My next project will be addressing the suspension starting with the front. I've looked at the sources that I am aware of / found and can't justify all new Jaguar Parts for everything, this will be a regular driver, but would like it to feel like it has less than the 168k miles it has on it. SNG Barratt for example is quite pricy although seems recommended here, if the car was newish then maybe but it isn't,. I've also read many (most?) of the old posts I could find on the subject and the options/prices/vendors seem to be outdated or often not available anymore.

I'm kind of figuring since I'm in there and the wagon has 168k miles on it with what look like original components that are well used I might as well just replace as much as possible, no desire to piecemeal it really. and have to get back in there sooner rather than later. If something is still OK I'll reuse it but anything with a rubber bit or that moves in any way is likely worn out.

Struts - the best bet seems to be the Bilstein OEM B4 version. Wagon has standard comfort suspension, there are multiple choices of the shock available on Partsgeek at different prices, when I asked them the response was that they are the same even though the part numbers and prices vary. WTF? The base one seems to be correct I guess at around $89.58 each, that seems hard to beat for genuine Bilstein. Unless???

Upper strut mounts - Harper Jaguar has the factory units at $91 and the bearing for $56. Autohaus AZ has the factory mount for $110 and Partsgeek has the FEBI/Bilstein bearing for $23. Everyone else including ebay seems to have knockoffs for much less. The word on this forum is that anything not factory will fail very quickly. Why? Has anyone successfully used NON-OEM parts for this and had it work out fine? There aren't too many choices actually. The ebay stuff scares me since who knows where it comes from even though the pics look more like the actual Jaguar parts than any of the aftermarket people's. And the FEBI(Bilstein) bearings for $23 via Partsgeek I would normally think would be fine or better than fine...

Lower Control Arms - Can't decide between Moog and Meyle for these. Priced similarly in the upper $70s each. My rubber is cracked all the way across on these, hence it's time.

Swaybar links - Ready to splurge on Lemforders at $29 each side

Swaybar bushings - Meyle at $5 each seem fine I guess, I don't know the difference...

Outer TieRod Ends - Lemforder at $30 or FEBI at $21 each?

Am I missing something obvious that I should be replacing as well?

I am doing the brakes while I'm in there too, have ATE coated rotors and Mintex pads on the shelf, they should be fine. Curiously the rotors are Chinese (hmm), while the pads hail from Romania and England...

Like I said, just trying to get it more or less back to how it was when new-ish. It's not going on the lawn at Pebble to be judged for authenticity, it'll mainly be a driver. Needs tires too, gotta choose some of those too....

Thanks for any help!

 

All Cattle No hat, when I did my front suspension, I bought the Bilstein shocks, but I bought some e-bay mounts (do not recall who they were from as it was many, many years ago). I got lots of mileage out of them. I would say to stick with a brand name and pay a little extra on e-bay. Granted, all I did was the struts and bearing. I didn't replace all that you are.

As for the bushings, you are going to find 2 general types out there. The natural rubber and then the poly bushings. The natural rubber are cheaper, but don't last as long. The poly are more expensive, but wll last a long time and are much harder, so, you are not likely to get slop any time soon.

One last note, measure your tie rod ends. I found out atleast on my 03, there are 2 styles of tie rod ends. I didn't know that and as things would happen, I bought the wrong ones.

 

All Cattle No Hat,
I just accomplished what you are doing back in September 2021. I did similar searches and found it confusing as to the quality of what I might get. I also was concerned I might encounter something I couldn't handle or for which didn't have all the tools/equipment needed to do it, so I decided to let Jaguar do it.
I'm replying because you mention Harper Jaguar, which is located in Knoxville TN. That is where I had the service accomplished. I have utmost confidence in their technician, Logan. I asked him to evaluate my front and rear suspension. We decided to go with replacing the front shocks (2@$212 each) and the rear ones (2@389 each) (I have an Estate as well and the rear are different from the front); upper mounts 2@$150 each), both front bearing strut assemblies (2@$82).; both rear lower wishbone control arms (2@$374); and an alignment (free!). Labor was ~ $1,500. We did not replace the control arms or tie rods as they were found to still be good. I have 136,000 miles on the Estate).
While I know Jaguar parts prices are high (as is the dealership labor rates), I decided to use the dealer because they would back up the parts in the event there are warranty issues, the convenience factor was very important (location and time), Logan is one of the few technicians still around with expertise on the X-type (I considered two other Jag dealers (VA and NC), but they no longer had the skilled technicians nor the diagnostic equipment to service x-types, if you can believe that!); and who knows, I might enter it into a JCNA Concours so want authentic Jag parts ;-))
Yeah, I know...the total service cost me about what the car is worth, but like you, this is a daily driver and I expect it to be with me a long time. It's been 20 years now, so I expect the parts to go another 20. The cost spread out over 20 years is reasonable. The car should outlive me.

 

Thanks for the info, I appreciate it. I can't go the dealer route as the car cost us $2,000 and will mainly be my middle kid's first car. He's solidly committed to wrenching on it with me and getting it up to snuff. Snuff meaning mechanically decent and mainly safe to drive and for him to learn on, our other cars are all new/newer but this is the only "normal" car in the fleet that makes sense for a first-timer to learn on. While it hopefully will survive him I'm realistic that there is every possibility of something untoward befalling the car. Had we bought it new and were now looking to get that same life out of parts again then sure, I can see the math working out. But for now I'll happily pay more for brand names I recognize than just for the cheapest crap out there and hope to get parts that are at least decent but perhaps not in the green boxes. The goal is to get it to be acceptable (in all respects, not just suspension) for not much more than the initial cost again. Working on it with him is enjoyable and a good way to show him that many things can be accomplished in the garage, and realistically a good way to possibly afford interesting cars on a budget. Shop labor seems to get far more expensive every year and has its place too but more as a last resort in this case. Thanks!