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Glad to hear that. First figure out that low oil pressure and then work slowly on the rest. It's not that they are terrible cars. I split my daily driving between my 911 and my XJ8. That said, I would take neither on a cross county trip. Ford owned Jag during this era so the reliability increased from years prior. That said, they just can't compare to the Japanese of that era and later or ever Ford and Chevy.
I’m not sure how much of that I would agree with…
Firstly, a Japanese car or a Ford or Chevy of that era would still be a 23 year old used car.
Secondly, 23 years later most of them would no longer be on the road and of those that are some would be pristine, some would have a hard time being driven to the end of the block and most would be somewhere in between. Where a particular car falls on that scale will be almost completely a result of the care and maintenance it has received.
Thirdly, I would guess that higher end cars regardless of the marque always require more maintenance simply because they are more complicated and therefore require more maintenance. This is likely compensated for initially as their owners are probably more predisposed to and financially capable do what’s necessary to keep them functioning properly. That may or may not continue through subsequent owners and when it doesn’t the complicated nature of the higher end cars will from that point on see them suffer more from the consequences when it doesn’t.
Lastly, I have long maintained that when buying a used Jaguar, half the price is for the car and the other half is for the written records that come with it. In this case we haven’t seen much in terms of photographs to assess the car (not that I’m capable of that other than with cosmetics) but there seems to be a decent history although we haven’t actually seen it or seen it listed so it’s hard to say where it belongs in that spectrum
Regardless of where it sits on that spectrum however, I don’t think older Jags make for good “use this car for a year, while I save up to buy a Mustang or something of that sort” cars. The Jags need to brought up to snuff if they are going to be reliably driven (driven reliably?) and, at least in my opinion, are much more rewarding for their owners than “a Mustang or something of that sort. Someone who doesn’t feel that way probably isn’t going to invest what’s needed as they are likely to look at the cost as being non-recoverable dollars.
If the intent isn’t to keep it, the best option might well be to find someone else willing to take on the task who won’t be nearly as under water due to an unrealistically short time horizon.
Firstly, a Japanese car or a Ford or Chevy of that era would still be a 23 year old.
As to Honda/Toyota you’ll find lots of them from that era for sale with 250k+ miles. Don’t think you find any XJ8s.
That said you can’t beat a X308 for its lines and panache. IMHO the sharpest 4 door ever. The X350 really ruined the look.
As to Honda/Toyota you’ll find lots of them from that era for sale with 250k+ miles. Don’t think you find any XJ8s.
That said you can’t beat a X308 for its lines and panache. IMHO the sharpest 4 door ever. The X350 really ruined the look.
I’m not sure it’s fair to compare the number available - regardless of mileage - without noting how many of them were sold in the first place…
Honda sold about 415,000 Accords in the US in 2001 and another 330,000 Civics while Toyota sold some 390,000 Camrys and 245,000 Corollas
Jaguar sold a grand total of 44,500 cars in the US in 2001. That’s 3.2% of the 1,380,000 Accords, Civics, Camrys and Corollas sold that year. Even with a similar survival rate, the Jags would be outnumbered more than 31 to 1.
Your opinion of the X308 cars however is probably bang on (although the Series III cars are probably right up there with them) and I think it needs to be shared if anyone wants to own one without driving themselves crazy.
I’m not sure it’s fair to compare the number available - regardless of mileage - without noting how many of them were sold in the first place…
Honda sold about 415,000 Accords in the US in 2001 and another 330,000 Civics while Toyota sold some 390,000 Camrys and 245,000 Corollas
Jaguar sold a grand total of 44,500 cars in the US in 2001. That’s 3.2% of the 1,380,000 Accords, Civics, Camrys and Corollas sold that year. Even with a similar survival rate, the Jags would be outnumbered more than 31 to 1.
Your opinion of the X308 cars however is probably bang on (although the Series III cars are probably right up there with them) and I think it needs to be shared if anyone wants to own one without driving themselves crazy.
Good point. It’s a pain when facts undercut my argument.
Recommend a hard reset (disconnect battery, hold positive and negative leads together) in order to possibly clear some lights.
0w-40 oil may help raise the oil pressure. Maybe it's a broken oil pressure switch? Either way, you need to get this sorted first because the car might be toast.
