Well, sh*t.
My black pearl got in a traffic accident last night, and took most of the hit. Nobody got hurt, and everything was settled on location as for insurance.
Now comes the question of how to get the X fixed. It seems most of the damage is purely cosmetic, apart from the foglight assembly. The indicator and high beam housing also cracked. They work, but I'll need a completely new set of housings. The front bumper actually split in half, so I'll need a completely new bumper as well. Same goes for bonnet and wheel arch panel.
Here comes the awful pictures.






Now.. Since I need to replace all these parts, I'm considering to fit HID's, the facelift bumper, with headlight washers (which I'm required to have by law, if I want HID's). I'm hardly a mechanic, so it's hard to tell if anything internal components are broken. The car works, starts and drives without any issues, but one never knows. Can anyone see anything broken, apart from the body panels?
I'm in an awful position, as the local shop that I've used, have been nothing short of terrible. So I'm considering buying the parts that I need, man up and install them myself, or drive down the entire country to the only Jag-specialist in Norway, having them ordering the right panels and parts in advance. Which will be expensive, to say the least.

 

Not sure how insurance claims work in Norway but would the good specialist consider billing for supply and fit of the parts as installed, then let you pay the difference for the facelift bumper etc.

Either way, no point taking it to the place which you have already determined as terrible

Hope it goes well

 

looking at what is exposed, I would make sure they check your A/C system thoroughly...

Given the upgrades described, hopefully insurance there lets the carrier just cut a check and gives choice on who does the work...I know I get that option here in Texas.

 

Skinny, on a side note, you can not just toss the factory HID housings into your car and expect them to work. The factory HID housings require an additional ground wire to be added to the headlight plug. If you want the info, let me know and I will pass on the info.

Body panels are not necessarily hard to do. But, they can take a lot of time as you have to play with them to get them to hang properly on the car. If you have time, then go for it. May want to have a shop paint the panels for you too so they come out looking good unless you are familiar with a spray gun and automotive paint. If you need some assistance with that, I have a little bit of experience with that too.

 

I know Thermo, I'm going for the entire setup, with the added ground wire, jet washers, ballasts and axel sensors. But I do appreciate the offer!

As far as AC goes, I've had it running for ten minutes just to check, instant cold air, as always, so it seems in order. I'm curious though, is the facelifted bumper compatible with my '03?

 

Skinny, yes it is. Add away.

 

Skinny, that sucks to say the least. It looks like my baby except mine won't run.

 

I hope that the repair process goes smoothly and trouble free. Good luck!

 

I don't mean to bring up an old thread just for nothing, but I thought I'd give you all a brief update on the (lack of) progress I've made so far on repairing the damage.
It turns out my insurance won't cover it, and I've been dealing with that for a while now. After sorting that out, I began searching for parts. Finding Jaguar parts in Norway is near impossible. I could've been in rural Africa as far as I'm concerned. The only remotely nearby parts dealer had awful prices (weird, given that they almost exclusively deal with Jag, thus knowing the actual price point of owning a "baby" Jaguar.
The retail price of a brand new (and unpainted) bonnet? $2500
The retail price of a brand new (and unpainted) bumper? $865
What does the paint cost you say? For those two combined, the paint comes to a total of $1600
A single headlight alone costs $850 new.
I find the price point to be utterly ridiculous. I know owning a car is expensive, and it certainly doesn't help owning a Jaguar, but still. This car is 12 years old now, and it is a cheap model. Just for the heck of it, I searched around for brand new Fords, Volvos, BMWs etc for parts, and it's around the same f*cking price point. Just for the price of the bonnet alone I can take my X-TYPE, install a towing bracket, rent a trailer and DRIVE down to England and buy the parts. And I'm not far from actually considering that idea. Or breaking my damn car down for parts, starting a website and pay down the loan that way.
I'm still in love with my X-TYPE, but everything aside from driving it is a real pain. It's been amazingly reliable, even with my rather rough use and bad norwegian roads.

I don't know where I'm going with this to be honest, I just needed to vent some frustration. Feel free to laugh at the insane pricing for parts abroad.

 

Just for fun; the total amount of parts, painting and actually fitting them would come to $7800. That's over half of what I paid for the entire car.

 

Sorry to hear about your prolonged issues trying to get your cat back on the road. I noticed all the prices you quoted were for new parts. Have you looked into buying used parts for what you need? I would have to think E-Bay list a lot of that stuff.

Good luck and I hope it eventually works out for you.

 

Skinny, I would say to start looking at say ebay.co.uk and seeing if there are people there that are willing to ship you the parts. I know I have gotten some small nicknacks from England (to the USA) for not that much money. Worst case, find a friend with a small pickup, tell him that you will pay for a weekend in England and then drive over and get the parts that way. Should be much less and if you can find the right car, the parts will be already painted for you and all you have to do is slap them on to the car. I can't see a place wanting more than say $2000 for the parts that you need when they are used.

 

I'm sorry hear and see this.

I can see (right there - in your 5th photo) that a black cat has crossed your path...

New parts are pricey, even for an old car. Have you thought about getting a "parts car" and just taking the body parts you need from it? I bet that would save a few Gs. If you find a black one, you might not even have to paint them.

 

Hey skinny. I can help with parts. I don't mind shipping and even with shipping it will be far less then the prices you just stated. Pm me your postal code and I can stop by tomorrow and get a shipping price for you. I have a good head light, fog light for you.

Let me know.,
The Dr

 

Dr, he needs them shipped to Norway. Can you help with that and keep the cost down? Just saying. I know my experience with shipping things like you are going to be that kind of distance is going to get silly.

 

Yep Chris.
Shipping is a little high but I worked out a price so that it works for us both. I make a few bucks and help out a fellow jag brother. Everyone wins.

 

It's a start, and far better than the retail prices around here. The workshop also deals used parts when in stock, and they had none. Even if they had, the prices were still sky high.
I'm probably going to look for an X-TYPE for sale in the U.K. with a broken engine, gearbox or damaged rear. Probably way cheaper than any other alternative available for me right now.
With that said, my car will most likely be sold as soon as it is fixed. I love it, and I still love Jaguar. But I might be moving next year, and studies don't pay car loans. If all works out, I might find my self cruising in a Mini Cooper S next year.

 

Well that's my cat, so I suppose I had it coming!
I'm probably ending up with a parts car, they are stupidly cheap in the U.K.
The transport price is an issue though. Any good tips, or do I need to head to the U.K. forum?