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Nope haha - the CF insert is from Mina - they don't offer it on their website, but I emailed and they made me one, took 3 weeks. He said they would make more so shoot them an email and just say you saw Devins. The CF quality is spot on, only thing I noticed was the weave direction is not the same angle, if that bothers you. No idea if all the 'em ones are the same direction or not.
The chin spoilers are replicas as well, from Vehicle Revolution (Carl B.). It's what is supplied with their R-S conversion kit, but split from the kit. I could only find OEM ones online for 350-440 a piece. Im not paying that for something that I could break 1 day after install. Will try these out and see how they fit.
Yes and there is more than one since we have sensors before and after the inter-coolers.
Do you get good data from this? My numbers don't seem to add up? Too high or to low so not sure how to interpret them?
I am planning on buying VAP's data acquisition tool/package but does that do stuff that I can't just using OBD parameters?
Currently I am using Torque Pro with the custom Jaguar PID add ons.
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I too want the VAP tool... But I need other things first haha.
Yesterday I plugged in my Innova scan tool (generic, but like $250 tool) into the R-S. It gave me one IAT reading, labeled as IAT (not IAT2).
It was 67-69*F yesterday during my tests. I took readings in this order, during 15min of total drive time.
At idle, warm start: 110-111*
Cruising at 45: 115-118*
40-100pull, WOT: 158* (Max observed, gradually climbed)
Post WOT pull: 113* (immediately after slowing down)
After 5min idle: 118-120*
45mph, 3rd ger, 4krpm: 133* (for about 60sec continuous hold)
Based on this test's minimum being conssitenly 40*above ambient at the baseline, I believe the IAT channel I was observing is the post intercooler/brick channel. There's no way pre-charged air (at the MAF or TB) is that hot. I am running oem intake with K&N panel filters, the aluminum intercooler, and stock tune & pulley. My cooling system is in good order and my heat exchanger, aux rads, and main rad are all un-obstructed. If the S/C bricks have shared (non-divorced setup) coolant running through them, this leads me to believe there is a minimum air temp the car is expecting and ok with. because the car otherwise behaved incredibly well - the recovery time was instant, and I only saw increased IAT's under heavy use, like the WOT pull or constant RPM cruise. The extended idle test surprised me, I thought I would see higher IAT's (to simulate staging lanes or traffic) and once the fans kick on things get under control right away.
I will be installing the Pierburg soon, and retaking these tests to the best of my ability. It will be colder by then, but I'll try to document ambient temps and compare readings as a percentage of ambient for better comparison. In a perfect world, I could log more parameters at once, or in a more controlled/repeatable setting. But I am just trying to get a rough baseline before I throw the new pump on assume its better than the stock PWM Magna on my R-S.
Good work Devin! Real world data is almost non-existent. Plus Jag's are not common so not a lot of guys messing with them.
Anybody running VAP's data logging tool/kit?
Any words of wisdom if you are?
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This week I took my new chin spoilers, the existing OEM side skirt lips, and the rear wheel well/fender aero trim pieces to a painter, and had them done up in gloss black. I will be getting these ceramic coated or PPF'd to try and preserve them, but am excited to have everything matching now. I am thinking I will like the consistency of the gloss since the lower items come matte from factory.
Looking to install these, the new CF grill, and my Pierburg in mid-late October. Have some travel, a wedding, and another project to finish first.
Oil Pan:
Last week I took care of a few items - I removed the lower oil pan / sump cover, and scraped off the old RTV, re-applied some high-temp gray RTV, and cleaned everything up. I had a very small leak coming from the back side of this seal, it was seeping onto the pan. Another reason to get under the car every once in a while and do an inspection. I was due for an oil change, so it was a great time to do a full drain and fill. It was difficult to "pop" the cover off, so I am surprised it was leaking as the seal was very tight. I am hoping I was able to keep the new RTV bead's integrity during install as there are no guide posts and you have to use both hands to get the bolts started. but all looks good after the first test drive. I was pleasantly surprised to see the pump drives, chains, and engine interior was very clean, almost ZERO grime or build up. I am at about 55k mi now.
