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The air suspension is probably the number one problem area. A worn piston ring in the air compressor is common and usually an easy and inexpensive fix. A leak in an air spring top seal is probably the number two problem. Most can be diagnosed and rectified, and traditional coil spring conversion kits are available and not difficult to install.
Low battery voltage and corrosion on the aluminum ground points are known to cause lots of hard-to-diagnose electrical gremlins.
Generic OBDII scanners can read most of the Powertrain (P) diagnostic trouble codes, but to read the proprietary Jaguar Chassis (C), Body (B) and Network (U) codes requires dealer-level equipment such as IDS or SDD, or a high-level third-party system such as Autoenginuity with the Jaguar enhancement.
Overall, these are great cars and fantastic drivers. Hope you decide to buy it!
The air suspension is probably the number one problem area. A worn piston ring in the air compressor is common and usually an easy and inexpensive fix. A leak in an air spring top seal is probably the number two problem. Most can be diagnosed and rectified, and traditional coil spring conversion kits are available and not difficult to install.
Low battery voltage and corrosion on the aluminum ground points are known to cause lots of hard-to-diagnose electrical gremlins.
Generic OBDII scanners can read most of the Powertrain (P) diagnostic trouble codes, but to read the proprietary Jaguar Chassis (C), Body (B) and Network (U) codes requires dealer-level equipment such as IDS or SDD, or a high-level third-party system such as Autoenginuity with the Jaguar enhancement.
Overall, these are great cars and fantastic drivers. Hope you decide to buy it!
Cheers,
Don
He mentioned changing "both struts"..
What was he referring to, if it has air suspension?
He's referring to the fact that if one front air shock has failed, the other probably isn't far behind. Also the system is set up so that if one shock in the front fails, the front end will lower completely to prevent damage to the other, as one air shock cant support all the weight from the engine, etc.
The rear is different, if one starts to leak or fail in the rear, you'll notice one side starting to lean.
To add to what Don said, I've seen issues with boot/trunk lid seals leaking, water getting into where the spare wheel sits. The fuse box in the boot/trunk I've seen issues where corrosion occurs and wreaks havoc on the connectors on bottom side of this fuse box. Make sure the drains in the boot/trunk are clear so the water can drain, may need to add some extra drains if need be.
He mentioned changing "both struts"..
What was he referring to, if it has air suspension?
Many owners use the generic term "struts," but the units used in the X350 are combined air spring/shock absorbers made by Bilstein. Jaguar calls them "air spring/dampers." It sounds as though the seller may have had both front air spring/dampers replaced, which is probably good news if the new units have been trouble free.
Also the system is set up so that if one shock in the front fails, the front end will lower completely to prevent damage to the other, as one air shock cant support all the weight from the engine, etc.
Hi JBzXJ40,
Do you know of a Jaguar document that explains this front end behavior as an intentional design feature to protect the undamaged air spring from bearing the weight of the engine? If so, I'd be grateful for the reference so I can add it to my Air Suspension Summary.
Feel free to send it to me via PM so we don't hijack Anthony's thread.
I do not think it is NAV. When I was searching for an XJR a while ago I noticed that earlier 2004 US cars had the twin small screens and not until later 2004 models did the full NAV screen appear.
I think the upper screen is for the climate control view and the lower for the radio.
Mine just turned 90,000 the other day, putting them right from the neglect of previous owners, can get pricey. But when your all caught up, you have an unbelievable magic carpet ride. They just fly as they float down the road.
The nav units are painful to upgrade to modern standards. If all else is good, if jump on that car because the non nav setup is much easier to replace with a modern unit to get phone integration, app integration and bt music streaming. And the nav is worthless these days, imho, because of Google maps.
Just curious. Why do you suppose the owner had decided to put the Jag up for sale? That would be one of the first questions that I would ask the owner if I were shopping for another used vehicle. By the way, how much is the owner asking?
At the very least, I would certainly want to take the Jag out for a short test drive before I would pluck any money down. While you're taking that drive, check out the air conditioning, cruise control, brakes, radio, wipers, washers, etc.etc. Of course, just because the owner replaced both front air shocks doesn't mean that all is well. Perhaps you might ask him if he developed any air suspension problems or faults since the replacement.
When shopping for any used vehicle, always remember that it's buyer beware.
