After lusting after the big Jag for much of my adult life, I may now be in a position to pull the trigger on 2004 XJ8 with 65K miles on it. I know that Jaguar has made huge improvements since the days of needing to have a 2nd car, since the Jag was always in the shop, but I'm still a bit nervous.

A few questions:

1) Generally - what should I be prepared for?

2)Should I have the car I'm considering checked out by a Jaguar dealer (it's for sale at a Mercedes dealer)?

3) How much should I plan to spend to have the car maintained?

4) Any big service items I should plan for in the near term given the mileage (65K) on the car.

5) I've heard horror stories about Jaguar dealers. Should I look for an independent mechanic?

6) Anything I'm not asking that I should?

Thanks for any help you can provide!

 

You're limited to private's outside of very basic breaks, oil, etc... The dealerships really vary in expertise and customer experience.

The only expensive things I have ran into so far are the shock bushings ($30 part, 4 hours labor per shock) and my torque converter went which was 2.5K to fix.

Buy an extended warranty unless you have 5K for easy access.

In terms of resale, make sure your car loaded with GPS, Xenon...

An independent should be able to look the car over for you and do the carfax...

 

Find an independent shop to do the Pre-Purchase Inspection.

The other known issue besides Torque Converter and Air Suspension is the Throttle Body failing (about a $1k repair).

 

Thanks mosesbotbol and jsherid1 for your suggestions. Both very helpful. I had also posted my questions (mistakenly) on the older XJ8 forum and got good input there too:

• get service records, and have it checked out by an independent shop
• 60K service is bigger than some, check to make sure it was done on the car I'm looking at
• check for body issues as the 04 was the first year w/ the aluminum body and some body shops botched repairs in the early days after it came out

Great stuff... Thanks much.

 

To avoid the possible and expensive torque converter, go for an '05+

 

Also remember most of the discussions here deal with problems that some people have. There are many Jaguars on the road without any of these problems. The only problem I had with mine has been squeaky brakes. The dealer said that was common on the XJ8 and all he would do is replace the pads and rotors. This was after I paid them to "scruff up" the pads which stopped the squeak for about a week. Since the OEM pads and rotors produced this squeak, I went with aftermarket rotors and pads. Quiet as a mouse now!

 

hlgeorge - what mileage was on your car when you replaced the brakes? (the car I'm looking at has 64K miles - wondering if new brakes have already been installed on this car...)

 

mosesbotbol - not seeing any 2005's for sale, unfortunately. Any thought on the cost of the torque converter replacement?

 

I have heard from $2-$3K. If you can do it yourself, cheaper. I think my 04 has a bad torque converter and I plan on living with it. Car runs fine when cold and as soon as the temp gets to normal it surges about 50 RPMs at a constand speeds. It stops after about 5-10 minutes after that. Seems to last longer in the cold. It aslo gives an air suspension code below 32 degree and most on this forum state it should be a relay. All cars have issues and these just cost more to fix. I have been a member of several forums and have to say all in all it doesn't seem like there is as any many issues with these cars as most cars I have owned. One thing I do notice from all the threads is people LOVE to drive theses and now I know why. Everytime I drive my it's like a new car to me. Some car you drive for the first time and they feel like all other cars. I don't get that feeling in my XJR. I noticed I have to respect her or she will get away from you. SMOOTH POWER! I might be talking out my you know what, but I have been a car guy my entire life and wanted a XJR for about 10 years. Even after all that waiting I have no regrets.

 

I bought an 04 XJ8 a few years ago with 27k miles on it. I've had a few issues in common with other owners; torque converter ($2500 - seems to be an early 04 model issue), and air suspension fault warnings on really cold days (nothing wrong however). I replaced the front brakes at 35,000 and the rears at 51,000. That's about it.

This is by far the most favorite car I've owned... and I've owned quite a few different cars. I have a friends that have logged well over 100,000 miles on their XJ8's and have had no major repairs. One just crossed 165k and had to replace the radiator. Not bad for that kind of mileage.

I suggest you get a warranty just to cover yourself against the big stuff. That goes for any luxury car in my opinion.

 

How much is it for a warranty on an 04 with about 30,000 miles?

 

24K miles.

 

I bought my warranty from Continental and it cost $2,100 for a 3 year/36,000 mile plan. That was in 2008 and the car had 27,000 miles on it.

 

timbarn

Follow your lust - just buy it!

You will certainly enjoy the ride and comfort of this generation Jag! All car do have their issues and Jags are no exception but overall my experience is that my Jags have brought me more pleasure than pain!

Personally, I would not buy model year '04 at this point. It seems than they had issues later models have avoided; but even if you did buy it, you would be happy with the ride and pleasure you receive from the drive!

Good luck!

 

not to threadjack, but would the torque converter problems etc..apply to an 04 XJR? I'm researching to buy one. Thanks.

 

Yes, mine has it and it's an 04.