The car is a stiff ride, even without the Sport springs. The cabin is under-insulated for noise. You did probably the single biggest thing you could do by swapping rims and tires. What PSI are you running in the tires? This can make a bigger difference than you think. If it is really bad, you might want to take a look at your suspension bushings. The ride should be stiff but not terrible.

 

yeah the rides pretty bad on non sport too, im planning on changing out the shocks, springs and bushings later on in the summer

 

I presumed you would get a typical Jaguar ride

 

I know a harsh ride is pretty subjective, but I have a 2005 sport with 18" Aruba wheels. Considering the tires ar 40 series I think the ride is pretty decent. Actually, one of the concerns I had before driving it with the low profile tires was how bad the ride would be. I am very satisified and I am no stranger to rough pot-holed roads. I live in Milwaukee. Maybe something is worn in the suspension or the previous owner put on some aftermarket suspension pieces. If you have a set of Eibachs on it and decided to go back to stock I know there would be a tom of members that would gladly switch with you.

I used to own 1999 Saab 9/5, so I'm familiar with the ride between the two. The Saab was quote a bit softer than the Jag for sure, but I'm very happy with the ride quality in the Jag. Hope there is nothing mechanically wrong with your car.

 

Check your swaybar bushings, sometimes they can cause a "clonk." If somebody had the subframe apart at some point, you might want to check the mounting bolts and re-torque. Your comparisons of the Lexus and XJ are apples to oranges with an X type.

I've had 8 Saabs over the years, including a 9000 Aero and I currently have a 2007 9-3 SS. They do have a more supple ride in general than this particular Jaguar, although the Aero was pretty stiff. The X handles better than any of them though due to the AWD layout and RWD bias.

 

You shouldn't hear any sound when getting out of the car, unless you are getting old like me, then you might hear a groan or creak.

You may have some suspension component damage then. Have those springs inspected.

Did you drop your tire psi?

 

Hey Sethec... Ironically, I also just purchased a very nice 2005 X-type sport that ended up having suspension issues. My car came with the 17" Aguila wheels with 45 profile Continental Tires... When I drove the car home (WI to NY) the ride quality was terrible and very noisy...It sounded like the front and rear ends were loose... I finally got it home an brought it to the Jag repair center. They found both the front and rear bushings were bad (only 25k miles on the car), and they replaced both. Good thing I was still under factor warranty. Although my car is a "Select Edition", the Select Edition warrranty would not have covered the bushings.. Anyway, since the repair, the ride quality is still pretty stiff (compared to my 07 S-type) but the ride is much, much quieter. Despite the ride quailty being stiff, I've actually gone in the opposite direction of you... I have just purchased a set of the 18' Melbourne wheels, and am now looking for a good "All season Tire". Althought I know the already stiff ride of the X will get even stiffer with the 18's, it's the price we pay for that sporty look and ride. I must say, the X sure does look sexy with those 18 MELBOURNE'S though (see below)... Good luck, and have those bushings checked..

P.S. If you have some pics of your ride, I'd like to see it!!

 

Hey... I don't exactly know what the bushing will cost, but I can't imagine that it would be very expensive. I'm just thankful that I didn't have to pay for it. What model 18" rims do you have?? The aruba, melbourne or aftermarket wheels?? Anyway, good luck and I look forward for the pics.

 

I see this is an older thread, but I am so happy I found it fast with a search using "rough ride". Since I bought my car two months ago, the one thing I have been most embarrassed about when driving friends around is the unbelievable truck like ride and shimmy. Two days ago I took the car in to have the tires balanced and rotated to see if this helped. It seemed to, but this evening we put almost 300 miles on the car driving to have dinner at Lambert's Cafe in Sikeston, Missouri. Home of the throwed rolls, and the travel channels number one "place to pig out". Believe me, it is. Anyway. Talk about a car that rides like a truck. Tomorrow I'm taking it back to the tire place and have them check the tires for a bad one or two, see if any of my wheels are bent, even though they say they were able to balance them good the other day. And, have a wheel alignment if they can do it. I will surely have the bushings done next week with my British Car repair guy but it looks like the rough ride is something I might have to live with, but not something I ever expected from a luxury Jag sedan. My car has 72,000 miles on it and it's an '03.

If anyone has any other ideas, please chip in. This is the only thing I cannot stand about this car.

**Just an update. I'm at the tire store and they took it for a ride, then took me for one . Anyway, the tires are badly worn on the inside on all of them. By badly, I mean they are very uneven. He said it was more the tire (Cooper) than alignment or anything. I thought Cooper was a great name in tires. Anyway, I searched online for Jag tires that help with the ride and came up with Falcon tires being the best for the money and I went with a size up 225/50/17 for a more comfortable ride. I'll report back to see if it's okay.

 

Okay, here's the outcome. After puting on the Falcon 225/50-17 tires and doing an all wheel alignment my car is driving like a dream, and QUIET too. Unbelievable what a difference it made. I love it when I do something that you notice an immediate benefit. And it was not expensive. Here's a link to the tires I bought (bought them locally for $110 each plus $44 for wheel balance & valve stems. They did the alignment for $59 since I paid to have the wheels balanced just a few days ago. I am also including the alignment results below.

http://www.discounttiredirect.com/di...w=false&cs=225

 

I am having the exact same problem as you did in the same year car and around the same mileage. Except I just got 2 new tires, an alignment and balance. I am wondering if coupling 2 old and 2 new tires is what is causing this shimmy and noise. I was thinking of doing a Road Force Balance to see if that resolves it, this issue is the only thing I have a problem with so far after buying it a couple thousand miles ago.

 

I highly suggest you do run 4 of the same make and model of tire that are in very similar condition. It is extremely important that you run tires that are the same size and shape on the same axle (front right the same as front left, etc).

Have your toe set to zero in the front, or as close to zero as possible - this has been shown to greatly reduce or eliminate the inner tire wear problem.

A Road Force balance is always a good idea, in my opinion, simply because this car is so picky about balance issues.

 

Hey RickMG those 225/50/17 you had no rubbing with those or any issue?

 

Not that I've noticed. I would think if I was going over a big bump while turning it might hit, don't know. Actually, I think they look better than before, as the other's almost looked to small for the car.

 

i gave up that harsh ride for some new lowering springs and 18' rims ..40s tires my ride now is feather smooth...you would think the opposite

 

They look good, so a huge difference huh?