Looking for a new to me XK
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Junior Member
Joined: Jan 2018
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From: Louisiana
Electrical Powertrain module
Hello all. I’ve been looking for several years and am now in a place where I can finally have my very own XK! In my browsing of multiple websites for the perfect car, I’ve noticed on the CARFAX or Autocheck sites that many have been in the shop for “ Battery/charging system checked” or “Engine/powertrain computer/module replaced” or “body electrical wiring repaired”. And some have seen shop time for the same thing. I’ve heard that in the past, Jaguars have had a tarnished reputation in the electrical department, but that those issues are in the past and the newer vehicles are very reliable vehicles. So what gives? And it seems to be the majority of the ones listed, not just a smattering here and there. Could someone shed some light on this?
Last edited by Rharrell; Jul 11, 2018 at 06:59 AM. Reason: Bad description
XK are generally quite bullet proof with a few niggles here and there. Battery voltage is one such niggle. These cars don't like to have voltages less than 12.6V or they begin to throw gremlin issues (like false trouble codes, etc.) If driven on a regular basis it is not a problem but many owners tend to drive them less often so many of us use CTEK battery tenders to prevent the issue. Module issues appear to sometimes be mis-diagnosed as a problem rather than battery voltage. No doubt, just like any other car, modules can fail but they are really few an far between.
Unlike previous versions, the X150 models are more than reliable especially considering the vehicle class they occupy. I'm on my second one and have found it to be just as trouble free as the first.
There is one issue you didn't mention seeing in your research. That is the 5.0L facelift models having repeated water pump failures. I mention that as a point of full disclosure and is something I've yet to experience on mine.
If you are serious about an XK, consider a CPO from a dealership or at least having a dealership perform an indepth inspection prior to purchase. The CPO route will offer a warranty which is never a bad thing.
Unlike previous versions, the X150 models are more than reliable especially considering the vehicle class they occupy. I'm on my second one and have found it to be just as trouble free as the first.
There is one issue you didn't mention seeing in your research. That is the 5.0L facelift models having repeated water pump failures. I mention that as a point of full disclosure and is something I've yet to experience on mine.
If you are serious about an XK, consider a CPO from a dealership or at least having a dealership perform an indepth inspection prior to purchase. The CPO route will offer a warranty which is never a bad thing.
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From: Hastings
In 80's when the world was making some truly atrocious cars in terms of reliability, especially the exotics, struggling Jaguar had its share.
But even then, buying a 17th century estate for some was far more rewarding than its pitfalls.
Its a completely different world now. Everything is modular and outsourced by all companies. And Jaguar more than others.
For instance, Porsche or Mercedes Benz may insist on designing their own transmission, Jaguar does not.
Therefore, Jaguar has fewer unique parts than Audi, BMW, Merc, Porsche and others. So the risk factors are identical if not better than the others.
Moreover, Jaguar took reliability a step further, they supplied their innovation to established parts manufacturers...
As example, they invented an ingenious method of computing and motorizing the cam timing, without using computers, sensors or motors, as the Germans do.
They use oil flow or Torque Actuated Cam. They got Borg Warner (the best in that biz) to build it. And its the same thing in many Ford trucks and cars. (jaguar licenses the tech).
Now, all they ask is the oil flow chambers stay clean- (here is where the Germans win- their owners are not only more likely to follow oem recs but also accept failure and replacement as part of life)
Jaguar owners, not so much, Ford owners, dont even have a voice that registers on the complaints board, because its drowned out by the odds of numbers.
All that to say, when 1 out of 50 XK owners has a VVT problem- from misuse no less- it amazingly resonates round the world.
The Jaguar designed components, such as the direct injection ecosystem, is vastly superior to BMW and Audi, both of whom have been plagued by carbon build up.
So you see, buying an XK is the same as any German counterpart. The trick is to buy one that adhered to Jaguar's maintenance regiment to the letter, which was quite lenient. Do that and you will have a car with far less operating cost than say a comparable Audi.
But even then, buying a 17th century estate for some was far more rewarding than its pitfalls.
