Hello,

Serge - Since you're in the business my amateur restoration photos won't mean much to you but if you're interested PM me with your e-mail address and I can send them to you. However, I'm very interested in how you solved it so when you do the next one post pics here for all to see. I'd bet it would also help to get you X-Type business if you're interested.

Good luck,

Steve

 

Is this issue only on 2002 and 2003 X-types? Asking because, why isn't anyone getting replacement rocker panels from junk yards on later model Xs? Then all you would have to repair is the A-pillar right.

I would like to see more naked pics of the rotting issue like on the first page of this thread if possible. Whoever doesn't know how to post pics and has them, email them to me and I will post em up - humyz@aol.com

I found a shop by me that someone recommended, so I am going to take the X over there. But honestly, what can they quote me without seeing the extent of the damage. Considering my X is probably only worth 5K, I am only willing to pay 2K to get this fixed.

 

Hello,

Not sure what years are affected but as I said earlier I recently saw an '05 in a body shop that was in for collision damage and the corrosion was present on it. You can't easily remove the rocker assembly - it's spot-welded on its entire length. Plus, there are really two assemblies: the outer panel which is painted body color and is what you see, along with an inner box section that is hidden until you cut open the outer section. It's the inner box section that's the culprit. Rust starts inside it and because it's only 1/8" or so from the outer panel near the front at the A-Pillar base the corrosion gradually spreads to the outer skin.

According to my local Jag-authorized body shop, the $650 each rocker panels are really only the cosmetic outer section and they've only ordered them for side collision damage when trying to fix a crumpled section is too much work. They end up buying the whole panel and cutting out what they need for the repair.

I've attached a couple more photos here but keep in mind I patched my car and didn't cut out the entire panel. But, I think you can see from these photos how it's constructed.

Good luck,

Steve

 

A Montreal body shop that has replaced the rockers on two x-types looked at my severe rocker rust yesterday and proposed cdn$2-3000 to fix both sides. He said there are two panels for each side that must be purchased from jag, and then all the doors and front fenders have to come off for the repair. Welding them in is a careful job to protect wiring that runs closeby.

 

2 to 3K is quite a range...is it 2 or 3...makes a big difference.

The inner structure can be recreated easily...in galvanized steel...We also create two drainage holes in the two lowest point of the rocker in front. This car sits low in the front and the one we did had water trapped in the front rocker on both sides...

How far up the B pillar is the rust? Has it passed the the rubber plug?

If you want a second opinion you can give me a shout...

serge - @ - bsgautommobile.com

Just remove the spaces and - between the parts...I did this to save my email address from email gathering robots that send tons of junk...what color is your car?

 

I must be a lucky 02 X-type owner, I don't have the rocker panel rust (yet!). I only have a few spots starting on the edges of the hood.

 

I have an '03 that is really clean. This information is priceless. I would have never known to look for this.

I have to believe that there is a place to drill to be able to spray these areas. I want to stop, or encapsulate whatever corosion is in there now. If I can stop it, I'll be happy. I'm more of a back yard mechanic rather than a body man. Is it possible to drill and spray these areas?

 

Hello,

My '03 was exceptionally clean and never in an accident, too. I only happened to spot the emerging rust bubbles when the sun was at a certain angle with the front door open - otherwise, I may not have spotted it until later.

I did the fix and wrote about it earlier in this post. Not knowing how extensive it was, I removed the plastic rocker covers and front fenders to get a better look. If your '03 isn't showing signs yet, then I'd do the following:

1. Remove the brushed aluminum Jaguar sill covers from the front door jambs; they are held on with double-sided tape. Do it carefully with a thin steel putty knife and apply a couple of layers of masking tape to the surrounding paint to protect it in the event the knife slips. You'll have to remove the OEM tape residue with lacquer thinner and use 3M tape when you reinstall.

2. Drill three evenly spaced access holes (3/8" or so, front, middle, rear) into the top of the rocker where the holes won't be seen when the plates are reinstalled. Buy plastic plugs to fit the holes when finished. You will have to shave the plugs a little so the plate sits flat.

3. Buy a WaxOyl starter kit. British car parts distributors like Moss Motors and Victoria British sell it. It's about $70 but is worth every penny. You'll have enough left over to spray other cavities in your X-type or other cars. Waxoyl is a paraffin / oil mix that is easily sprayed under pump pressure (pump is supplied) through the thin application hose once it's warmed in a pan of hot water. When it cools, it looks like melted candle wax and coats everything really well to seal out moisture and stop the spread of corrosion. An alternative is to buy a similar product from Eastwood, although I've never used anything but WaxOyl.

