So my wife has some older friends in a Service Groups she is in. One got remarried a few years ago to a guy from England who lived in CA. His former wife had a 2003 X-Type but apparently dove it very little. It was garaged and seems to have most work done at a dealer. He bought it to NC here but doesn't really need it. So he was wanting to sell it.

Has only around 25,000 miles. New battery and tires within the last 3 years. Nothing seems to be wrong with it. Has Nav Screen in it. Was dark when we drove it but body seems to be nice. They were asking $4,500 for it. Maybe could have asked if he would take less. But it seems like a fair deal considering.

So what do you all think? Yeah, I know it's 20 years old. I actually have a 57 year old 1966 F100 Ford Truck, Custom Cab, short wheel base, 3 speed on the column shift with 352 FE block V8. 2bbl carb intake. Rebuilt it when I was 15. So I know my way around a wrench.

Just hoping it was a good idea. Wondering what to expect. I'll read more on the forums here.

My dad passed away in February of 2022 and I ended up with his 2017 F150XL Extended Cab with Coyote V8. He only put about 36,000 miles on it. Still has only 45,000 even after I drove it from Arkansas to North Carolina. I like it but the extended cab doors are a pain with kids getting in back as you have to unbuckle and open front door to open small door. And it's tight in a more urban area. My wife and son who is now 16 don't like to drive it. So while it still has decent resale value, we thought it best to look for something else and sell it. Then this X-Type happened to come along. I like to drive fun vehicles. Our 2012 Odyssey gets the job done, but you to make your own fun inside cause the vehicle isn't fun. I spent about 3 days of Christmas break last year replacing the front Struts, Tie rod links, Sway bar links, and CV axle and wheel bearing on the passengers side. No strut kids so had to compress the old ones to reuse springs.

Anyway, thanks for any advice. Should be able pick it up tomorrow.

 

That should be a fair amount for a car in that condition (assuming a few things here). The big things that you are going to want to look out for is the check engine light. These cars are prone to tossing one due to vacuum leaks. If you get it, do a search on "big 3 vacuum leaks". You will find tons of information and odds are, you will end up replacing 2 parts, if not all 3 (vacuum line between intake and brake booster, PCV hose, and IMT valve o-rings). You do that, you will have very few troubles. The other things that I would look out for is during the test drive, listen for what most refer to as a "box of rocks in the engine bay". If you have that, run from the car. IN short, the transfer case is about to go and that is a $3000 repair in most cases. The next thing I would listen for is a hum to come from what appears to be under the driver's seat when you drive about 60 mph. If so, this is the carrier bearing going and in a lot of cases, you can buy a bit of time by simply greasing it with some Termaline grease using a grease gun with a needle attachment (lots of write ups on this). The final thing I would tell you to check is the e-brake. When you pull the handle, it should only come up a few inches and then you should feel it start to get harder to pull. If you pull on it and it seems like you are raising your hand up to the roof and it makes a sudden stop, you most likely have atleast 1, if not both rear calipers needing replacing as the e-brake lever is frozen (I personally have done a few write ups on this and how to fix it various ways).

I would ask if it has the 3.0L or 2.5L engine in it. These motors are both more than capable for the car. They are just driven differently. The 2.5L motor likes to be wound up and have its RPMs kept high. So, if you go to pass, you are going to most likely have to step on the gas to make the tranny downshift to get the RPMs up. Where the 3.0L engine is a torque monster. There is no real need to get the engine above 3,000 RPM for most driving as it has lots of low end torque. You depress the gas pedal so it shifts naturally at about 2500 RPM, you are going to be accelerating faster than most cars. You go to pass someone, you ease into the gas a little bit and it stays in that gear and around you go. Both are going to get about the same mileage.

 

Thanks. I get the sense that it wasn't driven hard. My wife said this guy has decent money. So I bet he had no worries getting things fixed on it. Are the Vacuum line worth replacing proactively? It does have the 3.0 in it. I'm used to lower reving torque vehicles. My 66 doesn't like to get to 4000 rpm but is fine going 30mph in 3 gear all the way up to 80+. I also had a Suzuki VX800 twin motorcycle that was all torque via shaft drive and not revy like a CBR or 4 cylinder bikes.

I'm pretty big on proactively getting ahead of things most people wait until they just break. Like keeping filters clean, grease where there are grease fittings, rotating tire myself, and oil changes. I've been running AMSoil SS in our Honda's. I swear that is what protected the engine when the van's VCM crap let oil blow by and fouled a plug before I caught it. Was at only 30k something miles. Honda did new piston rings on 3 or 4 cylinders that the VCM cuts off. I used the temp sensor resistor to disable VCM and it hasn't burned oil since at 150k miles now. Disabled VCM on the Pilot new. But that Pilot's 6 speed auto burns up Honda's DW-1 Transmission even after computer updates. Causes shudders. I think because Honda's DW-1 is not a synthetic and can't take the heat like a full synthetic such as AMSoil's SS trany fluid. After drain and fill about 3 times to cycle 9+ quarts in, no problems since.

I didn't notice any noises on our short test drive the other night. Head Lights seemed to be better than some new cars still. AC was blowing cold when turned all the way down. I'll try to get some pics tomorrow.

