renders a sporty, harsh (grip the road) ride. This is a 2002 VDP sans supercharger. I assume the wheels I have are standard for the supercharged model. I know the PO specifically told me it was an upgrade wheel when he bought the car new. I dislike the ride - it reminds me of the ride my '06 BMW 330xi w/ sport package had. This is our family car and I want it to be a comfortable, smooth ride, not a sporty, harsh ride.

It has 2 new Michelin Pilot Sport 255/40 ZR18s on the front and the same on the back, but not new. I priced 2 new tires and installed was ~$600.

What are my options for OEM wheels? Is there a 17" OEM wheel? What do they typically cost? Any reputable used wheel places out there you would recommend?

Thanks,
Jason

 

IIRC, 16" Lunar Alloy wheels were standard on the 2002 VDP.

Even with the soft VDP suspension the 18" wheels are going to make the ride a bit more harsh.

If you could locate some original wheels and put a "comfort" tire on them, you might be happier with the ride.

My R has 18" wheels with Bridgestone Potenza tires and definitely feels "sporty" not super comfy.

Vector

 

I was at my Jag tech's shop in AZ yesterday and he told me to stay away from the Michelin's on my '03 VDP. He said the Pirelli's were nice but they're really soft and wearout incredibly fast. He said believe it or not Continental really makes a nice tire for this car.

 

With the current setup, you can definitely feel the bumps and you can tell it's from the lower profile tires and 18s. IIRC, the Pilots are only good for 25k miles.

16" Lunar alloys are the only OEM option?

 

Avoid Michelins, and go for Continentals? Ignore this man!
Continentals are OK. They aren't bad. Burmaz uses them
on his 18" XJR wheels on his Vanden Plas. But if you
care about quietness, competence, treadlife, and overall
body response, the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S Plus would
be perfect. Plus, it lasts 45000 warrantied miles.

Michelin, in my experience, has been far superior to
all others, and the price is not that much higher to
go for the best. Pirelli makes some of the most
negatively reviewed rubber I have ever seen.
They are famous for going 10-15k before they get
noisy, and losing their bite/grip even before then.

The Pilot Sport is a relatively uncommon tyre, and
I have only ever seen it used on track-driven
cars. That is why all their less sporty stuff has
the name "Pilot Sport+blahblah blah" to
differentiate.

I have Goodyear Eagle F1 All-Season on my
XJR, and they are only any good in rain. they
have very little dry grip, a huge amount of
noise, and noticeable cupping (all from
the previous owner, I can only guess as to
their age, but they have 40% tread left)
and they are sooooo noisy. It is like
driving an MD88 around on a runway.

I can't wait to put Pilot Super-Sports
or A/S Pluses on my XJR.

Ian

 

Does the XJR have a different suspension to accommodate for the rougher ride? Because I think the Pilot sports and the 18s make my car ride like ****. This is a big luxury car, not a sports car. I want it to be a cush ride like a big luxury car. Whatever wheels and tires this car was originally designed for, I want that setup, so it doesn't ride like it does now.

 

The XJR has a "sport" suspension and rides a bit stiffer than a regular XJ8. The VDP has an even softer suspension than the XJ8.
Vector

 

The even softer VDP suspension is taking all of the abuse from the shock transferred through the low pros with no sidewall flex?

 

The factory Tyre was Pirelli P6000, which are kind of crap.

Touring tyres are difficult to find in 18" sizes. The best
you'll be able to do for that size is an alll-season,
but only an all-season without carbon-fibre sidewalls.

Yokohama YK580 should be ideal for your application.

Check out discount tire direct.

 

What are the 18" wheels worth? I'd rather put the 16" wheels on the car if that's what it was designed for.

 

I think $600 would be easy to get out of your 18"s, if
they are Asteroids like mine.

The 16"s I have seen as low as $200 for a set. Check your
local Craigslist.

 

There was a 17" wheel delivered with the VDP S/C and Super V8 models. There's a recent thread discussing them:

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...-wheels-77547/

They look very similar to the 16" VDP wheels and even use the same center cap.

 

Is it safe to say, those two options in the VDP model had a stiffer suspension?

 

After looking around some, I've decided I like the earlier X308 VDP 16" wheels more than the later X308 VDP wheels. The 10 spoke wheels...



Like those... What are they called?

 

That wheel style is called the "Crown".

Happily for you, those are a cheap-to-buy
XJ-series wheel, and can be had for around 75-140
each on Craigslist.

Ian