So I literally made this account to come gather some info from xk x150 owners while I talk with the sales folk. I'm really intrigued with one, but a bit hesitant given my previous perceptions of jaguars.
so I'm a shade tree wrenched by hobby that learned from my dad. Been a car guy my whole life but married n had a kid so cars were generally off the fun list.... till I bought a 2010 boxster s. I fully intended to get a 15~ mustang gt, as I like american muscle but after driving the little mid engine porsche i just couldnt help but love it especially how well built the actual mechanical side was. This worked for the last two years and went ahead and did all work myself to make sure it ran good and has not disappointed. However, I'm now having my 2nd child and getting awfully hard to justify a 2 seater from my practical side. My h3 and my wifes suv are paid off so this is more the fun car for me but right now it largely sits and is in the way of any work I do in the garage lol.

so I've been looking at xf or xk as a replacement. Cant bring myself to own a mercedes but was looking at the e550, when I remembered the xkr. Going to just do the xk for now if I got one... but I don't see a lot of support for parts and such in the US. Now it seems like again one of those diamonds in the "percieved" rough, where mechanically it's pretty sound despite the common perception most american car guys have of jaguar. Any gotchas to be aware of as far as working on things yourself? I already know it's more of a GT car than a sports car like my boxster, but how is the driving in terms of response, quick shifting, felt acceleration? Theres a practical part of me that says just have the h3 for hunting and family stuff and worry about a sports car later. But I dont want to be 48 and just finally getting back into cars lol, have to beat that stereotype hahaha.
any thoughts or input welcome. Looking forward to hopefully being active on here.

 

I have had a base 2011 XK for about 6 1/2 years now. It has been mostly reliable, with the biggest issue so far being the fuel injectors needing replacement at about 62k miles. Basic maintenance is pretty straight forward... brakes, oil changes, fluids etc. are no problem. I got the car mostly because of the looks... I wasn't looking for super car performance, and for me the 5.0 naturally aspirated engine is fine. Driving dynamics are good... for me weakest point is that the steering is not very direct... more luxury feel than performance. The car shines at quick acceleration while underway... pushing you back into your seat going from 30 to speed limit (or over) in a very short time. I have Conti dws06 all season tires, and traction control will kick in fast from a stop light acceleration, cutting the engine to stop the tire spin. Stickier tires are probably a must have if you are doing stop light launches often. The car is heavy (3700+ lbs) but does not feel like it while driving. The low profile tires (i have 20's) don't have much compliance, and i have had a few flats and bent a rim going over a minor pothole.

Things to be aware of :

• The body is aluminium... repairs will get expensive, and the cars can be easily totalled by even a fender bender due to insurance writing off the car.
• In general, parts are available... bosch fuel system, aftermarket brakes, etc... but car specific parts might start becoming harder to find... cooling system plastic pipes as an example. There is not much in the way of aftermarket parts, since the numbers of cars sold each year were as low as 1 to 2 thousand in the later years.
• You say you are a shade tree mechanic which is good, because finding someone reliable to do the work may be hard, even my closest dealership is down to one mechanic that will work on it.
• Having a copy of the dealer SDD software and a good compatible reader are important if you are doing your own work. Workshop manuals are easily obtained.
• There are some complaints of timing chain guide issues, coolant pipe issues and supercharger "rattle" that you should research and draw your own conclusions. In my experience, the engine is not super quiet... mostly due to injector noise at startup.
• ZF transmission seems pretty bullet proof, but the fluid should be changed after 60k miles... Originally the transmission fluid was said to be "lifetime", but ZF changed their guidance on that.

If you are interested in buying, do a test drive to make sure you like the car, and do a pre-purchase inspection to check for previous collisions, worn bushings etc.
Hope this helps... I am sure the XKR fans will be coming soon to tell you to make sure you get a supercharger

 

I’m going to purposely change gears. Your description of your needs and wants seem to be a bit over the map.

If this new car of yours is going to be a daily driver and carry a family of 4…
Well it can be done but it will not be comfortable for anyone in the back seat. And don’t minimize the needs of maintenance. These cars are expensive (as is the Mercedes you were looking at).
Look at my signature block. These cars are quite dependable IF you keep up the maintenance. And they are getting old.

But back to your needs…. wouldn’t a newer XF suit the position better?

 

an xf would accomplish all that, yes. The xk would be more of my fun car that can hold 4, but isn't really meant to. Right now the boxster can't hold 4 unless I start putting people in the frunk and trunk .
The dependable with maintenance is precisely what I'd prefer. I have that currently with my porsche. I tend to buy vehicles that I could see myself driving forever as long as they're as kind to me as I'll be to them haha. My hummer is really my family mover if I'm intending to go hunting, camping, fishing, but right now people are getting left out if I want to go for a drive in the porsche.

