was red thread lock on them. Fortunately, and I don't know if this was luck or Jag design, but the tapered thread separated from the hub easily when undoing.

Once the new rack is in, make sure everything is tight and completely fill the PS reservoir with dextron 3 ATF. Turn the wheel (WITH THE CAR OFF) lock to lock to help prep the car and remove any air locks I did this about 20 times. Once there's no obvious bubbles, get your friend back. Start the car and check the level. The car should suck down the fluid very fast and the fluid should be filled with air. Stop immediately if the level gets too low, refill, and manually turn the wheel with the car off to help release any air locks. Once happy, do it again with the car on until no noticeable air bubbles come out.

Put the car on the ground, and repeat the process with the car on, avoiding holding the rack at full lock. Make sure that you're below MAX and check for leaks.

So, what's it like? I really like the sharp increase in steering feel. It is probably 40% heavier feeling and a lot more sporty. On centre besides the higher weight the wheel feels normal. I found that tight turns with lock, ie on a roundabout is where it feel like an entirely different car. I need to get an alignment before I make a final assessment but I think it's very worthwhile for a days work. Pros is that no-one would ever know you've done this mod visually, it really elevates the feel of the car, and one step closer to the XKRS-GT is always welcome.