I've noticed new cracks in the wood veneer and I wondering if other people are seeing them? A new one "just" appeared running from just over the tach to air vent opening. It's about 6" long. I also noticed some on the driver's door. The shift knob has always had some but they seem to have grown over the last couple years and there has always been on on the tail of the piece behind the shifter but it too has grown/spread. The ones on by the shifter seem like they are about to intersect and completely span the piece.

How are the pieces attached? Is there any chance that, for the piece by the shifter anyway, chucks could start flaking off?
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Jaguar - it's not an automobile, it's a Motorcar

 

I think the veneer is glued to the alloy frame/background of the trim piece, so it shouldn't flake without considerable external effort.

I've also gotten two cracks this winter, I'm assuming it has to do with the quick temperature changes in-car (from sub-zero to +20 degrees in maybe less than an hour). One's going from the dial opening to the central vent opening, another is on the gear surround trim.

I guess the cracks add character, like a nice scar in the face of a handsome man (only in movies though) they also remind you that there's actual wood in the trim, not just plastic.

 

How many miles on the car before you started noticing cracks?

 

Around 45k miles, roughly two months ago.

Heh, I too have that black plush Jaguar trunk mat. It feels absolutely luxurious.

 

Yeah my shift knob just cracked this winter. I'm considering the option of purchasing a new one but they are pretty expensive for a block of wood.

 

>How many miles on the car before you started noticing cracks?

The car was three years old with 35K miles when I got it and the shift knob and veneer below the shifter already had cracks. Since then the shifter has sprouted new cracks as has the piece below the shifter.

The car is now 8 years old with 80K miles and I just noticed the crack on the dash. I noticed the cracks on the door a couple of months ago.
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Jaguar - it's not an automobile, it's a Motorcar

 

My car is 10 years old with only 23,000 miles on it. Not a single crack. How do I keep it that way?

 

My car is over 7 years old with about 59k miles and the only crack I have is on the shift knob. Maybe the VDP style wood is more resilient?

 

VDP alias Sovereign as it's called outside of US has, to my knowledge, walnut rather than maple (basic veneer in europe) or sapele (basic veneer in US). No idea on the resilience though.

 

Check ebay. They turn up on there fairly cheap.

 

My 02 has cracks on the gear shifter, the shifter surround, the main dash, and the airbag.
Anyone ever used that kit that recovers the wood with venal or metal?

 

One of the best sources available to find just about everything there is on Ebay is Jaguar For Sale Auctions | Jaguar AuctionWatch

Wood and metal gear shift knobs about $50 USD, and interior wood trim individual pieces from $20 USD to the entire interior set for about $120 USD.

 

I just got a walnut one from Coventry West via eBay for about $60. There was another vendor selling the same exact knob for $100.

One thing I noticed is that the VDP trim does not extend to the shift knob (unless the previous owner changed it), as my current knob is just a maple one. I ended up ordering one that is a slightly different shape, (more like the XJ ones) but the right wood and color to match the rest of the trim

 

MY o2 has cracks in the shift knob, but the rest of the fake wood has not cracked yet. It sat out in the police impound for almost 2 years untouched.
Was real wood an option for the x type? Mine has plastic panels just like the shifter knob for the base model.

 

The X-Type was never available with fake wood.