I finally did it... I SOLD THAT B!TCH! I even went upside down by a grand and took it with a smile my face. The words I type here can't even express to you all how good it feels to have it released from my life.
You may think I am bitter, and I was an unhappy owner, and you know what... that couldn't be further from the truth. I loved that car! I spent a lot of money fixing it up the way I wanted, and it was a sweet little ride, but I had to baby it WAY TOO MUCH!!! I was always scared that one of the "normal" problems would occur. Like having to replace the transmission, or having to replace the transfer case. I live in a part of MD that has no Jag shops, or dealers, so the real potential that this could happen is always there. But it doesn't stop there... What's a trans replacement cost? What's a transfer case replacement cost? Is it really worth that thousands on top of thousands of dollars to replace it? Is it? for what? In reality we're driving the poor mans Jag and spending premium money fixing it. HUMBUG!!! Glad it's gone, but also glad I ONLY dropped a couple grand into maintenance over years I had her. This list follows:

Just a couple issues that come with owning a Jaguar X-Type
Check engine light on X4 (all different legitimate reasons)
"Cruise not available" fault X2 times
"DSC System Fault" X3 times
Gas door getting stuck,
coil pack replacement x2
wheel speed sensors replaced
catalytic converters replaced
problems with the door handles on both driver and passenger side
coolant reservoir cracked/had to be replaced
dropped a belt in the factory continentals
Broken storage tray located by left knee in dash.

LAST, BUT DEFINITLY NOT LEAST.... My oil pan gasket that needed to be replaced at a WHOPPING $1100..... WTF!!! AN OIL PAN GASKET FOR $1100???? That was the straw that broke the camel's back. It had to go!

Now if you've ever encountered all of these, and just took it, you're wrong. This is over the course of a few years, 1 of which I was deployed over seas. This is the signature of a poorly built car, or a car that is designed to fail so they can laugh at you as you keep fixing it over and over and over and over and over and over and over again.

I ended up getting a great deal on a used Jeep Commander, and I LOVE IT!! I don't have to baby it, it's got utility for days, it looks cool as hell, the 4X4 system is a BEAST, and most importantly, I can carry my baby girl in it!

I got jaded in the notion of "driving a Jaguar" at a very reasonable price, and that's what made my buy the piece of crap, but never again. I won't be fooled again. ENJOY!!!

 

I had a 2003 X-Type 3.0 and never, ever had any of the problems you described, I think you just had a "Lemon". Sorry to hear that, but s#&$ does happen, sometimes. I have absolutely NO complaint about having mine, the only reason it is not around now is because, some woman, ran a turn light and hit it, while my son was driving. And the damage that was done to it by that Ford 4 door pickup truck was incredible, my insurance company said? (write off), so thats why I got rid of it and the only reason, I did.

 

Sorry to hear you had so many issues with the Jag but congrats on the new Jeep. I've owned 3 Jeeps over the years (all Cherokees) and they served me well, but not without issues along the way. The main thing I learned from having 3 Jeeps is that whatever fails on one, fails on all of them around the same mileage marker. I did go through a trans on the 1st one and sold the next two before that many miles. The last one, a 2002 had the standard equipped feature of eating rotors every 6k miles. Luckily that was a time I worked from home and lived near the dealer. I'd just throw my bike in the back, drop it off and peddle home. It was all very convenient.

On the bright side, you found another car you really like at first glance. And since Jeeps are a dime a dozen on every street corner, the forums are loaded with helpful hints on trying to make yours seem,... unique.
[/sarcasm]

PS: Seriously, thanks for your service.

 

I`m sorry to hear that you had so many problems with your car. I don`t share your bitterness and can only tell you that you likely had a lemon. You think that your Jeep is immune?

I had a 1985 Jeep Cherokee with the 2.5L I4. It was in the shop so many times that I got it replaced under the California Lemon Law. I replaced it with a Jeep Cherokee with the 4.0L I6. Great car. Never had a problem with it.

I`ve owned four lemons out of the 40 or so cars that I`ve had.

1985 Jeep Cherokee I4
1993 Chevrolet Camaro SS
1994 Ford Mustang GT
1999 BMW M3

My Jag has been flawless and it`s 7 years old.

 

Yeah I agree sounds like your X-Type was garbage lol Mine has been great to me.

 

Mine has been ok so far, but I tend to stay away from the first 1-2 years of any car's model run. It's the car-equivalent of waiting for service pack 1.

 

You're right, you don't sound bitter, not at all.

Like Jeremy says, never buy year one or two, buy the last couple of years. And as an FYI to most people out there thinking a grand is a lot for a pan gasket replacement, it's AWD, there is a lot of extra crap down there and cross members etc. so our cars have some cornering ability.

I just spent 200 to get the valve cover gasket done on my BMW, straight 6, I looked and saw I needed to be a contorsionist to get to the bolts. 200 to replace the thermostat, and the thermostat was 100.00.

Welcome to the world of import cars. I did a ton of research before getting my X, then it took a further 6 months to find the car I wanted. I probably looked at 25 cars in person at a minimum. Because you didn't do the research and just got into a 'Jaguar' for cheap, you got what you got. I've had 3 Jeeps, the biggest POS on the planet, wait until you over torque the POS front differential and splatter axles all over the road, or you feel the funny little shudder like you went over rocks for a second and realize that was your torque converter grenading through the transmission. You'll be begging for a 1000.00 oil pan fix.