Upgraded Intercooler Charge Pump:
Since I had the car up, I finally decided to install my upgraded intercooler pump - the Pierburg CWA-100-3. I was able to use the OEM hoses, but not the OEM mounting brackets. Using a large P-Clamp, and a piece of drilled aluminum angle, I created a vertical mounting tab that bolts into the aluminum intercooler I have on the car. This pump, like my stock pump, is a PWM pump, so it uses a 3-pin connector which is driven by the S/C Pump relay up in the engine bay fuse box, and an ECU signal wire for speed. After talking with Chris from VAP, he recommended I not install the signal/PWM wire, and run the pump in a 2-wire configuration. This would remove OEM logic compatibility issues, and allow the pump to run at 100% duty cycle. These pumps are common upgrades in the AMG, Audi, and GM applications, and running them at full capacity should not limit their useful life. I was able to lose minimal coolant during the job buy removing the front bumper, clamping the inlet/outlet hoses before removal, and being gentle with CT clamps. After the job was done, I performed a simple top off and bleed process. Using a stethoscope through the lower grill, I can confirm the pump is operating when the car is running (and it also runs for some time after shutdown, which I did not know!) Hoping to get some more data on IAT and recovery but temps have dropped a lot here in the area, so getting something comparable to what I did last month may not be feasible.
I will provide more detail and instructions in another thread for the pump alone, as I have received a lot of PM's on the topic.
Update on Bumper Parts:
its not all good news over here - the CF apron I received from Mina does not fit. It is both not the correct shape, and the design is significantly thicker than OEM. The Mina piece is a CF wrapped fiberglass parts, which is good for rigidity and strength, but the tolerances of the OEM fitment are way to tight, after sanding the tabs and trying to finesses fitment for over 5 hours - I gave up and reinstalled my original (cracked) grille for now. The Oem piece is just CF, and is very flexible, thing, and this helps it conform to its multiple mating areas and hardware locations. I have emailed Mina but they are non-responsive so far. If they don't accept a return, or compensation or install - I will likely bring this to a body shop to get their opinion, My guess is it can be trimmed and epoxy in, but I need to commit to some downtime for that, and I am not looking to spend a ton of money on body work at the moment. I still have the amplifier issue to solve on this car, and it's almost brake time! (never ends does it?)
I did however - install my painted side skirt pieces, and front chin spoilers/ canards which were sprayed in gloss black. Very subtle, but the lower portions of the car now match the upper gloss sections, and there is no longer any matte black trim on the car.
Great progress and many thanks for the updates!
Always excited to see what you doing next.
I am looking at the bigger TVS2300 blower but that is probably just a dream!
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Haha, you an me both, waiting on more info. I don't really feel the need (nor do I have a use for) more power in this car. I can't believe it's been 2 years with it and I haven't purchased a tune or a pulley.... but on the other hand, the larger blower is very appealing.
Snapped this pic the other night during my follow-up test drive from the work performed. No leaks or issues, so it's time to get back underneath it and install the lower heat shield.
Happy Spring - Not much to report on the car - I seemingly fixed the amplifier issue I was having (intermittent audio cutting out) - by cleaning the fiber optic cable in the trunk. So far so good. Only thing next on my agenda is to look into any suspension or brake replacements. The car has a slight wobble in the first 10-15mins, but I think that's attributed to tire temp. It's possible the front rotors are juddering or maybe lower A-arms need a refresh. But I am holding out for now until I notice stronger symptoms, car is otherwise driving great.
Will be doing a spring detail soon and hopefully bringing this out to a few local jag events this year. We sold our Sportbrake over the holidays and picked up an Audi SQ5. With me WFH we basically split daily duty on that car and I am not driving the XFR-S very much. That being said - I am thinking about letting this car go. I have listed the car on this forum, and will be creating a more formal listing in the near future, so please let me know if you, or you know anyone interested in this car. I am not going to aggressively list it, but If someone wants a well documented/cared for R-S in my spec, I would be willing to let it go and move on to a new project. I REALLY love this car, but I am ready for something new if the opportunity arises. We have this and a weekend warrior TT and it doesn't make sense to have both any longer. Just don't have the time between work and parenthood to upkeep and fully enjoy both. Would love to see someone keep going on the R-S since I am not likely taking it further.
Happy Fall - we ended up sourcing our next car, so we are now fully committed to selling the R-S. Asking $42,500 for it OBO. Please message me if interested. Car has to go
at 58k now, will do my annual oil change next week. Car prob needs new front tires and brakes soon, but no issues with either at the moment, both were just on my eventual to-do list. If I dont have it sold by Halloween , I will put it on auction or consignment most likely, as we will need the space.