If the smoke is from the belt, you would definitely hear it, but you can check if the belt it too stretched out at the front of the engine, there are stretch indicators. May also be burning clutches, don't know. As others said, figure out where the smoke is coming from.
Try lubing the keyhole. Mine was like that for a while and it was just dry.
21 inch wiper blade, large J hook style. It also takes an H7 bulb. You don't have to buy everything online, these are pretty standard in stores.
Find out which rear light is out.
Everything else is inconsequential to the normal operation of the vehicle. Unless you can get those first couple of issues worked out, don't bother with the rest because you may just end up junking the car.
Recommend a hard reset (disconnect battery, hold positive and negative leads together) in order to possibly clear some lights. What leads? The ones on the car that plug into the battery?
0w-40 oil may help raise the oil pressure. Maybe it's a broken oil pressure switch? Either way, you need to get this sorted first because the car might be toast. By toast, what do you mean?
If the smoke is from the belt, you would definitely hear it, but you can check if the belt it too stretched out at the front of the engine, there are stretch indicators. May also be burning clutches, don't know. Will check! As others said, figure out where the smoke is coming from. I will, it doesn't stink too bad unless I rev the car which is weird I guess.
Try lubing the keyhole. Mine was like that for a while and it was just dry. Now it won't lock or unlock at all. I have to turn the key left and right like 50 times for the electric stuff to move and unlock the car.
21 inch wiper blade, large J hook style. It also takes an H7 bulb. You don't have to buy everything online, these are pretty standard in stores. So Walmart right?
Find out which rear light is out. I checked and none are malfunctioning, they work just fine. Including brake lights and turn signals.
Everything else is inconsequential to the normal operation of the vehicle. Unless you can get those first couple of issues worked out, don't bother with the rest because you may just end up junking the car. Thanks for your time and help!
Do you want me to upload videos and photos of all the damaged stuff? Oh, by the way, I responded in the Quote with bold lettering up there ^. Not really sure how to work the forum out yet haha.
Lastly, I have long maintained that when buying a used Jaguar, half the price is for the car and the other half is for the written records that come with it. In this case we haven’t seen much in terms of photographs to assess the car (not that I’m capable of that other than with cosmetics) but there seems to be a decent history although we haven’t actually seen it or seen it listed so it’s hard to say where it belongs in that spectrum I can definitely upload more photos and videos!
If the intent isn’t to keep it, the best option might well be to find someone else willing to take on the task who won’t be nearly as under water due to an unrealistically short time horizons.
“Use this car for a year, while I save up to buy a Mustang or something of that sort” is a short time.
I’m not necessarily trying to discourage you as these are tremendously rewarding automobiles to look at - inside and out - and to drive when they’re sorted.
My ‘01 XJR is my fourth Jag and is a daily driver. The daily driver for 15 years before that was a Series III V12 VDP. Both of them and a second Series III V12 VDP “summer only” car were all fully sorted when I bought them sight unseen and flew out to drive them 1,250 kilometres to get home.
Much to my wife’s chagrin, the Jags never have their repairs or maintenance deferred. I’m not mechanically inclined so that is mostly “paid work”, not homework, although I am lucky to have found a good independent 17 years ago whose children I could put through college (joking, mostly ).
Good luck whatever path you choose - just beware that very few people ever own just one Jag in there lifetime and many own more than one at one time for good reason…
Recommend a hard reset (disconnect battery, hold positive and negative leads together) in order to possibly clear some lights. What leads? The ones on the car that plug into the battery? Yes, those leads. Make sure nothing is touching or connected to the battery when you go to do this.
0w-40 oil may help raise the oil pressure. Maybe it's a broken oil pressure switch? Either way, you need to get this sorted first because the car might be toast.By toast, what do you mean? Low oil pressure can be a terminal condition. Without proper pressure, oil will not circulate properly and lead to under-lubrication and eventually component failure.
If the smoke is from the belt, you would definitely hear it, but you can check if the belt it too stretched out at the front of the engine, there are stretch indicators. May also be burning clutches, don't know. Will check! As others said, figure out where the smoke is coming from. I will, it doesn't stink too bad unless I rev the car which is weird I guess.
