I've noticed that my 2010 XK with not quite 5,000 miles has some inside front tire feathering as well as some brake shudder which seems to be coming from the rear. I don't have any front steering wheel shake at 50-60 mph. The tires are the original Dunlop SP Sport 01s and are not the quietest tire. They are asymmetrical so can be rotated from side to side to slow things down and even out the wear. As far as the brake shudder, I haven't driven more than 30 miles yet and want to give the car a chance in case it needs some additional road time for any possible buildup on the rotors. Is an alignment called for at this time and/or are our cars known for negative camber and inside wear? The rear tires look fine all across the tread. Also, I find it unusual for the rear rotors to be warped with so little miles, but I don't know Jags that well yet. My car is under warranty but don't want to go to the dealer without further info. Any imput would be appreciated. (on a side note, the brakes pads have almost no wear either front or rear)

 

Boca:

I would suggest in an effort to not waste time and brain power, that you consider taking the car to the professionals which would be the Jaguar dealership.

That will end any speculation or opinions on what your problem might be.

Since you have the user id of: Bocatrip....I can only assume that you reside close to.....or in Boca Raton, Florida.

The largest Jaguar dealer in the USA is West Palm Jaguar located at 915 S. Dixie Highway, Palm Beach Florida. Their number is: 866-374-8184 for service.

They have a Jaguar Tech Writer by the name of Allen. He is well versed on the Jags and although I live in New Mexico, I have spoken directly with him in the past. My 2009 XKR Portfolio Edition was serviced directly at Palm Beach Jaguar for it's entire life with Allen as the person handling the service write ups.

Since the car is under full warranty you have nothing to lose except time and travel distance to Palm Beach. I understand it is about a 30 mile drive.

With only 5000 miles, I would have it checked out. It is highly doubtful that you would be able to make any repairs yourself, and since it is under warranty, it makes no sense to have a third party mechanic or shop look at the car.

Jaguar knows the car best. Any repairs should fall under the warranty. In the end, if work needs to be done, then you will have peace of mind that Jaguar did the repairs.

I am not sure what you mean in the definition of front inside tire feathering, and it is highly doubtful that the brake rotors would be wrapped, but as you can see, that is just speculation on my part.

Bottom line, take it to the dealer. You paid for the low mileage car that is still under warranty for 4 years from the date of the first sale.

It will also be good to know when that warranty ends as 2014 is soon approaching.

Give Allen a call and I am sure he can lend some guidence to take you in the right direction.

 

Thanks Richzak for your suggestion. Jaguar can certainly evaluate the car. At least their work will be warrantied and if there is any out of pocket expenses, the car should be repaired to my satisfaction. With regards to the Jaguar dealer you mentioned, there is another dealership quite closer that I would like to establish a relationship with. I will certainly keep Allen in mind if it doesn't work out. My warranty is good until May 2014, so I still have time to iron things out. I plan on absolutely getting an extended warranty towards the last month of the factory warranty ending. I am leaning towards Easy Care Total Care Gold. I'm sure in the next few longer drives, I can put together a few items to be addressed by Jaguar. Thanks again.

 

I have the same OEM tires, with about 8.5K on them.
Just went into the garage and checked, and they're wearing evenly.

I alsways thought they were asymmetrical (ie rotation-direction dependent) but they're not marked. However, they do have 'OUTSIDE" marked on them, altho that may just be to make the date code visible, rather than for handling.

I have noticed that they 'flat-spot' easily. After standing a week or more, it takes 10-20mls to smooth-out.


Incidentally, a distant relative once bought a Rolls-Royce, and did the Factory Chauffeurs course for fun.....
Among the many things he was instructed to do were:
- Park several hundred yards away, and drive that distance to pick-up the passengers, so that the AC could cool/heat the car, and the fan would quiet down, and also any tire flat-spots would smooth-out

- Always, always walk around the back of the vehicle after closing the rear door, so the passengers didn't have to actually view the help !

 

Regarding dealerships, I have had good luck with West Palm and Allan is a good guy. I've also used Alpine in Ft Lauderdale and like them too. Either way, you'll end up with the solution (and under warranty). The only difference is, if you end up waiting for the car, at West Palm, you can walk across the street to City Place while you wait.

 

Oh one more thing. Check your antifreeze regularly. When I was in for an oil change last week, the guy doing it noticed indication of the water pump leaking. I checked fluid yesterday and it was low. It's going in for a water pump Friday. As you know, in looking at endless CarFaxes in the search for my car, quite a few mentioned water pump replacements.

 

For what it is worth, "feathering" (ie Seeing the tread blocks wearing in a distorted fashion) is most often a toe-in problem. Simple wear on the inside tread without distortion is a camber issue.

Vince

 

You might want to check on just what is covered by your warranty. I had a "select edition" warranty that did not cover much of anything relating to alignments, brake pads/rotors or shocks. Jag even said my auto close ash tray failure was a cosmetic issue and not covered.