4. Spray it liberally inside the INNER rocker panel, especially the front where the corrosion starts until it begins to drip out of the drain holes in the rocker. You'll see the drain holes behind the plastic rocker panel cover that's body-color. The plastic rocker panel cover is cosmetic only. You can pull it off but only if you're planning to do major body work under it. If you try to remove it, you'll end up breaking the 18 mounting clips on each side which are hard to find - so leave it in place. You'll notice when you drill the access holes that there is an outer and inner rocker panel. It's the INNER panel that corrodes. On mine, the corrosion extended from the very front (behind the fender) and back about 15" - 18" inches to about the midpoint of the door jamb. It can't hurt to spray towards the rear of the panel. Once finished, be sure to open up the drain holes with a short piece of wire, like a coat hanger, so any moisture won't be trapped.

Install the plugs, reinstall the Jaguar sill covers and hopefully, you've nipped it in the bud.

Good luck,

Steve

 

Wow. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

My '03 looks like it has never even seen rain, but now it is going to be driven in Cleveland Ohio, and it is 6 months of bad weather and salt around here. I will get this done this fall before the weather hits. I might save the whole car....

Did I say Thanks?

 

I see the saga continues. Seems everyone knows about this but no one will talk about it. Well, my rust issue IS RESOLVED!! How did I do this? It's called a person who will not be ignored. I started with the dealership, then with Jaguar out of New Jersey, got no where for 1.5 years (was on this site as well, which no one would talk about it, look it up if you don't believe me, 2008 threads), also got the run around about a "Regional Mgr" coming into RI etc etc. I finally smartened up and called the FTC (Federal Trade Commission), who read my case and stated this is an issue and passed me onto the AG's office (Attorney General), they also read my case and passed me onto the RI State Dealers License Board. They also after some pursuading, took my case to the State Board of Attorneys. They decided rust of this magnitude does NOT occur 7 days over a 6 year corrosion warrenty. We started arranging for a hearing, getting estimates to fix this etc. THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN the dealership replied, and so didn't jaguar. They then offered me $3000 towards fixing the issue estimating it would be $4300 to complete. Thinking this was a fair deal, I proceeded with the repairs. 40.5 days without my 2003 X-Type while it was in the bodyshop, I was informed once the rocker panels where removed, the damage was MORE extensive. They would need to cut away the unibody which the rockers attach to, refabricate the area behind the sill panels and forward to the upper front door hinge. (they would not do a half fast job by spraying and affixing the rockers to a rotted through frame), and wanted my approval to proceed costing another $2500. So, my car was apart, pieces of corrosion on the ground with 1-2" rotted holes throughout the unibody, I made the decision to fix it properly (I love my car). The end result, $6300 + 40.5 days of a full size rental, my car is better than factory strong. The entire unibody frame was refabricated from under the front door hinges back to the center column in the sill area. Now it's over you say..... NO WAY. I am in the process of taking avenues to see that my money ($4000) is recouped. For those of you who didn't follow the math, the total to fix this issue properly is going to be in the range of $6000-$7000. Why did I expend this kind of money into a car, 2003 X-Type in mint condition you ask? It's design is superior to any 2010 car out there, it's awd, it makes a statement wherever I go, it's a safe car for NE weather and it's forecast to be a collectible if in good condition, as most are currently in the scrap yards. Did I mention the tech that rebuilt my car rebuilds race cars?? So to conclude, I read these sites from time to time and chuckle at the ignorance to this issue. If any of you want to join my venture, please feel free to reply to this thread, however I don't expect to get any bites.... it seems to be the unspoken truth here.

 

Awesome result. Well done with the persistence

 

