So, I am talking to Jaguar about my dash pad on my white XF that has started to bubble pretty heavily.

Right now they are saying they will pay half, which wouldn't be so bad, but it seems the dealer is greatly inflating the cost of the new pad.

The dealer gave Jaguar USA a quote of $1199 for labor and $5591 for the dash pad before tax. That makes the total with tax $7285 for a new pad.

I am seeing on websites like this one that pad is closer to $2200 for softgrain with non-contrasting stitching:

https://www.jaguarpartsinternational...ts-s/14654.htm

For those that have already been through this, what did you see as the dealer quote for replacing the pad, and what percentage did Jag USA pay?

 

What dealer are you talking to?

 

Momentum.

I called their own parts department and their full retail price is $3900 at the counter. So $5500 is pretty crazy.

I called a dealer in Florida, and they want $3500 with shipping to my door. That seems more like the going price because the places I called advertising in the $2200 range tell me it's a pricing mistake and they won't sell it for that price.

 

I found the North Houston dealer to be much better. I had issues with the rubber switches getting sticky 6 months out of warranty and Jaguar replaced them all with a 10% contribution from me. The North Houston dealer did the work and it was flawless. Previously I had all the service/warranty work done at Momentum and there wasn't a single instance in 4 years when it was done right first time.

 

Jag USA said I could take it to any dealer to have the work done, so if I can get a better quote from one of the other 2 dealers, that would work. They are all owned by Sonic, so hopefully their quote systems aren't connected.

The other option is to talk some sense into Momentum. What a racket to charge so much more than normal for the part.

I asked if I could buy the part from a Jag dealer and I install it and Jag USA pay half of the part so we all save some money, but they said no.

 

At what point does it just become economical to have the dash pad recovered by an existing upholsterer? There are companies that can use the exact same material the car manufacturers do, and they advertise on this fact. It's not like Jaguar have their own field of cows (or even make their own dash pads, despite the Jaguar logo stamped into the plastic).

It's certainly what I'm planning on doing.

 

I think byers would be cheaper

Jaguar Auto Parts in Columbus, OH

 

I am still on the fence with taking it to an upholster to reglue the original. But from what I have seen online, the dash then looks homemade. And I will use this car for business (currently using the gray one that the dash was replaced under warranty, but will probably sell it for an SUV soon for the wife) and I am a car guy, so if the dash looks like crap, I am not going to be happy.

I did come up with the idea not to have the upholster completely remove and leave the leading edge with the stitching still glued to the dash so it doesn't get wavy. Still thinking it won't look factory perfect and it will be a waste of time.

Trying to get it completely recovered with new material would no way look as good as factory. If you are personally ok with that, then I wouldn't bother spending the money on a recovered dash and just buy one of those custom fit dash pads covers to leave on there without doing anything else.

 

Sent a request for a quote. Thanks! I bought this white XF from Byers for over $13K off sticker as a new car and had it shipped down, and it's been an awesome vehicle.

 

Understandable.

What's leading you to think this? A dash pad cover will of course look horrendous, but I've seen plenty of custom dash/interior retrims in the flesh that look absolutely incredible, and when it's intended, look OEM/factory. Dashboard trimming is certainly a specialized skill, but it's not black magic that only OEM manufacturer's suppliers possess.

Just like plenty of body shops can fix a damaged car to look like new from the factory, the same can be done with interiors and dashboards - I just wouldn't be taking mine to the interior equivalent of a Maaco. At the moment I'm toying with the idea of having mine recovered with alcantara in the same color, and having all the door cards done to match, but whatever I do, since I will spend most of my time with car sat inside it I'm willing to spend the money to have it look great.

 

Because every upholstery shop work I have seen doesn't have that factory look. It always looks hand made, and that's not a good look. It looks hand made because it is. The factory uses machines that duplicate the same thing over and over. I want an OEM look.

 

I put a moulded dash mat on my old XFR and it looked quite OK IMHO, 99% perfect fit.
It was black and matched the dark charcoal dash and door tops very well.
My dash was in perfect condition, no bubbles, wrinkles, lifting or splits whatsoever, the only reason I put a dash mat on it was for protection from the fierce sun here in summer.
So as a cheap last resort to cover up a dodgy dash I would recommend it.

 

Byers gave me a quote of $3900 for the part, which is middle of the road. The one in Florida was around $3400 before shipping, and the highest one was $5300.

It does seem to me that Jaguar has been jacking up the price of the part. Probably because they have been paying 1/2, so that's a way to get their money back and make it look like they are doing you a favor. I remember when the dash was around mid 2000's, but I didn't need one then.

 

I don't doubt they're happy with the profit but I suspect there's also a factor of supply and demand here. They will have only had a certain number of these parts made and with the design flaw of the earlier parts they're probably seeing their number drop. A lot of people who own this car would be happy to pay mid-2000s for a new OEM dash pad and as the number of owners affected by this rises, the new pads remaining will drop. I still find it hard to believe someone can't find a shop that will do a factory-quality job on a retrim. It's pretty much the only option open to me at this point.

 

... what upholstery shops are you going to?
since you have the original dash they can pull the original leather off, clean it, steam and stretch, and reglue it. which should look OEM.
Or they can take a pattern off of the existing one and reproduce it.
If it looks "hand made" then they are a poor shop. It should look as nice and tight as OEM.

 

Anyone know a good upholstery shop in Houston that can reglue my original? Preferably one that has done it before for these XFs.

I don't want to pay to have a new one made and risk not being happy with it, so I won't go that route, but I would be interested to see how close they can get. If you look at the stitching detail and the curves, it's not that easy to copy perfectly. Not to mention the grain, color and thread will be hard to match. It's funny color on mine, which is called Truffle. It's a redish brown. I wouldn't want to then have to pay for the door cards too to get everything to match.

 

I second this! I am in Houston, and need this as well, lol

 

I know I'm just a tad distant from Houston, but a quick search brings up this one which looks OK: Advanced Auto Trim and Upholstery | Auto Restoration Houston

 

Here is a link to a site that I have used for several Jaguar parts. Maybe this may work. If you have the parts number put it into the search. I would double check to make sure it is the right color. https://parts.com/index.cfm?fuseacti...iagram=4750430

 

Yes, I have used Parts.com a lot. They seem to order from normal dealer parts departments and have the items drop shipped directly to me. Their prices aren't too bad.

But the part is still $3500 shipped, and Jag USA won't pay any of it if I just order the part and do it myself.

The Jag dealer on the North side of town gave me a price that is $2000 less than the nearby dealer, so I am going to go with that.

It's a big job to pull the dash, and if I take it to an upholster, maybe they do a good job, maybe they don't. And maybe if the job looks good, it lasts for a long time, or maybe it doesn't.

So with Jag USA paying 1/2 of the $5700 bill, and the fact that Jag paid for the full bill on my other XF, and considering these cars have been very good to me with very little cost of repairs to me, and they still look and drive great, I am going to take the low risk, more cost option.