There is a nice 2009 XF 4.2 (non supercharged) with 66k miles someone is selling locally for a decent price. The car looks straight and has no warning lights on. Is there anything known that could go wrong with this car? I thought I remember reading a while back the early production XF's had a lot of electrical issues? I'm not as familiar with the old 4.2, is it a reliable engine, any known problems? Maintenance costs?

 

The 4.2 itself is well-sorted and reliable. Very smooth power delivery.

At 11+ years old inspect suspension / expect some issues.

If the trans has not had fluid changed within (say) 70K miles, change it!

 

You have chosen MOST reliable engine of any XF model, period. its even more reliable then 4.2sc. Simply forget engine and look for other problems

 

You were asking about electrical issues. Yes - the early XF had an issue with the rotary gear selector. A soldering issue on the circuit board with a dry joint I believe. But by now any that had that issue would have been long ago fixed. (It prevents you putting it in gear so you can't live with it!)

Other issues the early ones can have leaking rear diff seals which are apparently not repairable and require replacement diff. Search around for details. Not rare, but not seen much about them for a while so not chronic either. Check thoroughly for leaks

And yes the 4.2 V8 is a solid engine. Although I've also had no problems with my 10+ year old 5.0 SC either...
Like any older car there are likely issues and it's not cheap for repairs unless you have a great Indy shop or handy yourself. So check it out thoroughly. Regular service history, fluid changes etc a plus.

Good luck!!

 

Is the gearbox a sealed for life unit? If so how do you replace the fluid and filter? Approximate cost for this service?

After doing some research some people seem to have a gearbox fault? Being first year, are there problems with the transmission failing or slipping? I found a few posts but it didn't seem common.

 

It uses a ZF transmission like many European performance cars. Jag says sealed for life, ZF now suggest fluid change after 60k miles.
Cost is around $1200 at dealer if I remember. Prob half that at an Indy. You have to replace the transmission oil pan itself, gasket and new oil

I've not done mine yet - dealer felt it wasn't a good / worthwhile exercise...

 

Thy don't say sealed for life & haven't for 11+ years. There are multiple service schedules on their tech site.

 

Jaguar? Are you sure?
They definitely said sealed for life when I bought mine. And my dealer still doesn't recommend changing
Would love to see the Jaguar recommendations from 11 years ago to show my dealer. Can you share?

 

Yep he's sure.

See the PDF in post 8 of the link below. Different model, same tranny. First and foremost, ZF built the transmission, not Jaguar. Jaguar is just parroting ZF's original warranty which was, at the time "sealed for life'. They changed their tune in 8/2012.
https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...ooting-191572/

FWIW, your transmission is also in Hyundai, BMW, Auto to name a few. Any competent tranny shop can do this, or even a Hyundai dealer near you.

 

Thanks. Yes - I know that ZF recommend fluid changes (and clearly makes sense to do so). I was commenting specifically on Jaguar. I was at the dealer for my annual service a few wks ago and asked about trans fluid change. The service writer took me through the entire set of schedules and they do not have trans fluid change anywhere on the schedule at any mileage for my car. He confirmed that verbally too. They have oil, coolant, PS fluid, brake fluid etc and many other changes at their various intervals.
So I was just surprised to hear that Jag has it in the service schedule for the X250. Possible my dealer has some out of date schedule software I guess. And it's very hard to find the official service schedule details online.

 

I am 100% sure as I have been using their tech site at least that long.

Dealers are often clueless and rarely keep up to date, sadly.

You'd need to login to the site 11 years ago. If you've a time machine I'm interested!

You could look at my older posts to see when I first started pointing out that Jaguar do recommend changing the fluid.

Bear in mind sealed for life is a thing and always has been if you accept that failure to change the fluid means sealed for death.

 

Coolant pipe, it disintegrates(plastic). it is where the thermostat sits... pain to remove. Make sure headliner and dash are good. Plugs at 100,000. A very reliable engine and car. my wife has owned since 09, No major issues. Ac compressor did go, but aftermarket one was reasonable.

 

I hate to be the negative one. I bought a used 09 XF 4.2 about 4 years ago with 85000 miles. Car is gorgeous and fun to drive. 4.2 seems great. but in my case, this vehicle has been a nightmare. Had the coolant tstat pipe issue. Yes its a pain to get to. My car is one of those effected by the bad dash board glue and has bubbled and rippled severely but we live with it. The hood sensor constantly losing adjustment, causing hood open messages and middle of the night anti theft alarms. Neighbors love it. My battery died and when I disconnected it the keys lost communication with the computer and then the entire instrument cluster containing the anti theft stuff and key communication blew up which also took out a cpu by the passenger footwell.
Got it back from dealer service $5000 later. It's pretty and sexy but I'm afraid of mine.

 

Sorry for your issues. I also have an 09 supercharged, While I agree they have common issues, aftermarket parts are reasonable. I have had some issues with my supercharged, but they are part and parcel to having a sports luxury car over 10 years old. If you can't wrench for yourself then i would never recommend any car of this level be it Jaguar or BMW or Mercedes. Taking a car to a dealership of any age not under warranty is going o be a very expensive proposition. Our badge will make Indy cash registers chime. So if you find a reasonable Indy, stick with them and you will be ok. I think many of the issues are addressed proactively and major issues can be avoided. Sorry to say this, but stay away from dealers at least here in the U.S. they are double the labor, and unfortunately not as knowledgeable as you would expect to their product. I cannot say the multiple times I have taken my car to the dealership in warranty for a niggle that they took multiple times to address. FYI: My Super has 130000+ miles.

 

Gumby, in my case, I am a diy wrencher on my cars for 30 years. I have maintained and pulled engines. I keep my s type self maintained with over 200,000 miles. But this 09 XF has a major gremlin problem. In the instance when my entire computer system blew up, all I did was change the car's battery like I have my whole life. Please explain it. Disconnect the battery cables, lift out the battery, insert new battery, reconnect cables. Boom. No key communication. No nothing. Called dealer, told that ONLY Jaguar dealers have the software to reprogram keyfobs. I decided to call a local Jaguar indy shop who said they had the tools so I had the car towed to them. No joy. They couldn't establish communication. So I towed it to dealer who said they had to replace the cluster and a cpu and that new keys to match the cluster would be required. Grand total....$5000. And....they were still unable to get the new keys to communicate in the emergency docking port even after consulting with Jaguar corporate tech service. They could not do it, so I accepted the car without that fixed.
The upper radiator hose has somehow removed itself twice (even with double stainless steel hose clamps) resulting in total loss of coolant while driving. Luckily I have not yet blown the engine.
I have an appt scheduled to have the dealer change the battery in a week because "low battery" message has popped up twice in the last couple of weeks and I don't want to risk a repeat of the three year ago nightmare. I'm going to pay a dealer to change the damn battery.
But the car is pretty and paid for.

 

Again sorry for your issues, I have seen your thread on your electrical issues. You may have gotten a lemon in those terms. If you search the forum, you will see your previous issue is quite unique. Unfortunately the electronics and software systems on newer cars require special diagnostic tools. That being said, as a DIY wrencher we require more high tech tools as well. you might want to try Gates clamp for the hose.here

 

I don't rule out that I got a freak. To tell you the truth, not to freak you out, but I have considered the possibility this car has some Stephen King in her. Really weird stuff.