Its a completely different world now. Everything is modular and outsourced by all companies. And Jaguar more than others.
For instance, Porsche or Mercedes Benz may insist on designing their own transmission, Jaguar does not.
Therefore, Jaguar has fewer unique parts than Audi, BMW, Merc, Porsche and others. So the risk factors are identical if not better than the others.
Moreover, Jaguar took reliability a step further, they supplied their innovation to established parts manufacturers...
As example, they invented an ingenious method of computing and motorizing the cam timing, without using computers, sensors or motors, as the Germans do.
They use oil flow or Torque Actuated Cam. They got Borg Warner (the best in that biz) to build it. And its the same thing in many Ford trucks and cars. (jaguar licenses the tech).
Now, all they ask is the oil flow chambers stay clean- (here is where the Germans win- their owners are not only more likely to follow oem recs but also accept failure and replacement as part of life)
Jaguar owners, not so much, Ford owners, dont even have a voice that registers on the complaints board, because its drowned out by the odds of numbers.
All that to say, when 1 out of 50 XK owners has a VVT problem- from misuse no less- it amazingly resonates round the world.
The Jaguar designed components, such as the direct injection ecosystem, is vastly superior to BMW and Audi, both of whom have been plagued by carbon build up.
So you see, buying an XK is the same as any German counterpart. The trick is to buy one that adhered to Jaguar's maintenance regiment to the letter, which was quite lenient. Do that and you will have a car with far less operating cost than say a comparable Audi.
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More or less. As Stuart points out, the 5.0 engines are impacted, which fall within that date range. There have been several iterations of the water pump and from what I've read, but have no personal experience, it is resolved with the most recent version.
What model years are you looking?
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XK are generally quite bullet proof with a few niggles here and there. Battery voltage is one such niggle. These cars don't like to have voltages less than 12.6V or they begin to throw gremlin issues (like false trouble codes, etc.) If driven on a regular basis it is not a problem but many owners tend to drive them less often so many of us use CTEK battery tenders to prevent the issue. Module issues appear to sometimes be mis-diagnosed as a problem rather than battery voltage. No doubt, just like any other car, modules can fail but they are really few an far between.
I had some module errors in my XK over the years... I wonder if it was a battery issue? I never replaced the battery, but never had any of the more odd ball battery related issues and used the CTEK when in prolonged storage. Probably should've just swapped batteries as a service item instead of waiting until necessity...
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From: Louisiana
Welcome Rharrel.
More or less. As Stuart points out, the 5.0 engines are impacted, which fall within that date range. There have been several iterations of the water pump and from what I've read, but have no personal experience, it is resolved with the most recent version.
What model years are you looking?
More or less. As Stuart points out, the 5.0 engines are impacted, which fall within that date range. There have been several iterations of the water pump and from what I've read, but have no personal experience, it is resolved with the most recent version.
What model years are you looking?
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Junior Member
Joined: Jan 2018
Posts: 9
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From: Louisiana
CTEK is a must on any fancier car that sits idle IMO. Let engineering goes into preventing battery drain is my hunch. Jag, Lotus, Aston... all suck down battery if not in being driven regularly.
I had some module errors in my XK over the years... I wonder if it was a battery issue? I never replaced the battery, but never had any of the more odd ball battery related issues and used the CTEK when in prolonged storage. Probably should've just swapped batteries as a service item instead of waiting until necessity...
I had some module errors in my XK over the years... I wonder if it was a battery issue? I never replaced the battery, but never had any of the more odd ball battery related issues and used the CTEK when in prolonged storage. Probably should've just swapped batteries as a service item instead of waiting until necessity...
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Joined: Mar 2017
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From: Hagerstown MD
Per the carfax etc, they can be misleading because so often a car ends up at the dealer for oddball problems and the simplest fix is to throw parts at it. I'm not well versed on the newest versions but my '07 //R coupe has been very much a fun car to drive. The body shape of the coupe just plain and simply turns heads and garner comments. As said upthread, they do like a top off charge on occasion and there is a little Lucas floating around so expect the occasional electrical silliness. A topped off battery for an idle cat keeps Lucas at bay. My best recommendation is take a couple hours and browse back 20-30 pages of threads and subscribe to those that are interesting for future reading. I did and it helped me fix things that popped up during my ressurection of a worn out kitty cat.