Try lubing the keyhole. Mine was like that for a while and it was just dry. Now it won't lock or unlock at all. I have to turn the key left and right like 50 times for the electric stuff to move and unlock the car. Unfortunately, it's likely to be internal door mechanisms at this point, you'll have to take off the door card to get it sorted. Here are the remote programming steps as well, do the one under X-J https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/a...rogramming.pdf
21 inch wiper blade, large J hook style. It also takes an H7 bulb. You don't have to buy everything online, these are pretty standard in stores. So Walmart right? Yes
Find out which rear light is out. I checked and none are malfunctioning, they work just fine. Including brake lights and turn signals. Hmm, well unless someone replaced them with LEDs, it's probably some computer error. Best not to dwell on it for now.
- Yes, light bulbs and wiper blades at walmart or other store of your choice.
- "Engine might be toast" means just what it sounds like. Low oil pressure can be the death knell of an engine and it could be that it has very little running time left in it. If you have to replace the engine, its probably a better choice to scrap the car or sell it for parts.
- Hard reset, yes you disconnect the negative terminal at the battery in the trunk and hold it up against the positive terminal for 30 seconds or so. Then you can reconnect it and see if any of the odd electric issues have gone away.
- While we're talking about the battery and maybe I missed it above, but do you know how old the battery is and what is its voltage both while the car is off and also while its running? You're looking for above 12v when the car is off and 14.5V or slightly more while running. These cars have complex and extensive electrical systems and, while I haven't experienced it myself, things can get really weird with a weak battery.
- Timing kit looks ok to me, but its a very extensive job to DIY...like remove the front end of the car and radiator just so you can get at the front of the engine and remove that to get at the timing chains. Research the hell out of this process before you think about doing it yourself. If you do it wrong, you can ruin your motor. Are you hearing any rattling or other noises coming from the very front of the motor? The only way to truly know if you have updated timing tensioners is to remove the valve covers and do an inspection. Bit of a job, but very doable...its more tedious than complex. There are youtube videos and writeups all over this forum for how to do this and what to look for. Note that the timing tensioners are a critical failure point and if the secondary tensioners give out, your engine will likely be irreparably damaged, so it needs to be checked and addressed if your tensioners aren't metal and in good condition. The plastic ones can and do fail without warning. You can DIY the secondary tensioners yourself relatively easily (though not without risk...again, read up on it and make your own decision) and probably mitigate the bulk of the ruined engine risk, primary tensioners and chains are also things that should be changed, but its 10x the job and significantly less risk of permanent damage to your mechanicals.
- The low oil pressure may be the oil pickup screen is clogged as suggested above...that would be a nice thing to find out because if its clogged, it can be unclogged and hopefully no damage has been done. You might need to remove the oil pan in order to find out, but if you have access to a borescope, you might be able to look inside after you've drained the oil out and see if you can see any obvious obstructions or accumulations of gunk in there.
- The plastic burning smell, coupled with some smoke is likely just something maybe too near your exhaust...could it be oil dripping and you're smelling oil and not plastic? The valve covers gaskets on these cars do wear and leak after a time, if its all oily around them, then that might be the case...but you need to spend time tracking it down...again though, not worth much of your effort until you have the oil pressure thing sorted out...though to be fair its possible these two issues are related in some way we can't connect yet. I'd say go ahead and post more pics and videos. Lets see what the engine looks like, hear it on a cold start, see the smoke when it revs and maybe we can help you track some of this down.
I think tis great that you have this car and I love that you're eager to get it into shape. Most of what you've described sound like minor issues that you can fix as you drive it and I for one think that while this isn't likely to be a paragon of reliability, you'll never match it as a driving experience at twice what you paid.
You really need to focus on identifying and resolving the low oil pressure issue first. I wouldn't drive it until you do and I wouldn't even replace a light bulb until I had that figured out. At the very least do a proper oil and filter change and make sure you've got the right amount of oil in there before you take it back out again. You may need to do more than one oil change if there's gunk in there and it starts washing out with the new oil, but start with one change and see what happens.
And can my regular mechanic change them? Can I change them with some tools? I heard there are some made out of metal but I just cant find them online.
While that link is the right idea, the price is extremely low, which typically indicates poor quality. You want to look to brands like INA for the chain, INA, Eurospares, or Sachs for the guides, and generally Jaguar/ford, or Eurospares for the Tensioners. For instance, the eurospares secondary tensioners were $240 alone. To get chains, guides, and 4 tensioners for $120 generally means they will be junk, sorry to say.
