My 2007 XK had slight wrinkling on passenger side dash and Jaguar warrantied a new one.

My 2008 XKR had the same problem and it was warrantied. It is possible they warrantied them because both cars had been on the lot in the FL sun for about a year and I reported it within a few months of the "in service date". After one year the replacement dash is starting to do the same thing but not as bad. My car is garaged and if I have to leave it parked in the sun I started putting a towel on that side of the dash which seems to have slowed down the process. I am also in FL so it appears that this type of leather doesn't like sun or heat.

I asked dealer if there was any kind of leather conditioner or something to prevent this but they didn't know. I am afraid to put anything on it that is not factory recommended that would void warranty.

 

I stopped by the guy who does my interior work and talked with him about fixing my door panels. He said it wasn't normal wear but a defect and Jaguar should pay for it. Buy anyway, he can fix mine for $40 and promised it won't come loose again. As for the dash pulling, I am keeping mine conditioned so maybe I won't have that problem.

 

What brand of conditioner should be used?

 

I'm having the same problem. It appears to be adhesive failure at the highest stress point near the edges of the center console. My warranty is expired. A call to an interior specialist indicated that a re-glue is likely only a short-term fix because there's no guarantee the glue-to-glue interface would hold like the leather-glue-frame on a fresh stretch. He recommended a full replacement. That was not what I wanted to hear. Has anyone found a glue that has given a good hold. I'd like to limp along until I absolutely HAVE to replace the dash.

Other than that, this car is a dream to drive.

 

I purchased my 08 XK Select Edition in December of 2011 from a Bay Area dealership. My son noticed a very subtle "wrinkle" in the dash, of which I took to another dealership for inspection. They (Jaguar) replaced the entire dash, under warranty, with no questions asked.

This leads me to believe that there is a problem and they (Jaguar) are obviously attempting to avoid a very expensive recall campaign.

 

My buddy had a Testarossa at his used car lot and this happened. The Ferrari dealer wanted some huge amount to fix it. He ended up steaming or wetting the leather, pulled it and reglued it. Came out perfect and for very little money.

Monthly leather conditioner is how I am trying to mitigate this issue.

 

Just had mine replaced yesterday - covered under the original factory warranty for an 08 XK. The dealer didn't even blink, just ordered the new dash and installed it a week later. On the work order it states 5.90 hours to replace it.

 

Good to see Jag is stepping up to replace these under warranty without giving anyone grief.

For those out of warranty, you should contact Jag USA for help with this.

 

rscultho
Do you think JagUSA will cover it to make good or what?

 

A note about stretching/steaming:
It can be done—and is actually what Jaguar NA [reportedly] told my car's former owner's dealer (follow that? ), so I can confidently inform you that once the leather is stretched it looks like absolute trash.

Why? It has been explained to me that because the grain of the dash leather is so very fine—like the rest of the leather wrapped over every surface in the XK—that once it's pulled even slightly it looks like a wet paper bag of which has dried in the sun. And, it gets crispy!—at least mine did, but I think that may be due to the chemical stretching agent they applied. And, like several of you already mentioned, it doesn't much matter anyway—because no adhesive on this planet will hold that leather back from its continued journey to shrink and wither away before your very eyes... (over time, of course.)

The solution, as some of you may also know, has already been identified by Jaguar—and has been implemented on 2010+ XKs: a chemical bond (as before) supplemented by physical docking.

2010+ dash leather not only wraps a full inch around the leading edge near the windshield, but it's also anchored to the plastic frame by numerous tacks and/or staples; in addition to the special hide-to-plastic adhesive (resists heat-induced enzymatic breakdown).

In my [humble] opinion there are generally three ways to handle shrinking leather on an XK / XKR dash:
(in ascending order of out-of-pocket expense)If any of you are interested in pictures of a stretched dash, let me know and I'll embarrass myself right here in this very thread.



Cheers!

-e

*my initial method
**my current method (With contrast stitching! Pics to come shortly...)

 

I keep hearing about this problem but have never seen it (fortunately).


I'd love to see some pics...

 

It seems that this is a similar problem to the AC drain on 07 XK/R's. It's obviously a design defect in that the glue used to hold the leather isn't working in the direct sun.

If they don't cover the whole replacement I am sure if you are nice about it they will give you some help on it. An aftermarket leather professional could pull the dash and stretch and staple the leather for a lot less than buying a whole new dash. If Jag gave you most of the cost of a new dash that may pay for the permanent repair.

I'd call them, after doing some homework and persuade them to help.

 

+1

 

Oh boy, now this is going to be really embarrassing!.. It's like a freak show for 2010-up owners. FYI: I'm jealous of your heavy-duty staples and advanced glue, sir.

I'm snappin shots now; I'll post them up shortly.

-e

 

Here are a few pics I snapped minutes ago:


Mmm, looks expensive!


The leather on the gauge hood is retreating faster than a French soldier!


And, my favorite: the air pockets. (One can hide treasures in there!)


Okay, so here I am showing you just how far the leather has receded from the leading edge of the dash frame. You can see the shaped corner from the original application, and you can see how far from the corner is has moved. It's like a tectonic crawl--but on the dash of my beautiful kitten.

The arrows are pointing out the odd, shiny 'goo' that was left behind from whatever the dealership used to stretch the leather. I will be attempting to remove this today. Note: when I took delivery of this car the leather wasn't even adhered to the leading edge of the dash frame; I glued it down.

You may have also noticed that the demister vents look a bit odd. That's because they're broken all to hell. I bought this car without seeing it first--and flew up to North Carolina to take delivery of it... I asked all the right questions about everything else, but no one tells you about this particular area of nonsense; something you wouldn't expect on such a high-end vehicle. Hell, the dash in my 2002 X-Type Sport was beautiful all the way through 150,000 miles! I expected more--not less--in the XKR! Ehh, the custom dash should be ready in just a couple more weeks...

I believe your best defense is a shade--like the one offered by Jaguar (Adam, got any pics??) and avoiding the use of junk leather conditioners or glazes. That stuff can actually speed-up this process, so I have read/been told. I now use nothing more than a damp microfiber cloth and some mild soap. Then I lightly apply Connolly Hide Care. The leather in these cars shouldn't be shiny or appear to be wet. All of that stuff only collects dust, dirt, and traps heat. I'm nursing her interior back to health!

So, now that I've aired my only point of embarrassment with my baby, I have to post a pic which will make me feel better:


I keep her clean to draw attention away from the dash.

-e

 

Beautiful car. Thanks for the pics.

 

LOL, it's good to see you've kept your sense of humor... otherwise I feel for you man.

I've got to check mine now to make sure it's not doing the same

I do have the cover craft cover though:

 

When my 07 XK was still under warranty , I brought it to Wilde Jaguar in Sarasota , Florida and was given an 09 XF as a loaner. I noticed the dash seemed to be 'bubbling' . When I returned the car I told the service rep and he said that they all do that and the dealership was constantly replacing dashboards

He seemed to think it was because the cars were parked outside all day in the Florida sun

 

This may sound dumb, but how much would it cost to have someone replace the dash out of warranty?