My 2011 5.0 XF has passed 140,000 miles and has been making quite the racket for the last 18 months or so -
One (jag) mechanic thought it was the dreaded timing chain/tensioner - but he doesn't work on the V8s
Another agreed, but said he was retiring the next week and didn't want to start another project. He told me to keep driving the car and enjoy the ride (with the windows rolled up!)

I know the car isn't worth much anymore, but would like to keep her for the next couple of years at least - provided I don't have to spend a bloody fortune. Anyone get this job done in/near the OC in SoCal for around $4k?

 

haven't had them work on my XF yet but had all the work for my old Lincoln Aviator done at Mike's Costa Mesa Auto on Fairview, consistently quoted the lowest rate for any job I compared around, and they usually could split the quote to labor only price and allow me to order the parts from RockAuto for less, so usually had work done for close to half off dealer quote. Would be interested what they quote you

 

thanks for the tip - I'll give 'em a call!

 

You can also contact JP's European Auto (JPs European Auto - Specializing in Jaguar, Mini Cooper, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Rolls Royce and Land Rovers) in Huntington Beach and they can give you an idea of cost.

 

I'll give 'em a call too - thanks!
Always seems like nobody has the tools for the 5.0 - but hopeful for either of these two...

 

what quotes did you receive

 

nothing yet - bringing it to the dealer in Mission Viejo on Wednesday for an airbag recall - I'm sure they'll hand me a list of things that need doin'!

 

I know this is an old thread, but thought I should reply in case it’s still helpful. I did my timing job at British Performance in Mission Viejo. They let you bring in your own parts. My job was ~$5k but I had some extra work done at the same time.

If you want to save even more money, you can just replace the tensioners/ guides using the zip tie method. Should be much cheaper especially if you buy your own parts.

All the best.

 

thanks for the tips, Nick - this project got a little sidetracked with the whole pandemic thing and we (frankly) have too many cars on hand to make this repair time critical. (There's also the fact that the car runs fine, albeit a little/very noisy)
Very easy for me to overthink myself into paralysis - have all the bits needed to replace the cooling system and it seems dumb to replace all that on my own and then take it to someone for the timing job. Even the zip tie method seems beyond my atrophied mechanical skills (+ lack of time) but I certainly don't want to dump over $5k into a car that's not worth much more than that (with 140k miles). Then I hop in and drive it for the weekend and remember why I fell in love in the first place...

Sigh... damn British cars...

 

Im sure BP (or the Jaguar dealership even) could do the zip tie method for you. It’s an official repair. It just doesn’t replace the chains. Personally I think it’s a good compromise for older cars. An independent shop should be less than $3k with parts and labor. As always buying your own parts saves even more.

Either way, best of luck with your Jag. They are very beautiful cars indeed.

 

Hi Nick - thanks for the BP tip - they've got my car torn apart even as we speak - Sadly she'll need the full treatment as the chains are shot also, but the price quoted is very fair. They've been a pleasure to deal with - and in a few weeks when the car is allowed to come home I can report back for others here in the OC in a similar situation.

 

So of course things are worse than I thought. Even though the car ran great (albeit sounding like blender full of bolts), bunch of stuff being replaced including the camshaft gears, timing chains, tensioners, water pump and pipes. Looks to be about $6500 when it's all said and done, but should be good to go for another 100k miles -

 

Unfortunate bill, but sounds like they really gutted it out and refreshed everything. That is commonly advised when ripping that deep into the engine, though the price does tick up each item that gets replaced. I hope it sounds much better now?