As to the repair. Yes, a decent "regular" mechanic should be able to do this. There is no magic, its just a procedure. That said, they will need the jaguar timing tools.
As for you to do it...well, it sort of depends on your aptitude. Its not particularly complicated if you follow the workshop manual, but if I didn't have some good experience with mechanical work, I probably wouldn't do it myself.
So here would be step one for me.
Remove oil pressure switch and install a mechanical gauge to determine what your oil pressure is. That will tell you if its a gauge fault or if the engine truly isn't making enough oil pressure. If the latter, I would remove the lower oil pan (easy) to see if the pick up is clogged. If so, you'll need to see whats clogging it. If its plastic from the chain guides, you're looking at doing the full kit you linked.
Finally, you said it would be cheap and easy to swap engines if need be? I know junk yard aj v8s aren't that expensive, but the labor will be extensive.
I would definitely do the above before i bothered with light bulbs, wipers, and so forth.
While that link is the right idea, the price is extremely low, which typically indicates poor quality. You want to look to brands like INA for the chain, INA, Eurospares, or Sachs for the guides, and generally Jaguar/ford, or Eurospares for the Tensioners. For instance, the eurospares secondary tensioners were $240 alone. To get chains, guides, and 4 tensioners for $120 generally means they will be junk, sorry to say.
As to the repair. Yes, a decent "regular" mechanic should be able to do this. There is no magic, its just a procedure. That said, they will need the jaguar timing tools.
As for you to do it...well, it sort of depends on your aptitude. Its not particularly complicated if you follow the workshop manual, but if I didn't have some good experience with mechanical work, I probably wouldn't do it myself.
So here would be step one for me.
Remove oil pressure switch and install a mechanical gauge to determine what your oil pressure is. That will tell you if its a gauge fault or if the engine truly isn't making enough oil pressure. If the latter, I would remove the lower oil pan (easy) to see if the pick up is clogged. If so, you'll need to see whats clogging it. If its plastic from the chain guides, you're looking at doing the full kit you linked.
Finally, you said it would be cheap and easy to swap engines if need be? I know junk yard aj v8s aren't that expensive, but the labor will be extensive.
I would definitely do the above before i bothered with light bulbs, wipers, and so forth.
Thanks for your response. I will replace the engine oil firstly and the filters and see if the issue persists, after this I will perform a smog check and we'll take it from there. I am going to upload a full video with all the issues on the car just so you guys get a really good idea of what's wrong with it and give better advice! Thank you so much for caring enough to help a naive 21 year old haha.
Eric, Some of us are more than a half century older than you and we can still be pretty naive in lots of areas. But, for the record, knowing there are people that know more than you and being comfortable asking for their advice isn’t naive, it’s maturity.
- Yes, light bulbs and wiper blades at walmart or other store of your choice.
- "Engine might be toast" means just what it sounds like. Low oil pressure can be the death knell of an engine and it could be that it has very little running time left in it. If you have to replace the engine, its probably a better choice to scrap the car or sell it for parts.
- Hard reset, yes you disconnect the negative terminal at the battery in the trunk and hold it up against the positive terminal for 30 seconds or so. Then you can reconnect it and see if any of the odd electric issues have gone away.
- While we're talking about the battery and maybe I missed it above, but do you know how old the battery is and what is its voltage both while the car is off and also while its running? You're looking for above 12v when the car is off and 14.5V or slightly more while running. These cars have complex and extensive electrical systems and, while I haven't experienced it myself, things can get really weird with a weak battery.
- Timing kit looks ok to me, but its a very extensive job to DIY...like remove the front end of the car and radiator just so you can get at the front of the engine and remove that to get at the timing chains. Research the hell out of this process before you think about doing it yourself. If you do it wrong, you can ruin your motor. Are you hearing any rattling or other noises coming from the very front of the motor? The only way to truly know if you have updated timing tensioners is to remove the valve covers and do an inspection. Bit of a job, but very doable...its more tedious than complex. There are youtube videos and writeups all over this forum for how to do this and what to look for. Note that the timing tensioners are a critical failure point and if the secondary tensioners give out, your engine will likely be irreparably damaged, so it needs to be checked and addressed if your tensioners aren't metal and in good condition. The plastic ones can and do fail without warning. You can DIY the secondary tensioners yourself relatively easily (though not without risk...again, read up on it and make your own decision) and probably mitigate the bulk of the ruined engine risk, primary tensioners and chains are also things that should be changed, but its 10x the job and significantly less risk of permanent damage to your mechanicals.
