If so how often? I just bought a 03 with 113K miles on it.

Ironically I just posted in this thread...https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...l-today-85828/ ...unless you have noise in it, you should only have to do this and change the belt.

opinions will vary on frequency, but 60k seems to be a safe bet for these eatons. Also a safe bet that the PO never changed it. Mine looked about similar to those in that thread, about as dark if not darker than coke. Seems to be a bit quieter now but still some odd noises. Got a spare gen V from a 4.2 s/c to swap in soon, its oil was the same. People complain about the smell, my 4.0 didn't smell, the 4.2 smelled a bit but not nearly as bad as some other chemicals I've worked with. Shop guys did complain about the smell of the 4.2 oil..

I talked to the Authorized Jaguar Mechanic I bought my 03 XJR from and he said they never service the superchargers if they aren't broke.

Jaguar also says the same thing about the "sealed-for-life" ZF 5speed in the x308 XJ8

But, the same Eaton blower (well, the same guts, including the oiled part) is used on other cars from the factory, which do have a recommended service interval around that mileage. Now, I wouldn't take it apart unless there's excessive lash or you can feel/hear bad bearings, but the oil can be done in situ in under an hour for $25-$30 of parts.

Yeah, that's because he's reading from the book. Read that thread I provided, and search for others, ....there's a couple of very versed guys who say otherwise, namely Plums and Vector.

I've owned a ZF 6-speed manual for almost 20 years. The only worry free part on my car. I did change over to using BMW gear oil in it. Huge difference in temperature and noise

If it moves and has lubricant (it does), it ought to be serviced.

If not in the list of usual service items, you get to choose when etc.

Goes for the trans, the SC, the rear diff, the ... well everything fitting the description. Don't forget door locks, hinges, steering linkages, ...

Please remember:

"Sealed for life" to the automobile manufacturer means until the warranty runs out.

That is the "life" of a part or vehicle as far as they are concerned, after that it is YOUR problem and expense.

Just go ahead and change your SC oil and belt, cost is minimal and when you see the condition of the oil that comes out of it, you will have no doubt about what you did.

The SC only contains about 7-8 OUNCES of oil and spins at twice+ the speed of the engine, it also has no oil filter or cooler and no dipstick to check the oil level.
Vector

The transmission I was referring to was the ZF 5hp24 used in the n/a x308 and some other cars, which are extremely prone to the A-drum seal blowing out around 80-100k mi. The other ZF transmissions, including the 6 speed you mentioned, are much more reliable. However, Jag didn't do much to take care of people with blown transmissions after warranty period, due partly to what Vector said above.

The 6HP26 is a much better unit; but as someone who has owned 3 vehicles with a 5HP24, 2 of which had a transmission failure at relatively low mileage (Audi A4, BMW 740i), I hate that unit with a passion. The 722.6/W5A580 Mercedes 5sp in the Pre-03 XKRs is a much better unit than the ZF 5HP24 5sp in pre-03 XK8s. 03+ the 6HP26 is a great unit. I had a variant of it in my A8L and it was very solid, even at 150k miles; which previous gen A8s with the 5HP24A would have been ready for rebuild number 2.

Service the S/C. The oil's cheap and it's very quick to do.

25 years ago when these units were being designed the typical car's upper lifespan was 125k -- hydraulic oil was going through a revolution back in in late 80's into the 90's. Better oils and greater manufacturing tolerances allowed for the possibility that transmissions would last 125k -- the expected life of the car. Same with engines and anything else with oil/fluids like the supercharger.

Manufacturers felt best to label them as lifetime due to the fluids being expensive and not widely available -- they did not want owners using incorrect fluids and damaging the units.

The manufacturing advancements throughout the 90's -- unbelievable. The life of a car doubled ... and rust all but eliminated in most markets w/maintenance.

The "lifetime" had nothing to do with warranty. My first job in the equity markets was funding a system to refresh the hydraulic fluids in aircraft carriers -- this was back in the 80's when the USA was building back it's fleet. Transmission fluid -- developed by GM hydromatic corp was whale oil based.. that's what was used prior to the development of cross linking with synthetics. I also work in textiles for auto's -- back then no one would believe that in 20 years cars could go 200k with little maintenance.