Hi Dalecan, Thanks for the reply. You being from Seattle may also have this issue. I see you joined on when I posted my last thread on this issue before pursueing. Passing ships I guess. If all the persons on this site that have experienced this would come forward, there would certainly be a resolution to this. Most persons who own a '02 or '03 X-types purchased them used. The reason most were sold was due to this issue as I too comtemplated covering up the issue with rust solutions, patch work etc., resell and let the other guy worry about it, but then my conscious got the best of me. I purchased my car new with less than two miles on it. So this is my issue. Like raising a kid, if he/she turns out to be a bad kid you don't dump them on someone else, you fix the root of the problem. I fixed the root of the problem. Now I need to find out how I can go about getting restitution on an issue that can't go unheard. I need to stop these major companies from taking advantage of persons. I feel that whether you spent $5k or $30k+, a company should stand behind it's product and reputation in the industry..... Jeeze even Toyota stepped up to the plate. You'd think the marketing alone doubled if not better their business simply by standing behind a product. People will still buy due to this company backing and stand loyal to the brand AND upgrade. BUT to hide, ignore the issue, this is a poor way of conducting business. It's not even a matter of a cheap version of the real thing.... their (jag) high end cars have rust issues as well. AND to add insult to injury, we as consumers chuckle and ignore this, spend thousands of dollars to be thought a fool of ???? And are they hurting?, no. They're laughing at us, all the way to the bank. So to conclude, if you or anyone else want to start a partition, I say let's go. I'd like to be proud of what I drive, not hang my head that I'm in a "rust bucket". Let's make our ego's (which is why we all bought a Jag), match our demenor. Why put make up on an ugly face?? or deoderant on a smelly body??? This is infact what we are doing. I'd like to get back to the feeling "wow, a Jag" as opposed to "poor thing, doesn't know it's junk". Well enough for now, maybe this will reach the persons (veterans) on this site that know what I'm talking about. Or, maybe they'll just ignore it, shake their heads and move on.... apple doesn't fall far from the tree I guess.

 

The rocker panel on my 03 is plastic. I notice when you open the front doors at the bottom of the A pillar there is a large drainage hole. It goes back to the top of the cowl on either side of the car.

 

Hi Adam, I never noticed a drill hole visible when the doors are open. Did you purchase the car used? If yes, it seems the previous owner knew about the rust issue, possibly did a patch job to the inners of the frame, sprayed a little rust protection etc., then put a drain hole to prevent future water build up. This tells me they did this to sell the car. The issue is the original rockers were not made with drain holes. Somewhere between 2004 - 2006 they re-did the pattern to include drain holes in the rockers. This as well as building the car in aluminum which would take longer to rust (or not at all I'm told). This theory was proven when my body shop ordered the new rockers, the design was the same, but there were now drainage holes. If you purchased the car new, I'm stumped ??

 

Besides taking my car to a mechanic, I also took it to a body shop I use to see if it was ever hit. The answers was no. These holes at the bottom of the A pillar are not drilled they are factory drain holes stamped into the metal which drain water from the cowl area. I noticed them when I was test driving the car. I had my body shop look at them and he confirmed they were factory drain holes and nothing else, he also told me my rocker panels were plastic. There is not a bit of rust in the area you have on yours. It is inconceivable to me that a car only 8 years old has rusted the way yours has. I would bug Jaguar until I got an answer that they will fix it. In the old cars I owned several British cars, an MGA, Austin Healy, Ford Cortina, which I used for racing. They were all rust buckets. One would think with the weather as it is in the UK, they would do a better job with rust prevention. I also did a internet search on rust on XType Jaguars and didn't find anything, so yours might be caused by a production mistake? Do you have drain holes at the bottom of the A pillar and are actually part of the front fender?

 

I have to take back what I said about not finding anything on the internet. I did another search and found this site http://www.jaguarforum.co.uk/viewtop...=24142&start=0 in the UK there are quite of few post about rust in X Type.

 

http://www.eastwood.com/rust-solutions.html check out this site all sorts or rust eliminators.

 

I have one of these on my 03 X-Type (actually all my vehicles)

http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/brows....jsp?locale=en

Does it work? Well firstly there's the Canadian Tire warranty. My sills have a bit of surface rust from stone chips but nothing serious. No rust bubbles anywhere. I live in Alberta so we do use salt but Montreal (and Toronto) is something else!

I know there is legend that these things don't work so I suspect there'll be posts to that effect. I'm an engineer and the theory of how this one works does make sense. To me it’s cheap (relative to bodywork and paint) so if it works great and if it doesn’t then no big loss.

The sill design on the X-Type is a recipe for disaster. It's full of holes and doesn't look like there's any factory rust protection in the sills.

 

Here are some pics. I'm new at this so I hope this worked. What I am showing you is what is UNDER the plastic covers ON the rockers. Once you remove this plastic cover, the rockers which are metal are rusted and the frame of the car is the rust which resulted due to the water build up in the rocker panels. Please let me know if this worked (attaching pics)....

 

Now you see why my heart sank when I saw this.... run your pointer over the pics, they will enlarge. Yep, the feeling of nausea is correct. Then you say OMG WTF. This is an accurate feeling. This is what is UNDER the plastic sill covers and UNDER the defective rockers once removed.
Let me know your thoughts as to if I'm over exagerating my issue