- The low oil pressure may be the oil pickup screen is clogged as suggested above...that would be a nice thing to find out because if its clogged, it can be unclogged and hopefully no damage has been done. You might need to remove the oil pan in order to find out, but if you have access to a borescope, you might be able to look inside after you've drained the oil out and see if you can see any obvious obstructions or accumulations of gunk in there.
- The plastic burning smell, coupled with some smoke is likely just something maybe too near your exhaust...could it be oil dripping and you're smelling oil and not plastic? The valve covers gaskets on these cars do wear and leak after a time, if its all oily around them, then that might be the case...but you need to spend time tracking it down...again though, not worth much of your effort until you have the oil pressure thing sorted out...though to be fair its possible these two issues are related in some way we can't connect yet. I'd say go ahead and post more pics and videos. Lets see what the engine looks like, hear it on a cold start, see the smoke when it revs and maybe we can help you track some of this down.
I think tis great that you have this car and I love that you're eager to get it into shape. Most of what you've described sound like minor issues that you can fix as you drive it and I for one think that while this isn't likely to be a paragon of reliability, you'll never match it as a driving experience at twice what you paid.
You really need to focus on identifying and resolving the low oil pressure issue first. I wouldn't drive it until you do and I wouldn't even replace a light bulb until I had that figured out. At the very least do a proper oil and filter change and make sure you've got the right amount of oil in there before you take it back out again. You may need to do more than one oil change if there's gunk in there and it starts washing out with the new oil, but start with one change and see what happens.
The low oil pressure issue might be due to the fact that it's got barely any oil in it, it's under the MINIMUM and is completely burnt. I'm not sure if it's leaking oil but I'm assuming over time it's lost all of it probably from a fault tank cap. That makes sense right? I mean, how will it have enough oil pressure if it barely has any oil? It's possible some oil has gotten somewhere it shouldn't be, I checked inside the hood at the bottom under the engine and there seems to be just tiny drops of oil or grease down there.
Also, does anyone here have a link to the METAL tensioner upgrade? I can't find anything online. Thanks.
Pull the oil pan and look for peaces of plastic. You will need cam guide set. rock auto sells them but find a shop that is reasonable and world on jags. Get them to check you whole ride out. It may cost you a hundred bucks but then you will know all your issues.
Eric: the very first thing: *do not run the engine* until you put in at least a full litre (….a quart) or more of fresh oil. Running the engine with very dirty oil at below minimum level is not good. THEN you can change the oil: 5w30 or 5w40. Use a good filter…WIX, MAHLE, MANN, BOSCH…
.
Everything else comes later…but the timing chains and tensioners are the next item of business if you have any intention of keeping the car.
The low oil pressure issue might be due to the fact that it's got barely any oil in it, it's under the MINIMUM and is completely burnt. I'm not sure if it's leaking oil but I'm assuming over time it's lost all of it probably from a fault tank cap. That makes sense right? I mean, how will it have enough oil pressure if it barely has any oil? It's possible some oil has gotten somewhere it shouldn't be, I checked inside the hood at the bottom under the engine and there seems to be just tiny drops of oil or grease down there.
Also, does anyone here have a link to the METAL tensioner upgrade? I can't find anything online. Thanks.
Its certainly possible and hopefully this is the case. Like most others I've had card that leaked oil in the past and on those, I never once had a low pressure warning light, even when I got the low oil level warning light. At any rate, this is all academic. I hope you're not driving it or even running it while we're all talking about this issue. If its where you can do an oil change now, just get it done and see if it helps, if its not where you can do it and you have to move it, then add enough fresh oil to bring it up to the corect amount, move it and then do an oil change.
What do you mean by a faulty tank cap that might have casued you to lose oil? Do you mean the filler cap on the cam cover on top of the motor or something else? If the cap is open at the top and the car was sitting (which I think you said), I can't see that being an issue...motor oil isn''t going to evaporate, at least not significantly.
Quad's advice on the oil pressur gauge is excellent. Best to actually know what kind of pressure your engine is making, but again...change the oil before you do anything else.
Not really sure how to work the forum out yet haha. 
