Hey Guys,

About a month ago, I posted here saying that my car was making a whirring noise. Everyone here said that it was probably my drive shaft. Under warranty I had it replaced but the noise remained. So I took it to Jag and they said it was my Transfer Case...which is also covered under my warranty...so that will only cost me $100 to replace (which is awesome)...

They also found two other issues - and I am not sure which to fix (if I should fix any at all)...

1) They said my Oil Pan Gasket was leaking. Now I NEVER have any spots or drips in my driveway - so Im wondering if I have a minor leak or would this be evident in some other way? To repair is $488 (that is the price if I do it when they replace the TC - if I do it later they said the job is $1,100)

2) Trans Cooler Lines were leaking. Again, no spots or drip marks in my driveway - so how bad can the leak be? To repair is $404.

Can you tell me if either of these are critial to fix or are these one of those repairs that can be ignored until they become a "real" issue - like noticing a spot or drip marks on my driveway? Im afraid the Jag dealership is trying to get more $$ from me and picking out anything to repair when maybe these arent real issues at all...??

Thoughts?

 

Mayor, seeing how you dont have an easy way to check the tranny fluid level, I would be more worried about that. Your first sign of a low tranny fluid level will be the car not dropping into gear or slipping out of gear at times. Now, is this something that I feel that has to be fixed immediately, no. In the near future, yes. Granted, what I would tell you to do is to have them show you the problems. I think you will find that based on the amount of fluid in the area, it will help make it easy to decide just how fast it needs to be corrected. Is seeing a 3" circle of fluid that is fairly dry under a connection a leak? To the dealership, they can be using this to say you have a leak. By definition, that is a true statement. I don't know your current situation, so, a little bit of looking will help you make a wise decision.

 

When they were doing your tranfer case, It would have been the perfect time to do your oil pan gasket. You have to take the transfer case off to do that anyway. Well you don't, but they were there anyway. Number two, They could have charged you a couple hours more to do the oil pan gasket while they had the tranfer case out. Now they are going to charge you like 8 hrs of labor to do that oil pan gasket. I think they were trying to pull a fast one. I don't know about the lines, I've never, ever, ever,ever,ever and I mean ever seen those leak in my time working on Jags. But anythings possible.

 

The transfer case only pays like 3.2hrs under warranty, I looks like they were trying to get their 3.2hrs, then charge you full labor to do the oil pan gasket when they already have the the Transfer Case out. What was the total cost for the oil pan gasket repair. In this situation, I would have done the Transfer case, then charged like 2 hrs more to do the oil pan gasket. That includes removing, cleaning, resealing, and installing.

 

If I were you, I'd take it to a second mechanic to verify that you actually have leaks. I wouldn't put it past dealers to try to ding you for non-warranty work if they're not getting much for a warranty repair. You can also verify this by yourself by putting your car on ramps and crawling under it (though from what I recall, you might not be super mechanically inclined).

At least if you get a second opinion, you'll know there really are leaks. If there are, I'd agree with fixing the transmission leak first. A new transmission is going to cost you several thousand dollars, so a bit of preventative maintenance is well worth it.

 

Oil pan leak is common, and for sure you need to do this when the TC is already out.

They are being CRAZY with their price though.
once the TC is out, it is no more than an extra half hour to do the pan gasket....

 

By the way, if you are not willing to stand under the car and see the leak, or bend over to look at the leak, then you pretty well deserve to be gouged.

looking for spots on the driveway is hardly a conclusive test for leaks on a car. The X-type for example has most leaks drip onto the exhaust, and burn away as you drive. and when you are parked, the drips stop when the engine is not running, the oil is back in the pan, so cant leak out.

 

I'm kind of confused on why you're being charged anything when you are under warranty....

 

Simple...the Warranty doesnt cover the Trans cooler lines or the oil pan gasket...

Its not that Im not willing to look under the car - I just dont where to look or what to look for? Sport30 saying that I "deserve to be gouged" is sort of a stupid comment...

Thanks for all the replies gang - Ill have them show me the leaks and if they dont look so "horrible" I may just do the oil pan since it will triple in price if I have to do it down the road...

 

I am not saying you need to be an expert, but with a mechanic by your side, and with the car in the air on a hoist, you should try to get a basic understanding of why changing a gasket will cost 500 dollars!.... if you dont take a look, and see how much oil is leaking (even better to ask the mechaning to wash the area then come back in a week and see how much new oil has leaked) how are you going to make an intelligent decision?

As good and friendly as your mechanic appears to be, they will always see a Jag owner as a fat walleted customer.

 

What????

 

So you think that's all we see. If you have an Xtype, chance are in some cases you don't have a "fat wallet." I have a lot of customers who have money to blow on material "junk", but complain about paying a $100 deductible off a $3,000 dollar repair covered by their warranty. Granted they did pay for the warranty, but either way.... Then they can't afford to do brakes on their car, but they get shuttled back from mall with "20" Nieman Marcus bags in hand. So don't assume all Jag Techs think what you've just stated.

 

I'm not impleying that your being ripped off, by no means. I'm just saying that the oil pan gasket should have been done with the TC off. The unfortuate part is that you were unaware, good thing you didn't "ok" the work.

 

get on those tranny lines asap!!! if they crack and leak more you will burn out your transmission and that is a $8000 job at the dealer or a $4000 rebuild elsewhere...

the oil pan i wouldnt worry about unless you had a major leak and it was noticeable on your driveway and also you can see your level drop. there are oil additives that work very well to reduce and in some cases eliminate oil leaks on seals just like the pan. there is a product called no smoke that works great.
DO NOT run a engine flush or put any additives in that break down sludge or grime, this im most cases breaks worn seals and makes minor leaks into major ones.

 

Guys - just to clarify - I posted my original question BEFORE I had the work done. So I was able to read your replies before I got the work done.

I was able to get the Oil Pan Gasket done WITH the TC getting replaced...so I lucked out.

The dealership did lift the car for me to look at the Trans cooler lines and the leak was absolutely minimal. They said they would check it again in 3000 to 5000 miles...

So it looks like Ill pay the $488 to get the Oil Pan Gasket done cause I only have to pay $100 deductable to get my TC replaced...not a bad deal.

 

i wouldnt wait for that tranny to get worse... why wont warranty cover the tranny lines?
i can see the dealer saying there is a maximum claim amount and that you should put them in separate claims about 30 days apart to get them approved...