Wow, my first post is a problem ... go figure ... it is a Jaguar after all

But seriously, this post is on behalf of my brother-in-law, who purchased a used 2002 3L (Automatic) X-Type this past weekend. I own and operate the newcougar.org forums and have extensive mechanical knowledge of Ford's 2.5L and 3.0L Duratec V6's, so when my brother-in-law refused to buy either a 99-02 Cougar or 98-2000 Contour/Mystique (US market here), he asked what other vehicles came with these engines. After rattling off Ford's entire offering of the Duratec V6's, I came to Jaguar X-Type and he was hooked on the looks and class. The idea being that I could do any mechanical work on the vehicle for parts cost and save him money that way.

Anyways, on to the problem. We test drove this immaculate 2002 3L Automatic X-Type and by immaculate, I mean it drove good as new and had VERY little wear on the interior and had only 49,350 miles on the odometer! Spectacular buy, but it's exhibits the strangest of noises from what appears to be the left rear wheel area. It's in the dealer for free service since this problem was noted before buying the car from the dealer, but it's really starting to annoy me no knowing what it is.

Problem: Loud "howling" noise from left rear of car
How to Induce: Thoroughly warm the car (20 minutes of driving) and then simply bear right in the road or decelerate after constant cruise.
Notes: The problem is exhibited when bearing right of center, but if you rotate the steering wheel more than 15-20% right, it goes away. If you turn left when the noise is made, it goes away. If you depress the brakes, it goes away. If you "unload" the suspension (crown a hill), it goes away. The noise doesn't increase or decrease with speed, except when braking. Decelerating under coasting (no brakes) and it will continue until you must come to a complete stop.

In short, it's easy to make the noise go away and easy to duplicate the noise, but the car MUST be warmed up and the noise is definitely coming from the rear. The noise is merely an annoyance as it doesn't upset the performance of the car at all. It's definitely a resonance!

I suspect the brake pads are going out and the capliper slide pins require greasing. My theory is that the pads are resting on the rotors due to binding with or erosion or dust on the slide pins not allowing them to fully seat off the rotors. After the rotors warm up and expend, they are creating a constant friction with the pad that's vibrating something in the assembly until it resonates ... your guess ... interest in a second/third/fourth/etc. opinion

 

if that is the case.. can you change the noise by gently applying the parking brake ?

have you lifted the car and checked the bearing for physical movement?

 

As stated, it's in the dealer for service and I haven't had a change to get under the car and give everything a good look over. I did notice that the left rear pads are worn more than the others and the dealer was notified of the problem on a previous test drive and they serviced the car when returned from the first test drive (without the in-law, by myself). Upon testing again with my in-law a few days later, it was raining heavily and the salesman was with he and I and it didn't do it. Upon returning to the dealership, he informed us that the car was serviced on the same day as my previous test drive.

A member of my message boards who previously owned an X-Type said that there is a known "drive shaft howl". If it where the drive shaft though, wouldn't it exhibit the problem differently?

BTW, if you apply the ebrake, it does go away, but I noticed that the ebrake doesn't start to "click" into place until high in it's throw upward ... again pointing to a possible albeit seperate brake issue.

 

I too was leaning towards wheel bearing, but decided against it because normally with a bearing issue, you have a change in pitch with vehicle speed and it's VERY consistant. Until it's warmed up, this problem is non-existant and even then, it comes and goes ... not consistant at all. For example, once we left the dealership, me driving the X and my brother-in-law in his rental, it exhibited the problem roughly 5 of the 45 minutes of driving AFTER it first started, which was probably 20 minutes after leaving the dealership. Every wheel bearing issue I have encountered has been from startup to shutdown regardless of engine/driveline temp. Regardless, I hope the dealer honors their word and fixes the car right this time.

 

Apparently, the dealership has "fixed the problem" by replacing the left rear rotor and pads. Again, I don't think it's fixed. My brother-in-law has not picked up the car yet, but he is under strick order by me to NOT leave the area of the dealership until he has fully warmed the car and thoroughly tested it out. I suspect they changed the brake parts and took it for a quick 5 minute jaunt and did not induce the problem because the car was not fully warmed. He picks it up tomorrow, so we will see. We have done our "due diligence" in bringing forth our research pointing toward a possible rear diff or possible rear prop-shaft issue to their attention. Luckily, the dealership has been very good about everything thus far considering it is a used vehicle ... it is apparent that they would like to retain my brother-in-law as a client when the time comes for hime to make his next Jaguar purchase.

 

Well, it appears to be fixed. Not sure what was done other than word of mounth (I need to see the repair bill), but apparently, all they did was replace the left rear rotor & pads. The car has been driven on two long jaunts since and not a single sign of the problem has been seen.