 

My Wife and I had a Boxster for around 9 years. Great car, loved it. But we would never go back to a 2 seater after being in a 2+2 for this long. When we were at the dealer buying our XK she loved the F-Type until she saw how small the cockpit is, then it was out.

Our detailer called our XK a boat as he is used to servicing smaller sports cars. This is true, it is a bigger car and compared to a Boxster,and forget about it when talking handling, no comparison to the XK which is a GT Cruiser. You will not feel like you are on rails anymore. But the XK is a great handling car in it's class. You didn't state what year you are looking at, the 2010 (5 liter) is in my opinion a significant upgrade over the previous 2007-2009 (4.2 liter).

After four+ years of ownership the Jag has been my best ownership experience from a reliability standpoint, far and above my Boxster or my 650. The Boxster is second in reliability. Not sure how to rate that one as I had the Intermediate Shaft failure and needed a completely engine replacement on my '99 Porsche. Plus a whole host of little DIY fixes I had to work through (steering wheel center sagging causing horn to go off over bumps, ignition key cylinder replacement, power steering fuel rail issue)..

 

Thank you for sharing this! I was also under the impression that Jaguar transmission fluid was lifelong! Good to know!!

 

It is, just not your lifetime. It'll last the lifetime of the transmission, right up to the point of failure. Kind of like how engine oil is also a lifetime fluid... Don't change it, and it'll work fine until the engine doesn't.


Hoover-
I bought mine with 56k on it almost five years ago; I have nearly 100k on it now, 40ishk of that has been with the mods you see in my sig. And I use ALL of the car when I'm able to. So far, it's been rear wheel bearings, an engine mount, water pump, full set of brakes (that was a want, more than a need), tranny flush/fill, rear diff fluid, a few coolant pipes/hoses more for preventative maintenance, and a torsional isolator in the SC (did the SC oil at the same time). I've spent more money and time on mods than I have repairs.

I've found online OEM parts prices generally on par with what you'd find at a Toyota or Acura dealer. Thing is, with a very few exceptions where the value of letting someone else assume the responsibility of a proper repair is worth the price, I do all my labor. If you can turn a wrench, read a manual, don't believe everything you see online, and don't go about it like a methed-out oilfielder on their first day at the rig, you can save a ton of money on labor.

But... it's a used car. You don't know the history, it's most likely out of warranty, so you -and only you- can answer if the juice is worth the squeeze. They're still generally regarded as a very reliable car, but at this point in their lifetimes, it's a crap shoot whether you get a gem or a turd. DO NOT buy from a used car lot, or even a dealer if it's not a CPO. Private sellers have had a vested interest in maintaining the car during their time of ownership, whereas dealers and lots buy these things at auction or trade, band aid all the stuff that's wrong with it, slap some of that oily **** on the engine cover and tire sidewalls, and throw it out there for $6k over book.

To address the reliability question directly- this era of Jags are absolutely NOTHING like the British Leyland garbage from the 80's. As much as I hate to admit it, Ford was the best thing to happen to Jag and JLR has turned themselves around in the past 30ish years.

But if you have kids, this is the worst car for rear passengers right behind a Miata. Go drive an XF if you want... they're not *that* bad... but the X351 XJ is a far superior platform, has more room, hauls *** with the SC V8, and doesn't have that price-point designed rental car interior that the XF does.

 

Hoover,
My 2010 XKR will pass 200,000 miles sometime in March. Without question, it's the finest automobile I've ever owned in 53 years of driving. It has also been the most reliable! The weak points are the water pumps, and I've had my share of replacements, and weak batteries causing all sorts of false warning lights. So long as you change the oil more often than suggested ( I have mine done about every 5000 miles), and make sure you check your coolant levels, as well as keep the battery fully charged, you can count on a couple hundred thousand miles without any great issues. My car has been pulleyed and tuned, it has been to the track dozens of times, and it is still just a great pleasure to drive everyday. I have changed the transmission fluid twice during my ownership, and the tranny still shifts quickly and crisply. I have never owned an automatic transmissioned car that has gone 200,000 miles without a rebuild or replacement until this car, and it's handling about 600hp. While it's too big and heavy to be a great track car, I have always had fun with it at the track, and you will be astonished by the acceleration if you choose the 5.0L XKR. It would crush your Boxter S in a straight line match in any gear, and will bring a smile to your face when you feel the wide torque band of power.

Your children will have to be quite small to be able to use the back seats, but there are people on this forum who have done it. Of probably greater concern is whether parts will be available in the future. These cars are fun, beautiful, and better than their counterparts. Go drive one first and see what you think.

