Another happy customer here with the Arnott air suspension replacement system for my 2004 XJ8. I changed out the air shocks today and I am very pleased with how it all came out. The ride is certainly a bit more firm, and you can feel the road more than with the air. I will say the front end sits higher than with the air. I am sure it will settle down with the weight of the front end over time, but it really does not bother me. Nice to know I can drive wherever I want without worry of the Air Suspension fault coming on.

 

Did you do it yourself or have a shop do it? Some photos of the front would be nice to see for others who are considering the same refit.

Cheers!

 

BoxxMann, My buddy up the street did it for me because he has a lift. I will take some pics of the car this week when we have a day without rain! The whole job (because of the lift) took a couple hours.

 

Here are the pics with the new suspension installed. Sorry I did not take pics before to compare.

 

Bushbuck,

Gorgeous car! Love that color! It's similar to but even prettier than the Flamenco Red on our '93. What is the official Jaguar name for the color of your car?

The front end does look a little high compared to ours, which still has the stock air suspension. Hopefully the bushes will settle in and assume the normal stance.

Thanks for the great photos!

Cheers,

Don

 

Thank You Don. I believe Jaguar called this red color Radiance in 2004.

 

Bushbuck,

Great looking car! Did you consider any of the other conversion kits available, such as the one from Black Dog Manufacturing? How many miles are on your car? Were you having any issues or trouble signs? I assume you have not seen any warning messages / default codes since installing the units. Sorry for all the questions, but you started this thread! Thanks.

 

Hi X358,
No did not consider any other kits. I searched around and read a bunch of different reviews and also saw this is the kit my local Jaguar Dealer uses. This seemed to be the best option available and with a lifetime warranty I was pleased with the decision. My car currently has 30K miles on it. I got an Air suspension fault when I took the car out of storage and after reading a bunch of things about it I decided to go ahead and change it out now so I did not run into a problem if I was out on a trip. I realize the error code may just have been caused by the 6 month storage, or a low battery but I knew it would come to a change sooner or later. There have been no codes or faults since we changed out the suspension. The kit explains how to disconnect the module for the air system so no more error codes are sent.

 

Gosh! What a beautiful car! The Arnott coil/spring conversion kit is the only way to go, and especially so if one happens to be located in the colder northern regions. Air suspensions are all right when they're working, but they're just a fair weather thing if you ask me. The Goodyear mechanics converted my 2005 Jaguar XJ8L over to the Arnott coil/springs a few months ago, and the ride afterwards was simply fantastic!

 

My Mrs BoxxMann has the same color and year car! Good work...I'm thinking the front will settle. I will get a measure soon of our front and rear heights for comparison.

 

The front and rear heights should be approximately the same. Be aware that the vehicle will now require an alignment (if it hasn't been done already.)

 

Mrs Boxxman has good taste in cars!

 

Thank you

As promised, here are the ride heights:

Left Front: ~703mm
Right Front: ~703mm

Left Rear: ~720mm
Right Rear: ~720mm

Subject vehicle: 2004 Jag XJ VDP

So I got to thinking that this post really is not meaningful unless I clarify what the "heights" actually are I measured vertically along the centerline of the wheels from the ground to the bottom of the fender lip. The attached graphic will show what the line is

Boxx

 

With my 2005 Jaguar XJ8L, the ride heights are:

Front: ~727 mm
Rear: ~718 mm

 

I am sure tire pressure and wear will play a bit of a difference here, but here is my 2004.

723.9 Front

711.2 Back

 

Hmmm, the standard measurement I've always seen has been from the center of the hub (rim) to the top of the fender.
Keeps the measurement more consistent with different makes of tires/rims I suppose?

 

Good point. I learn something new everyday..

 

The "64 thousand dollar question" is, however, what are Bushbuck's ride heights???

 

Well from what I already posted, I am higher in the front than in the back,(opposite of yours) and both the front and back are higher than you. I will go out and re-measure from the hub center.

 

From the center of the hub to the fender is:

16" or 406.4mm front

15.25" or 387.35mm Rear