Dennis mentioned a Land Rover dealership carried Jatco fluid, however does anyone else know where to purchase this stuff in the US???

I've tried every forum on the Jaguar, and everyone is clueless. Some say, Merc V, then I dug up more on that and shot that down, some say some weird Japanese fluid, I can't remember off the top of my head, others say JATCO fluid, which is far from widespread here in the US.

Shesh, my dealership told me not to use synthetic oil and was unable to tell me which fluid is proper to use for the J-gate.[:@] With all that said, the car is fun to drive in the winter time, though!

 

The JATCO fluid for the Land Rover'sauto was: Texaco N-402

 

Thanks for the number, but it only adds to my confusion regarding what to use on this thing. Could you elaborate a bit how you went about choosing it, and if you are on warranty, if your dealership okayed it.

The information I have gathered so far entails this:

JTIS Spec: WSS-M2C922-A1 automatic transmission fluid. From the Jaguar spec 7/2004 - Use of any other fluids may result in a transmission malfunction or failure....It was very difficult interpreting the factory spec. Then I discovered a factory bulletin online. It is attached at the bottom of this post and an excerpt is listed for brands. Shell is a popular brand in the US and it looks to be a Mercon V type fluid. Use the Shell pns. listed to match compatibility. Jatco makes their own recommended fluid, but I have no idea how one would purchase it. Brands: All of the following come from the service bulletin attached on the bottom of this post - Recommended fluids Esso LT 71141; Shell ATF 3403 M115; Shell M1375.4; MERCON V XT-5-QM ATF; IDEMITSU K17; Jatco 3100 PL085. Jatco is preferred if you can find it.

Later ran into some more information stating MercV is indeed not the correct fluid to use. I'll support it with a link when I get time to dig it up.

I'm just getting antsy as the extended warranty will run its course soon, and I don't believe in "sealed for life." We've seen far too many failures to disqualify this statement by Jaguar.

 

I don't know about the the Jag's JATCO..But Land Rover was quite specific to use ONLY the N-402/Also I wouldn't bet that it is the same fluid needed for the Jag...So If I were to drain and fill the Jag's tranny, I would probably use only what the dealer sold me for it and pay the extra for at least thecorrect fluid...This is one area Itrust to the tranny maker's recommendation..as it is a Japanese tranny not Jaguar's

 

Heh! Appreciate the honesty! Definitely agree with you there. Out of curiousity how much was the Texaco fluid?

The Jag dealership was quoting me something like $52/qt. I was literally flabbergasted. I'm coming from DexIII/Merc, $1.50/qt! I was like, "Wahhh, say that again?!?!"

 

You think thats steep, try fluid for a zf in stype or new XJ. Last time I looked it was twice that. Mineral oil in those puppies.

 

I think it was at $10.00/qt for the Texaco N-402

You want to hear your jaw hit the floor?[sm=yikesomg.gif]..wait till you price a gallon of Jaguar's anti-freeze....$80.00/gallon...their power steering fluid is $32.00/qt..[&:]

 

The PS fluid price sounds good, as all my previous cars used transmission fluid for PS fluid. LOL, if Jag required JATCO in the PS, I'd flip.

So wait, you're telling me I can't use that Prestone $6.99 antifreeze. Seriously though, what makes it $80/gallon? The base is mostly ehtylene glycol (quite inexpensive), so what else are they adding in there to make it worthy of $80/gallon? Oh wait, wait...you have to account $60 for the Jaguar sticker on the gallon jug, haha!

 

I was told that the innards of the coolant system are pretty particular about all the right kind of additives and inhibitors that are special in the Jaguar Anti-freeze concentrate....So I will not second guess this issue either..the coolant system is just too damn important to the life of the engine.....

 

Looks like I went against your rule of thumb there Dennis. After the expansion tank split, and had it replaced, the coolant system was easily 2qts low, which I used Havolline extended-life antifreeze (the reddish color) w/ DEX-COOL (whatever that means).

So, you'll be the first to know if my judgement call goes wrong...but probably not for a year or two. Based on what I know, or don't know, the coolant system should be more forgiving on fluid specs than say the tranny or differential. I don't think i'll lose any sleep over this one.

I'm watching this thread closely, as I too won't wait till 90k miles before changing fluids.

 

i bought my jag from a herb chambers infinity dealership the coolant is red in color, not sure if its jaguar spec. What color is the jag coolant supposed to be? 80 bucks a gallon is pretty steep. How many gallons again to fill that radiator??

 

Lol! I was just joking about the $60 sticker price, little did I know there actually is a Jaguar-bottled coolant! Yep, I believe it is red. However, there are so many variants of red/green coolant out there. IIRC, all GMs come with red dexcool. To be honest, I haven't done enough research in the coolant department on this platform to validate spending the extra bit or if there is a similar fluid supported by a manufacturer that can be used on this platform. Perhaps, someone could shine some light here.

 

This is from Steve Hannes Jag Motor Project Blogs: Engine Coolant: JTIS Spec: WSS M97B44 D. This is compatible with long life marketed anti-freeze. Originally developed for GM, called Dex-cool, this fluid is pink/orange in colour, not green. Long life specifies 5 year 150,000 mi changes. I don’t agree and change mine every 12 to 24 months max. Brands: Prestone Extended life 5/150. This is a new generation (pink/orange) coolant compatible with all coolants - green, pink, orange, or whatever. Capacity: 10.6 qts 3.0L and 2.5L – but expect that you might not get the entire system drained from the heater core and engine block.

In last months Jag World UK publication they had a tech segment on the X-type maintence and stated that if the old school green coolant was used the mixing of the two coolants would produce a gummy gel that was hard and expensive $$ to get out. On a further note, the engine is a Ford Duratec so I would see what Ford uses for thier other Duratecs powered cars.

 

Just looking through some service records for my car when it had the thermostat andfan speed regulatorreplaced and I seen the part number for the antifreeze the jag dealer used:
JLM-20972/2

 

One Gallon of concentrate is all you'll need for the X-type (Pinkish orange)...I asked my dealer if this stuff was the same or compatable with Dex-Cool..and they all kind of suggested to stick with the Jag coolant as it is the Monoethylene Glycol base...They maybe wrong or right..I don't know on this one, so I will yield to the experts and follow their recommendations..

PS..make sure you mix it 50/50 with distilled water at least, whatever you use.

 

1.) Yep, combining the two is not a good idea. The solidification does occur. I've seen a picture of what it looks like on a contour.
2.) No, almost all duratecs that I've seen use green coolant. I have 2, 2.5Ls, my father owns a 3.0L Taurus and have seen the 3.5Ls, and all used green coolant.

 

That is the part Number for the Jaguar Anti-Freeze..I just checked my receipts..

BTW...My mistake..it was only $55.35/gallon..not $80.00 like a said earlier.