 

sorry to burst your bubble....but he jeep commander is just as bad. They have had numerous transmission problems, leaking sunroofs and the engine shutting off while driving downt he free way. It is a dud if you get the 2006 or the 2007 i almost bought one. There nice but becareful you dont jinx it.

 

those jeep commanders are nice.....but there worse then our cars for problems. Take it from me I was bent on buying one until i got into the forums and consumer complaints.

 

Allot of my friends i wheel off road with have jeeps. And many and have stickers that say "its a jeep thing, and i replaced all that shyt"
you haD some common issues and some not. Xtypes dont eat coils like the other jags.
But this is why when asked on here as a blanket statement we tend to tell people to spend more on a jaguar and move up in the lineup. Caus eive seen many people spend more on maintaining an x than if theyde have just bought a more expensive jag and had fewer repairs

 

I have to be honest - I know EXACTLY where this guy is coming from. I love my Jag ALOT - but I have had her since October and have already needed $2000 worth of repairs...and its all MAJOR crap (transfer case, oil pan, exhaust gaskets, etc).

I have NEVER driven a car "waiting" for something to break...like I do when driving my Jag. I drive each day listening (hoping/praying) that nothing goes wrong...and unfortunately that takes away some of the WOW-factor of owning such a beautiful car...

Again, I love my Jag - but I hate the fact that it requires such attention... My Audi's, my Porsche's, my Lexus' - all of them NEVER needed to be babied like my Jag...

Just my .02 cents.

 

Honestly, like I said in my post above, I did a lot of research first. I found a lot of X-Type issues went away if you restricted your search to a late 2003 or later. I know I could have purchased a 2002 or 2003 for 1/2 what I ended up getting my 04 for but knew that what I saved would end up down the road being spent on repairs. And there are few repairs that come cheap with our car or any other mid level import.

 

Sorry for your loss. It sounds like you got a poorly maintained car. When buying any used lux car regardless of make you need to research the weak points and find the diamond's in the rough. They are out there. 18k into ours and it needed a battery, rotors rear shocks and its 100k maint. done. Oh the horrors!!! Hope you shopped a little better for your Jeep otherwise it is likely to be just as much of a money pit. Used cars of any make are a crap shoot. Then again so are new cars. My 3rd Subaru toasted its tranny at 1050 miles, it came with a 30 day 1000 mile warranty. I learned from that point on not to buy an awd car with mismatched tires. Good luck with your Jeep!

 

Oh dear, however a lot of issues can also be down to driving style and use/maintenance.

Just think of it like this... if you've fixed it.. chances are it aint gonna go again for a while lol

 

hmmm not really too bitter then

2002 was one of the early cars and still suffered some probs, some of which you seem to have experienced and some not,,,,,,As stated the 30 and deffo the 04 and beyond are much better and the bugs / kinks have been worked out. I had the 02 model myself with very few issues, just a great ride and lots of compliments!

Sometimes its down to owner maintenance, previous owner and perhaps yourself, how its driven etc etc.

Anyhow, I'd just like to wish you all the best with your new ride and really do hope you fare better this time round

 

my x has had the tranny fault light on for like 1 year now and i cant replace the tranny if it goes. with $400 on insurance a month and the 10 MPG i get of off freaking premium i am getting i cant save up for a new tranny lol.... Not a good car for a 17 year old with a crappy part time job but as bad as this car may seem to ppl I LOVE IT!! but like i said before i cant really afford it so im considering a different car.

 

Sorry to hear about your problems , I wish you will have good ownership with your jeep , plastic trim just looks so crap almost in all jeeps though .
Never jag again ? You haven't driven the best Jag ever

 

If i didn't have a warranty on my 02 X, I probably would feel very similar. I had a sh*t ton of things replaced under warranty. Serves me right for buying a first year model. Then the warranty expired and I had to have some more stuff replaced, although did much of it myself.

I was prepared for it though, and thankfully could afford to pay to fix it if necessary. I look back on my X with fondness, yes it gave me headaches but offset them with plenty of smiles.

Good luck with your Jeep. I personally like the Commander and have a few friends who have them and really haven't had much in the way of problems. My Jeeps have served me well over the years - they are what they are. If you are going to off road it though, prepare to spend $$ on getting the driveline up to snuff.

I think you know that deep down you'll miss your X type, even with all the issues. I do!

 

Can't agree more

 

I agree with Sidewalkman. I have a similar story to his. I spent hours and hours do research on them (a LOT of it here) before deciding exactly what I wanted and what I wanted to pay. Took about 6 months to find the right car and had to travel 500 miles to buy it. Very glad I did all that BEFORE buying. 2 1/2 years and 40k+ miles later it's been trouble free.

I can understand where teh original poster was coming from though. Enough stuff goes wrong and so much money is spent you just never know if it is finally all sorted out or just a lull before something else happens that could be expensive. Having peace of mind on the reliability of your car is a big thing to me. I have to admit that even with all the research I did I still had (and maybe still do) have that thought in the back of my mind that something is about to go. But then I take a nice ride on the highway or polish it up on a Saturday and that feeling about why I wanted the car in the first place comes back.