 

So we went to pickup the 2003 X-Type today. Here are the exterior photos. I few minor dings and scratches from normal use. And typical curb damage on wheels from being in Marin County CA. I actually lived in Mill Valley in Marin CA in 2003-2005 for grad school.

Only 24,600 on the odometer. Didn't notice any noises other than the steering wheel squeak when turning hard. Nothing like old GM cars. I stopped by our Costco and let the air out of all 5 tires. Filled them with the free Nitrogen for the heck of it even though I have an air compressor. I over fill so that when I get home and the tires cool, I can let it out to normal. Seems 33psi is about right for these from what I am reading. Alignment was a few thousand mile ago.

The radio knob is the digital kind like our toaster oven where it can go up or down with too much heat or wear. The steering wheel volume works fine. That's about it. Need to clean the inside and outside along with engine bay. How does one get an updated Navigation CD? LOL Not going to replace Google Maps or Waze. But still curious.







Window sticker and all service.

 

Please don't wash the engine! (many sad stories about "It does not start after I washed the engine".

 

Na...wouldn't use a pressure washer anyway. Just hand wash the painted parts and rinse with a garden hose. Then blow off water and start it up to let it warm up and evaporate excess water. Engine bay looks pretty good. Need to break out the vacuum and seat cleaner and protection.

 

Yeah, good luck with that.... Be very careful.

 

Post #7, 8, and 9

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...leaning-78380/

 

Do not even use a garden hose :!!!!!!

 

Thanks all. I didn't take the engine covers off but did clean a little. After driving it for most of this week once I got the registration and license plate on Tuesday, it seem to be in good shape. The main radio volume knob will go up or down in either direction. We have a toaster oven with the same kind of digital knob that will do that when the unit is very hot. I need to look in the threads and see if there is a fix for it. Like using some CRC electronics cleaner.

Comparing the engine sound to my F150 5.0 Coyote it's like listening to a purr or hum of a big cat vs the growl of Coyote. Both names pretty fitting. I finished the half of tank of gas and filled up full with Premium at Costco. Looks like the last oil change at the dealer was Castrol. Which is fine. But I'll dump some AMSoil Signature Series in it soon. I run it in all our stuff with Wix XP filters. The synthetic is so much better, especially with less than 25,000 miles on the engine. The synthetic AMSoil ATF fluid has certainly worked better the the Honda DW1. I'll do that here if It's not crazy hard to drain and fill. All the fluids could probably be changed because of age. I'll have to look through the maintenance records. That may have been done knowing the British guy who sold it to me.

Saw that Jagdroid post. I'll have to look at US based options. Thanks all. The only benefit of it being old is that others have dealt with or prevented issues. So I can try to avoid some problems before they begin.

 

Trans fluid is VERY SPECIFIC in our Kitties, MUST repeat MUST MEET indimetsu 17 specs, period. Brand is subjective.


https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...w-pics-183620/

 

Thanks for the links. I definitely have to read up on the posts soon.

Here is the data sheet from AMSoil. https://amsoilcontent.com/ams/lit/databulletins/g3110.pdf

Use AMSOIL Signature Series Multi-Vehicle Synthetic ATF in
transmissions, hydraulics, power steering systems and other
applications that require any of the following specifications:
Allison C-4, TES-389; BMW 7045E, 8072B, LA 2634, LT 71141; Chrysler ATF+4*, MOPAR*
ASRC, 68089195AA, 68049954AA; Ford MERCON*, MERCON* V, ESP-M2C166-H, FNR5,
M2C924-A, XL-12; GM DEXRON* II, DEXRON* III, AutoTrak II; Honda/Acura ATF-Z1; Honda
2.0; Hyundai/Kia SP-II, SP-III, Red-1; IDEMITSU K17; JASO 1A; JWS 3309, 3314, 3317;
MAN 339 Type V-1, 339 Type V-2, 339 Type Z-1, 339 Type Z-2, 339 Type Z-3, 339F; Mazda
ATF-M III, ATF-MV, F-1; Mercedes Benz 236.1, 236.2, 236.3, 236.5, 236.6, 236.7, 236.9,
236.10, 236.11, 236.81, 236.91; Mitsubishi SP-II, SP-III, ATF-J2; Nissan Matic-D, Matic-J,
Matic-K, 402; SAAB 3309; Shell 3403, LA 2634; Subaru ATF, ATF-HP; Suzuki 3314, 3317;
Texaco ETL-7045E, ETL-8072B, N402; Toyota Type T, T-II, T-III, T-IV; Voith 55.6335, 55.6336;
Volvo 97340, 97341; VW/Audi G 052 162, G 052 990, G 055 025; ZF TE-ML 03D, 04D, 05L,
09, 11A, 11B, 14A, 14B, 14C, 16L, 16M, 17C, 20B, 20C, 21L.

The Fuel efficient ones meet newer standards. The SS Fuel Efficient one definitely runs better than Honda's DW-1 in both our 5 speed for Odyssey and especially the 6 speed that kept having judder issues even after software updates and new fluid. I think it jut gets too hot and the Synthetic stands up. That's why Ford put full synthetic trans fluid in the F150's now.

 

How is the baby doing?