Hello,
I need some solid advice from experienced Jaguar owners or mechanics.
I bought my 2009 XF Supercharged 2.5 years ago for $15,000 with 36,000 miles.
Since then, I have spent about $16,000 on repairs. If it were a new car, I could use Texas Lemon Laws.
Kept thinking I got this final repair done; all is well now....
But, it is used. It now has about 51,000 miles.
For the third time, I have a
P0456 Evaporative Emission Leak and P0128 Coolant Thermostat check engine light error.
Rather than paying the hourly labor rate at a Jaguar dealership, I found a great mechanic who is knowledgeable and does his research and uses Jaguar parts.
When the car is running well, this car is great. Wouldn't trade it for anything else.
But the repetitive check engine light errors has me beat.
I love how the car handles and drives.
Would I be stupid to have a new engine put in?
Do I consider installing a completely different but compatible engine-if there is such an engine?
Or do I simply sell? I hate to sell to someone else with these problems. If a mechanic bought it i would feel ok.
I have asked the dealer for some help in the past, and was told the car was sold to me "as is." And the dealer is a long standing Jaguar Dealership.
Any advice on how to get help from Jaguar National? I tried that too once, and was told each dealership is an independent dealer.
Sincerely asking for your experienced advice from you as a mechanic or long time Jaguar owner.....
Thank you.

 

Sorry to hear of your troubles. $16k of maintenance in 2 years - that sounds crazy... Aside from fluids / routine stuff I've prob spent a quarter of that in nearly a decade on mine.

Not sure what you are asking Jaguar dealer / national for? Do you have something in mind? It's a 12 year old used car way out of warranty - so I don't see how they can help

How sure are you that your mechanic is good? I'm not meaning to be rude and they may be great. But if you've got the same error for the third time and their labor rate is reasonable then you must be throwing parts at it.... I might suggest a second opinion from a mechanic experienced on this platform

I would never try a different non Jag engine - way too hard to get compatibility. And unfortunately the cost of a replacement engine plus install is a lot more than the car is worth. And no guarantees that solves it if it's an ancillary part, electric issue etc.

So at this point you either cut your losses (but a 2011 with chronic issues won't be worth much) or you persevere. If the latter I would strongly suggest getting another experienced Jag Indy to do a full diagnostic before you spend anything else

Where are you based? Maybe someone on here can recommend an Indy?

 

+1 to BritCars' thoughts. That's a lot of $$ even at dealer prices. I've had mine since 2017 and have spent ~$2K on repairs since purchase.

The error codes you are getting do not require a new engine. Find another Jag indy for a 2nd opinion.

What part of Texas are you in? There are several reputable Jag mechanics in the DFW area and forum member mechanics who are in Houston.

 

I have posted this before but unless you can DIY the repairs or have a factory Jaguar warranty. It just too expensive to own a used Jaguar.
I have great luck with both of mine so far and I try to DIY any repairs.
This forum is a HUGE plus to finding any repairs or modification instructions!!
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All three of my Jaguars have been off lease with at least 1 yr remaining on the factory warranty. That way I KNEW that there were no alligators waiting to crawl out. That's the only way I would buy a Jaguar.

So, my advice is to part your car out for the $$ and then shop for a < 3 year old XF with the 3.0 engine.

Just say'n
================================================
Jaguar - it's not an automobile, it's a Motorcar
Current: '15 XF (X250) Portfolio AWD 3.0 (it's aubergine...)
2019 JCNA Class M Slalom 2nd-Place
2018 JCNA Class M Slalom 2nd-Place
Past B: '08 S-Type 4.2 "Satin Edition" (250.06 whp / 259.67 torque)
2015 JCNA Class M Slalom Champion
Past A: '05 X-Type 3.0/AWD Jaguar Racing Green

 

I've had mine for going on 4 years, daily driven.

They are turds. But they are fast turds. There is not much better out there outside of some AMG of the same vintage that give similar bang for the buck

The prerequisite for ownership however for any of these euro lux brands is a good independent shop specializing in JLR money pits. Your maintenance hit from the outset would have been a fraction of the dealer gouging and makes the car easier to justify keeping.

You should absolutely not need a new engine at such low miles. My car is nearing 150k and still have no blue smoke on start up, some S-Type R with the same motor have gone over 300k. The repeated repairs for the same symptoms are a sign of either incompetence or fraud, probably both. Finding the right shop is a matter of trial and error, it took me 5 shops until I landed at a decent one.

Now for the question of keeping or selling, from the overall tone of your post you should just dump it. Nothing works as well as it should, and the headaches never end. No one in their right mind should have to put up with the BS that these cars can dole out on the regular, so if booting the throttle doesn't make all these problems fade away for you, then get rid of it. Bring it to the bare minimum condition for selling off and don't worry about what happens down the line. Nobody else does, what do you think wholesale auctions are for.