hey guys! im new to the forum, im here to ask a few questions, im thinking in buying a 2004 Vanden plas. it has 127K on the miles, im buying from original owner, she is a 77 year old lady, she bought brand new and always serviced at dealer, she has all records for all services, when I was test driving car the RPMS were bouncing up and down around 100 rpms when cruising down the road, but it had smooth acceleration so It didn't feel like misfiring. and I floored it and it shifted smooth. should I worry about that a lot? there are no check engine or warning lights, and car was very well taken care of! what are common things that break on them that I should check for, lets put it this way, if u were the one looking at it what stuff would you look at? and what would be a good price to offer. car is gold with tan interior. is there certain options that would make the car more special? I know it has navigation on it, and front heated seats, I don't know if it has rear heated seats or not.


ohhh!!! something that surprised me was that it didn't have the rear seat trays! a couple years back I almost bought a 2002 Vanden plas and it had them, and all the vanden plas I test drove and looked at online had them! did they stop putting them in for the 2004 and newer models?


thank you in advance for ur help!!

 

welcome to the forum!

hmmm, that sounds like the tranny torque converter might be locking and unlocking; I've seen it on audi's with ZF's. Actually my PO had it replaced for a similar thing.
Not a cheap repair if it is, and for the price, probably best just to get a rebuilt transmission.

off the top of my head, when I was looking, the 04's did not have the picnic tables in back, but the '05's+ do (mine does).

After many hours research, my opinion was that the first few years of this model seemed to have more teething issues, so I like the 05/06's or later if you like the facelift look.


*if you like the car and the price is great, you really need to have a PPI done by a jaguar shop.

 

04 VDP is short wheel base and does not have the picnic tables on the front seats. 05 onwards VDP are LWB.

 

oh ok! thanks for clarifying the deal with the picnic tables!
and now the deal with the rpms bouncing around... so since its the torque converter I guess I should just pass out this deal then.... the lady said I could have the car for 5K. which for an 04 VDP seems pretty cheap... and she originally wanted 7K for it.

 

First check the battery and see how old it is; just took delivery of an 05 VDP still had the original battery, Then be prepared for the air suspension issue either shocks and/or compressor; the next item to go will be the denso throttle body sensor...this one can get costly. Pull the air cleaner and inspect the throttle body for carbon build up.
Other wise enjoy the ride...I do

 

the only thing im worried about is the bouncing rpms but tomorrow im taking it to my mechanic to see what he thinks, and the lady said that she did something to the air ride, I think she replaced it, ill ask tomorrow. ill also have my mechanic check the throttle body. thanks!

 

Agree on the battery, Jags don't much care for a weak batt. On the throttle body, this is not such a killer anymore. A vendor is selling them for $150 now.

 

That "hunting" of around 100 rpm is a very common syndrome, but in almost all cases stops when the transmission fluid gets up to temperature. It is also only apparent on light throttle and fairly low speeds.

In 2011, I went to a Jaguar X350 forum organised by the UK Jaguar Enthusiasts Club, and it was mentioned there as an issue. I have had it since I bought my car in Spring 2010, at 30k miles, and it's still there at 77k miles. I just put the transmission into "4" for a while and it disappears. I have had "cures" via a TCM software reflash but these fixes never seem to last. Basically, I think Jaguar got the TCM software wrong, but will never admit it, why I don't know. However engineers, especially software engineers, are notorious at never admitting error !!

 

Good point Fraser, I had forgotten about that being a common issue with some Jags!