 

Welcome Hoover. Like you, Im a card carrying shade tree mechanic and have owned a mess of 911's from almost every era. I would put the XK reliability right up there with a sorted 911 all day long. My wife has a 2013 and I just bought a 2015 XK. One of the main reasons I bought mine was because hers was so darn reliable. I havent had to touch it except for consumables and a coolant hose at 60k miles. Thats it...nothing else. The coolant pumps are a known failure point but its a 2 hour job (if you take your time) and $300 part if you buy genuine Jag. I didnt because its a poor design IMHO, so I saved $200 and bought aftermarket. We bought hers with new water pump and mine just started to weep....no biggie swapped it out (see above).

I kind of outgrew true sports cars and now love a good GT. I dig the extra room and it has more than enough performance to keep a smile on my face. My daily driver is a supercharged Rage Rover 5.0 which is the same base engine as the XK's....again, I havent had a problem with it either. If you really want kick in your seat performance, get an XKR. But the downfall is that the supercharger location makes getting to other things more difficult. And, you dont have aftermarket support like Chevy/Ford etc.

 

@Hooverfb84, Jaguar is no more and no less reliable than any other modern vehicle from what I've seen.

The best advice is to go and drive a few to see what feels best to you. Before you purchase one, make sure you can see a service history to know maintenance hasn't been skipped.

If you settle on a 5.0 litre car, see if the plastic water outlet and rear heater pipe have been replaced in addition to the water pump. They are known failure items and can cause catastrophic engine damage. The AJ133/AJ133S do not like to be overheated as head gasket failure is the result.

 

Lots of good advice given already, but having recently purchased an XKR 4.2L I would highly recommended that when you actually find a candidate you have an On Board Diagnostic professionally performed. The information this simple operation provides is a treasure trove of not only what flaws currently exist but also a history of what has been done previously. Ideally find an independent source for the OBD other than the seller. I was able to find a chap that came to my home and performed the OBD for $75.00 US. Money well spent at least in my situation. Good hunting!!

 

I'm in Missouri also and will be purchasing an 08 KXR next week, would you mind sharing that contact with me?

 

Check your email.

 

Well I currently prefer the driving dynamics of the boxsters 315 hp mid engine layout, but definitely enjoyed driving the xk. Unfortunately someone bought it while I was contemplating. I'm convinced it's definitely a worthwhile car and my 6 yr old likes it for the v8 haha. Guess I'm on the prowl for the right deal now. If I can find an xkr all the better.
thanks everyone!

 

Unless you were good at Tetris, this is not the car for four. Not even a little bit. The rear seats were probably added for insurance reasons though I don't know for certain. If you have you eye on one, and it's accessible, go sit in the back for 30 minutes.
Of course if you are all very short and the two front seats can be moved all the way forward it would be less painful for those in the back.

 

No, Sports Cars don't have back seats to fool insurance companies - Autotrader

 

A few quick late-to-the-party observations:

- there are no more CPO XK's. However new the car is, at this point it's at least 7 years old. Even a CPO'd 2015 is out of coverage.
- there IS starting to be an issue with availability of some parts. Some don't have to be factory (A/C compressor); the ones that do, like adaptive headlights, are disappearing and as time goes on everyone will be scouring ebay for parts that are no longer manufactured. There are already threads on here about how to fit an XF touchscreen into our cars as those are pretty much gone.
- my sweet spot (not really looking, but come on, we're ALWAYS looking) is a 2013-15 XKR 'vert. There are a few around; currently, I think there will be a price correction on these in the next 6 months or so. Who knows? I may jump back in the game at that point.

My stepdad, who used to sell cars, had a saying: some prospective buyers had already "bought the car in their heart." Sounds to me like you've already bought an XK in your heart. Interested to see what you end up with.

 

One opinion does not make it true. Here is another opinion:

https://www.caranddriver.com/car-ins...dan-insurance/

 

A car company isn't going to design a vehicle so a perspective owner MAY save a couple bucks on a policy that the car company doesn't carry. That would be a HORRIBLE business model.

 

Including a back seat can lower insurance costs and make the car more practical to more potential buyers, Therefore more sales. I think that a sporty 2+2 car makes a lot of sense for a young family with a couple of small kids. especially if they also have a larger family vehicle to use for longer jaunts. I had a Datsun 280Z 2+2 that got a lot of use when my kids were little. I used it to take three kids to school often, or pick them up, and took my own two kids with me as much as possible. If not for the backseat I'd have to take the minivan. I'd had two seat cars that were okay but just not as useful. I moved onto a 2007 Mustang which held my kids in back even as they were teenagers. I prefer to have more versatile cars. I rode motorcycles for a very long time but wasn't going to take my kids along on that, so I got into sporty cars. XKs are nice cars but they are getting older. If you have been happy with your Boxster and know how to keep on top of things you should be okay. I've driven my Son's Boxster, and it was fun, but I prefer a bigger car like a Mustang. I've got enough on my plate with my XJS, i don't need to look for more headaches.