I also solved a slight odor issue I was having after washes/rain. Dry floors, dry rain tray cowl, dry trunk /spare tire well, etc. The car never had any water leaks or wet floors but a musty smell for about 12-24 hours after washing or water. If I avoided the roof during a wash - the smell didnt happen. After dropping the entire headliner, cleaning and testing all the drain tubes, peeling back carpets to confirm no water damage, and testing glass seals - I found it. The wind deflector screen on the sunroof had so much dirt on it, it had generated mildew/mold on it. Since I rarely open the sunroof I never noticed it, but enough water gets past the seal to saturate the area, and it takes some driving / time to air out the area I suppose. I ended up removing the entire sunroof assembly, cleaning the water trays/tubes, and disinfecting & cleaning the screen netting. No more smell. Ordered a new sunroof panel glass rubber seal from Jag and will be re-assembling soon.
So - Lesson learned, use your sunroof more often even if it's to let it air out, especially after water/rain/wash. It's easy to grab a chair or ladder and peak into the recess to verify your front drains are working, and with a flashlight you can see the rear drain tubes as well. Removing the glass only is quite simple of further verification. My seal was very dirty, dry, and slightly warped. Another thing to note - the drain tray is biased towards the front, so most of the time the car will want to drain out towards the front and down the front tubes, which exit behind the front wheels, under the liners. The rears go down the C pillars, through the rear deck, and then to holes just under the rear quarter panel line. Dumping into the rear bumper. There are too many bends to run a wire or pipe cleaner through without removing, so I suggest gravity draining some soapy water down the tracks, and observing at each corner if you ever want to rule out a drain tube leak.
Removing the headliner is no small feat - you have to remove the door seals, driver seat, and all the pillars. Lots of clips and parts, easy to break something but not has bad as other cars I have done a headliner drop on.
Back in August I did get the car's paint corrected/polished professionally, and had my wheels ceramic coated. There was a local jag show (Illinois Jag Club's Concours show) that I attended, and while mostly older cars and F-Types, I did meet another X250 XF owner there with an NA 5.0. Very few people, even in the Jaguar community, are aware of what the XFR-S is. The amount of people who said "my so-an-so has one of these with the supercharged v8 in it tho!" is kind of surprising. Assuming I didnt have that same motor, in top spec at that. LOL. Having a rare car has its pros and cons I suppose Anyway, here are so pics of that.
Well Devin very sorry to see you go!
I learned a lot from you about the dual AUX radiator setup. I have not done it yet but have sourced about half the parts so far.
Your very rare car will be missed along with your in depth repair threads.
Hope you get another Jag at some time too!
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Yes Devin, Sorry to see you go. I'm a bit the other way in that my 2008 XF turnd 16 in August and continues to delight me. I only use it for long distance cruising and because I'm no Mr Fix It I have the car maintained by an independent Jaguar specialist with over 40 years of experience caring for Jaguars!! Tomorrow I head out on a 5000km 4 day drive from Melbourne to southern Queensland and back. Had the car serviced last week and its running perfectly.
Still sitting on the car - it's in storage but I have all pictures/videos taken in case I decide to put it in an online auction like C&B / BaT. But not really interested in that if I can sell it privately/locally I'd prefer that. The market on these is really hit or miss. Either the way the car is no longer being used as a daily, and it's "ready to go".
$40K OBO now will be my asking price - just did oil change and got a clean report from Blackstone.
I also have my spare steering wheel (red stitching version) I bought to re-wrap and it won't go with the car. Lmk if any other RS owner wants it for a spare, $250OBO, I think I paid $300 shipped over 3 years ago for it. Oops
Honest I hope you decide to keep it. I think given the many hours of hard work you've invested and the way in which it has turned out for you as a beautiful machine that you really will miss it it!!! As Jaguar like other brands is rapidly changing cars like this are going to be truly unique. I already sense that here in Australia. Just in these past few weeks I've had three people walk up and ask if my XF is for sale!!
Last edited by GeeVeeXF; Dec 21, 2024 at 05:13 PM.
Again sorry to see you go! I always was eager to read your posts and followed what you were working on!
Thanks for your help on the dual AUX radiators too. Still looking for certain parts for my XJ.
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If they don't accept a return, or compensation or install - I will likely bring this to a body shop to get their opinion, My guess is it can be trimmed and epoxy in, but I need to commit to some downtime for that, and I am not looking to spend a ton of money on body work at the moment. I still have the amplifier issue to solve on this car, and it's almost brake time! (never ends does it?)
Anyway, here are so pics of that. 
