2003 Jaguar X-Type Engine Replacement - Advice Needed
 

I'm new here, so I'll do a quick intro: I have have 2003 x-Type 2.5, I purchased used in 2008, it currently has 117,000 miles, has had a few basic kinda issues: Battery in 2009, PVC hose and rotors replaced in 2010, Mass Air Flow Sensor and Spark Plugs (wiring, etc) in 2011. I kept regular oil changes and did the appropriate system flushes when suggested and then one day while I was on the way to work I lost power and the engine got really loud.

Apparently there is a broken rod and knocking bearing (something like that anyway) and I've been told that it will be $6,500 for a local shop to replace the engine and $8,000 - $10,000 for my local Jaguar dealer to replace it.

The car will be paid for soon, so I don't want to junk it (plus I love it and it's otherwise in excellent condition) so I'm hoping to get the engine replaced as cost efficiently as possible. The problem is I have no idea where to go, or what would be a fair price for a complete engine replacement in the Charlotte, NC area.

Any help or advice is much appreciated.

A Decent garage should be able to engine swap in a day any competent mechanic shop could do it.
not sure on second han prices for engines in the us but ovper here a good one would be about $1200 so shop around and get the job done for about $2-3000 i wouldnt give up on it
worst case i could ship a good engine to you if you needed it but there are quite a few on ebay over there at the minute.
good luck

Do a good search in these forums, there are at least two threads with good detailed information in them about engine swaps. The cheapest route appears to be a Lincoln LS engine and having a friend/cheap mechanic do the labor. Good luck!

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Jessica......do your research and you could save $$$$

There are threads here in the X type section on engine swaps / rebuilds, one by Jfenley and another by 300 IIRC are excellent.
There are guys here who know and can help......Jeees, there may even be some here who would be willing to help to do the job and help to save you more $$$......its been done here before.

Please keep checking, keep bumping this thread and lets see what we can do for a lady in distress :icon_banana:

Thank you all for the advice. I've actually priced engines on both craigslist, and local parts yards (if that's what you call them) and the best deal I've found is for an engine with nearly the same mileage. I figured if I've having to replace it I'd rather replace it with an engine with less mileage, but I guess in the grand scheme of things it doesn't really matter. I know a guy that is willing to work on it, but my fear is that it 1) will take FOREVER, and 2) he'll get to a point where he doesn't have what he needs to finish it and it'll be stuck in pieces in my garage.

Also, I'm curious to see if the engine could be rebuilt. Again, I don't know the first thing about the possibilities when it comes to engine replacements and rebuilds, but the car turns on and the engine runs -- I could be oversimplifying things, but it seems like I could just have the bad pieces swapped and put the thing back in the car. Who knows, I'll keep searching, and I'd be happy to have someone in the Charlotte area's help if they're out there

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Hey guys.....any of you out there live close enough to help a lady out?
Techs / Gurus / DIY legends....where are you?
I'm sure she'd welcome any ideas / suggestions about now....:icon_smash:

Jessica - Have you checked the regional section?
There were more than a few techs in that area iirc, there's alos some posts about "uptownimports" that may be worth checking out?
How about NalleyJaguar in Atlanta? I don't know how far they are from you, but they're great for forum members on parts prices & service etc.....worth a call?

Good luck

Jessica, hello and I maybe able to help you out. As Jim put it above, I am an avid DIYer located in the Fort Mill area. I would be willing to take a look at her if you would like a honest second opinion.

If Jim has upgraded you, PM me your phone number and I could set some time aside tommorow or Sunday if you would like for me to take a looksie at her.

Oh I do have referrals on this site.

Here is a link that has many local salvage yards pricing, looks like from $900.00 to about $1,500.00 for a replacement engine.

Just fill in some information on the home page and click "distance" as a search protocal:

www.car-part.com

Rick to the rescue!

Jessica, if you want an impartial & educated opinion you should take Rick up on his offer and see what he thinks.

I'm a little late logging back in, but I REALLY appreciate the help and advice.

Rick - Your second opinion would be much appreciated. I was busy this weekend and will be unavailable this coming weekend, I'm having oral surgery this Friday. But if you're available the weekend of March 2-4 I would love for you to take a look.

I'll take a look at the other regional forums, but I'm honestly really hesitant to go to any dealer or shop. I'm hoping to find an individual to get the bulk of the work done, again time is not a huge issue so I'm hoping I'll have some luck finding a mechanic that can work on it when time allows and get it done over a month or two's time.

_______________________________________________
Jessica, Charlotte, NC
2003 X-Type 2.5 <--- Needs Engine Replacement

Jessica PM sent.

Update: I found a shop (not the best, but the price was right) that was able to replace the engine for me. The replacement engine came from an X Type, 2004 I think, with 26K miles. It that was rear ended, totaled and parted out by a local salvage yard. I found it using eBay, so THANK YOU for suggesting that I look there.

I was able to get the engine replaced, including labor for $2300. It took about two weeks to get the work done. There was only a 90 day warranty, and they were pretty good about correcting one issue that came up within those 90 days. The light wouldn't go out because of a bad O2 sensor, and they replaced it. Light went out and it drove great, sounded good. All was well. I passed in inspection and everything.

It was complete in April 2012, and it ran fine until November 2012 when I started to suddenly loose power occasionally when my RPMs reach 3000. It's a 5 speed, so I was basically forced to shift into 3-4 gear to go above 35mph.

Now I'm being told I need a new catalytic convertor, which I was quoted at $1500 for one (apparently only one is "bad") and I called another shop who quoted $3000 for both, including labor.

I've read the threads about possibly cleaning the catalytic convertor (which according to someone I know is illegal in NC) and from what I've researched it's not possible to use anything but an OEM part if I want to pass an emissions test.

My new Question:

Does it make sense to replace just one catalytic convertor seeing that I've just had a new engine put in, or should I just replace both, even if the second isn't showing as bad right now?

I just don't want to keep having these $1000+ issues every 6 months. I need this car to keep running for at least another 6-8 months, then I'm going to try and trade it in and get at least a little something towards a car with a warranty. I love the car, but I think these repairs are a little too rich for my blood.

I wold replace just the bad one. Do you know the code off hand?

When you started have issues in November with the limp home mode (can't get the RPMs over 3000) did you have that fixed? If not that is probably why you might have issues with your catalytic converter now. But like the other poster mentioned, post what codes you are getting and someone will chime in on where to go from there. Maybe you need a new one, maybe not. You can get the codes read at somewhere like AutoZone.

So after checking codes and having a friend of friend who is a Jaguar technician look at my X-Type, I was advised to cut my losses and get rid of it. It needed both catalytic converters replaced, and because we must have inspections here in NC there was no way I was going to be able to get it done and pass inspection in the time I needed to. I had to part ways and trade it in. It was bitter sweet, but I enjoyed the ride while it lasted. It's on the way to an auction somewhere now :)