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From: USA
Well said and I think going forward we refer to this as the ghost of Mr. Lucas.
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From: Los Angeles CA
I'm on my third and probably final X150. Each of the XKs I have owned have been driven extensively in Southern CA and on significant road trips. I had one major problem in the 12 with the control module for the seat heaters/coolers and a water pump replacement on that car. As others have said a CTek or equivalent is a good purchase to back up the battery. In addition, before purchasing I strongly recommend a pre-purchase inspection that meets the CPO standards and then have a Jaguar approved body shop examine the body to verify repairs (if any) were done properly. Good Hunting, good luck and welcome aboard. Oh, and please provide pics when you make your acquisition.
I’ve had my 2014 XKR convertible for a couple years now. It has about 26,000 miles. It’s the finest car I’ve ever owned. I don’t charge the battery in between uses and have had no weird battery-related problems but I usually drive it a couple times a week. The car has sat for a few weeks at a time with no issues. However, the dealer did replace the battery under warranty (without me even complaining about it) last December.
I say this car is reliable though I’ve had a few frustrating issues. The dealer replaced my active exhaust twice under warranty. They said it’s about a $7,000 job! The exhaust squeaked when I turned the engine off. I complained two different times and got two new exhausts. I’m on my third exhaust and I sometimes hear it squeaking again. The last time I complained it was still under warranty but this time the dealer said nothing was wrong. Do I trust the dealer that nothing is wrong? No. But I’m ignoring it now. Second, the defrost stopped blowing through the defrost vents and after three trips to the dealer and finally getting angry and complaining to the service manager after the third trip, they repaired it under warranty. They said they had to take the dash apart. It works fine now. That would have been expensive! Fortunately, they didn’t create any rattles in the dash. And finally, my passenger window frequently wouldn’t always stop at the top when I tried raising it. It would go up and then come back down again. After a few tries, it would go up and stay up. This was also “repaired” under warranty but it still does it from time to time. Hurumph!
As you can tell, my experiences with the dealer are less than stellar. I have no faith in them and would never bring a car to them that wasn’t under warranty. That being said, the issues I have had would have been expensive to fix myself and when my warranty was coming to a close I had to decide whether to keep the car without a warranty, sell it, or buy an extended warranty from the dealer for $4,000 for four more years of coverage. I love the car so much, I decided to buy the warranty.
Would I recommend buying an XK? Yes, absolutely. It is trouble free? No.
I say this car is reliable though I’ve had a few frustrating issues. The dealer replaced my active exhaust twice under warranty. They said it’s about a $7,000 job! The exhaust squeaked when I turned the engine off. I complained two different times and got two new exhausts. I’m on my third exhaust and I sometimes hear it squeaking again. The last time I complained it was still under warranty but this time the dealer said nothing was wrong. Do I trust the dealer that nothing is wrong? No. But I’m ignoring it now. Second, the defrost stopped blowing through the defrost vents and after three trips to the dealer and finally getting angry and complaining to the service manager after the third trip, they repaired it under warranty. They said they had to take the dash apart. It works fine now. That would have been expensive! Fortunately, they didn’t create any rattles in the dash. And finally, my passenger window frequently wouldn’t always stop at the top when I tried raising it. It would go up and then come back down again. After a few tries, it would go up and stay up. This was also “repaired” under warranty but it still does it from time to time. Hurumph!
As you can tell, my experiences with the dealer are less than stellar. I have no faith in them and would never bring a car to them that wasn’t under warranty. That being said, the issues I have had would have been expensive to fix myself and when my warranty was coming to a close I had to decide whether to keep the car without a warranty, sell it, or buy an extended warranty from the dealer for $4,000 for four more years of coverage. I love the car so much, I decided to buy the warranty.
Would I recommend buying an XK? Yes, absolutely. It is trouble free? No.
Last edited by XJDanny; Jul 13, 2018 at 08:21 AM.
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