Just curious. Why do you suppose the owner had decided to put the Jag up for sale? That would be one of the first questions that I would ask the owner if I were shopping for another used vehicle. By the way, how much is the owner asking?
At the very least, I would certainly want to take the Jag out for a short test drive before I would pluck any money down. While you're taking that drive, check out the air conditioning, cruise control, brakes, radio, wipers, washers, etc.etc. Of course, just because the owner replaced both front air shocks doesn't mean that all is well. Perhaps you might ask him if he developed any air suspension problems or faults since the replacement.
When shopping for any used vehicle, always remember that it's buyer beware.
Going to see and test drive the car today.
Spoke to the woman owner.. The said she purchased the car 6 years ago.. Said only recently did she have to make any "major" repairs.
According to her, she had one bad rear "shock", then the other went shortly afterwards. So both rears were just done. Also recently did rotors and brakes all around.
She just bought herself a new Lexus.
She's asking 5K
Last edited by Anthony8858; 05-14-2017 at 06:51 AM.
Contrary to what my kids feel (they call it an old man's car), I like the styling of this classic.
Prices seem to be all over the place for this car, ranging from as little as 3k to 12k for similar mileage.
Always a feeling of caution and apprehension when buying a used car, and these jaguars could be a very intimidating.
One of my first questions today will be WHO is her local mechanic that's been servicing the car. Hopefully it's someone I know and I'll maybe get an inside track on the vehicle service history.
He's referring to the fact that if one front air shock has failed, the other probably isn't far behind. Also the system is set up so that if one shock in the front fails, the front end will lower completely to prevent damage to the other, as one air shock cant support all the weight from the engine, etc.
This is not smart really from Jaguar side because we are normally sold and advised to buy 2 replacement units, just as we do with tyres.
They may as well let the other one carry the load till it also packs up so we can justify buying 2. At least it'll delay the purchase and laying out of cash by a few more days, if not weeks or months :-)
Hi,
I'm a regular member of this forum and an owner of a 98 XK8.
Someone in my neighborhood is selling a 2004 XJ8 with 80K miles.
Original owner and the car was garaged and is cosmetically perfect.
I'm pretty familiar with what to look out for on my 98 XK8, but would like a few pointers and things to be concerned about the XJ8?
Nice car. I'll say test drive it and ensure the gearbox is intact + see if the idling is still right because the Catalytic convertors may soon need to be replaced. Mine were replaced at around 100,000KMs. Other things as you approach the 100,000KM mark may break but they would be minor, such as water pump, reservoir tank connector breaking, I'm unsure how heavy the car was driven as bearings, engine mount and discs may need to be replaced.
The best bet would be to take the VIN# and go to the dealership they regularly serviced the car at to find out what the major issues they reported at that dealership were before you could finalise your purchase.
I do not mean to sow division or distrust between you and your neighbour, but it migh give you peace of mind to do that and even if something bad happens afterwards, you cannot blame it or suspect them to have have known about it.
PS. Mine does not have navigation just like yours, and the radio loses its background lighting as the car gets older. I read somewhere that the chips are losing connections inside the radio and need some re-soldering to fix the flickering or dead radio light.
Will they do this? Mine was serviced by a Jaguar dealer local to the last owner (based on the car fax) 3 or 4 times in the last 5 years. I checked online and Jaguar would provide service records, but not for cars in the USA (I input the VIN and the corporate web site said service records were not available in my region). I'd like to know what the services included, since there were 2 cooling system services listed. If the reserve bottle was not changed I'd like to change it proactively. But if it was changed in the last 2 years then I'd leave it alone.
That car looks good and seemed to be priced well. I was going to check it out (couple of weeks ago) when I was shopping for an XJ8 but I bought my car before I got over to look at it. Good Luck.
Originally Posted by Seth
The best bet would be to take the VIN# and go to the dealership they regularly serviced the car at to find out what the major issues they reported at that dealership were before you could finalise your purchase.
Went to see car last night.. I was very uncomfortable dealing with the seller.. There was just something very vague about everything he said...
Didn't believe it was privately owner either.
Seller was actually a "friend of the seller", who happen to have dealer plates in the car.
Car was parked in a driveway here in NY with a removed New Jersey sticker.
My bet it was an auction car, and some bogus "car dealer" .. I'll pass.
05-10-2017, 07:59 PM
Thinking about this XJ8. opinions welcomed