Fortunately my car has been dead reliable, excepting the ash tray and a leaky shock. I have had the occasional wheel alignment and refreshed pads of course so the warranty has never really been tested.

 

Are Jaguar alignment rates comparable to independent shops? Since my tires are asymmetrical they can be swapped or rotated from one side to the other. The tires will rotate in the opposite direction which should help to flatten out some of the cupping/feathering over time. Investing in our tire's maintenance has to be evaluated as their life span is so short (15,000-18000 miles) In addition, I would like to keep all four tires the same brand (Michelin Pilots the next time). I'm wondering also if the front tire feathering is what is causing what I now find to be a slight front brake shutter(steering wheel shakes slightly on stopping) or could it still be the front rotors? This is why I need a proper diagnosis before reaching into my pockets. I'm hoping when I bring my car to Jaguar (car is still under factory warranty) they will not be charging me to look at the car to give their evaluation. I should have an item or two by then for warranty work. I can hear the aspirator making some noise as many owners have mentioned with their cars. I'm hoping my tire wear is just an alignment. I looked at the lugs and I don't even see any sign of a power gun ever being on them.

 

I doubt that the brake shuddering is related to your tires. Anything is possible but it's not likely. I vote for a warped disk especially if you live in a metro area where stop and go traffic engenders heat soak of the brakes. All Jags in Orlando is top flight for reasonable brake work but any brake shop should be able to handle Jag brakes. It's not rocket science. All Jags does not do alignments.

Alignment is best left to the dealers unless you have a real pro indie alignment shop. They are out there but buyer beware. There is a good indie shop in Orlando but they will not do it while you wait and want to keep your car over night. A PITA.

As for dealer pricing, look for dealer specials and save $100. In general, I have found that the Tampa dealer is about $100 cheaper on alignment than Orlando. Get yourself on your local dealers mailing list. Sort it out quickly as uneven tire ware will cause tire roar. Another PITA.

 

You have to get some face time with the service writer and head mechanic at your dealership. Buttering them up with peace offering like booze will return big dividends. A rotor could've been warped by washing the car with hot brakes.

If you don't want the dealership to do the alignment, look for tuner shop or an alignment shop that works a lot of commercial vehicles. With alignments, it really comes down to the tech doing it. I like to sit in the car or have it "sand bagged" to compensate for the weight on the driver's seat.

This being my 2nd Jag, I find Jag does a good job at keeping alignment towards even wear and on my VDP, the alignment stayed dead on for 3 years!

Are you going with all season's or fair weather only tires? I have Pilot Sport AS+, but if I were in a warmer locale, I would go for Bridgestone Pole Position S04's

 

I only have the car a few days and it originally was a PA car. I just thought it unusual for a rotor to warp after only 5,000 miles but anything is possible. By the way, I already have the tire roar! I have the Ultra High Performance Summer Dunlops that were the OEM tires. I test drove these cars with the Ventus V12 and they drove well, but I might consider to go with the Pilots for a few bucks more. I figure I still have 10-12,000 miles left on the OEM tires and am trying to tweak out what I can, but I do hate road roar and I believe once it's there, it's there for good even with the alignment corrected. Is that true? Good thing our cars have an amazing sound system! I've only listened to the radio because I can't get my I Pod Nano to adapt yet.

 

OEM Dunlops are said to be noisy. The Pilot Super Sports are taking top honors in reviews, with the Bridgestone S-04s running a close second. I opted for the S-04's as they were so close in scores but hundreds less, and have not regretted the choice. If your on a tight budget, the V12's seem to win praise for the price, but they don't run with the big boys, so you'll not find them in any F1 or NASCAR winners circle.

As for rotor warp, I highly doubt it. More likely that the first owner did not bed the pads in correctly. Go out and drive to warm them up, then re-bed them with 6 or more hard stops for 60+mph. See if that clears up the shudder issue. If not, then let the dealership deal with it.

BOL
Vince

 

Went to the dealer today. Met with the service writer of choice. Was going to leave car today, but they were busy and I didn't want to leave it over the weekend. I have a feeling both front and rear rotors feel funky when stopping. I'm glad to find out that there is an adjustment for camber on the front tires. Unfortunately, once the tires start roaring which I have, it pretty much stays with the tires until they are dead. FYI, I have tried those hard stops a number of times, just getting brake dust but no positive results. I got rotors prices from dealer: Fronts: 303/pair Rears: 387/pair. I'm not sure if the dealership turns rotors as every one has a different policy. I will have them checked out next week, along with my Ipod that doesn't want to function. Salesman says it might be a software update for the car.

 

Not sure the dealer turns rotors at all. There's not much surface thickness to grind in general with Jaguar rotors my mechanic says. He was able to on the rears, but said no way the next round.

 

You can warp the rotors by not putting the correct torque on the nuts.