As the title says, I am considering purchasing a 2007-2008, possibly up to 2011 XKR. I have always heard horror stories of Jaguar reliability and maintenance issues. My "initial" research indicates that the 2007-2008-2009 models were actually quite solid and reliable. However, the same research says that starting with the 2011 cars, there was a resurgence of electrical issues as under Tata, they had crammed in a lot of new technology and had not gotten it to work as it should. I would prefer a later model, but would be fine with a 200708 car. My key question then, is, are these cars (and feel free to specify periods or model years) at least reasonably reliable, and also acceptably affordable to maintain?

I would appreciate your expertise, perspective and experiences in regard of the above. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated. This is likely the last truly desirable car that I will purchase. I need to get it right.

The car would be driven once or twice a week, in the seven months that we have acceptable weather where I live. It would be utilized for car events, runs with the local Porsche club whose president is a close friend, and just grand touring in the country, or for an occasional weekend.

John

 

Any known issues or other problems to look out for in buying one of these would also be extremely helpful. Thanks.

John

 

The 2007-2009 4.2 models are solid. The newer 5.0 models have much more power and style to them, but there is a chance that you may need a water pump, and possibly injector replacement. The electronics aren't made by TATA, TATA is just the owners. Later models of JLR have Indian influence, but not these.
The X150s are voltage intolerant somewhat and always require a battery in good condition. Keep it charged or new and you'll have very few problems.
The leather dash has a tendency to curl a bit if the car is kept in sun, but otherwise everything is great.

I'd buy several more if I could because these vehicles are brilliant.

 

John,

Bottom line is that you're considering buying a used car that is from 11 to 15 years old. It's a crapshoot and you can't tell a book by its cover. Time causes rubber parts (tires, hoses, bushings, belts, etc.) to dry out and fail, regardless of mileage. You can't rely on CarFax to buy a car because not every accident is reported to them. But you can rely on CarFax to not buy a car.

Before you buy "the one", pay a Jaguar dealer to do a Pre-Purchase Inspection using the Jaguar Certified Pre-Owned checklist. The cost is around $300, and you'll get a written report of potential problem areas and an estimate of each repair cost. You can use that PPI to negotiate a lower price from the seller, which more than pays for the PPI. You should also get a PPI from a Jaguar authorized body shop for paint and body repairs. Our cars are all aluminum - body and chassis, and you don't want one with improper repairs.

Good luck with your search!

Stuart

 

+1 on Carfax.

Both of my XKRs have complete repaints. They’re done extremely well, but a close inspection with a lift will reveal it has been done. Both have perfect carfax records. It’s only an exclusionary tool, not an affirmative one.

Nothing replaces getting in and looking at crap. Get it on a lift. Look at all the fluids. Check EVERYTHING you can. Every XK is old enough that while the 07-09 are more reliable than the 5L cars, the example is more important than the breed. Buy a no excuse car, even DIYing, you often don’t save enough and sometimes ANY money over buying a mint car to start.

If I replace my 07 in a few years due to mileage (bought with 50k, has 76k, will likely sell at 90k), I’d look for a nice early X150 portfolio with the b&w audio, portfolio wheels and upgraded alcon brakes. All nice upgrades for not really a big premium on the used market. Not that the Sentas, Alpine System and base R brakes aren’t good; just hey, if the price is correct, get a little better car is nice!

 

My 2010 5.0L has been really problem free at 107K miles on it. However, at this age there are a number of common (but not necessarily cheap) things:
- Complete fluid/filter swap. Unless it's documented as having been done, I'd do everything including the e-diff, transmisson and supercharger oil
- The rubber boots on the ball joints, end links and tie rods will be perished. Jaguar used a substandard 'rubber'. There's a good thread on here about how to replace the boots without replacing the entire part, assuming the joints are still good
- If you get a 5.0L, unless the water pump has been done already (many have at this point), expect to do it at some point
- Lots of plastic coolant lines that get brittle, some easier to access than others. If you're doing the water pump it's a good time to refresh all of them. This is true of both the 4.2L and the 5.0L cars
- Some 5.0L folks have had injectors go bad, this one seems more hit/miss
-If you're looking at convertibles, the rear window has a tendency to separate from the top fabric. There are some DIY fixes possible depending on the extent.

Those are the most common ones that come to mind for me, though I might have missed some. It's a fairly short list for a 10-15 year old high performance car, and as I said, with steady maintenance mine has been wonderful.

 

Really appreciate the feedback. I've always loved the look of these cars, and how can anyone go wrong with a Jaguar interior?
I've been pondering the best option for a true GT car, with both luxury, and performance and if they are reasonably reliable, as you, and my
research to date is telling me, this is a LOT of car for the money.

I ran into comments from two reviews which caused me some concern about say, the 2011-2012 XKR's, indicating some ongoing electrical issues
causing check engine lights caused by bad sensors, etc. , etc. Perhaps those issues wouldn't have happened with a fresh, fully charged battery, as has been noted?

John

 

Also, obviously lower mileage is always the best. But up to what point, in terms of miles on the car, would you consider buying one? On a number of other cars, I already know the rules in this regard, but not with Jaguars, based on their expected longevity. Thanks.

John

 

The 4.2L engine is, in my experience (naturally aspirated XJ), quite bullet-proof
I chose the NA 5L XK because the performance is nearly equal to the supercharged 4.2L.
The 5L engine was, until recently, manufactured in a UK Ford engine plant. I currently have a 2010 XK with about 135K miles, no engine related mechanical issues.
Although there were two face-lifts and different engines, the XK/R dependability did not change significantly from 2007 through 2015 (US model years),
Dependability, as with any used car, will largely depend on the previous use, maintenance and number of miles.
If you are planning to do your own maintenance/repair, possibly restoration, I would recommend placing an emphasis on a vehicle with no evidence of body damage and excellent interior. Look for dash leather shrinkage, also driver seat condition and road-salt related corrosion.
If you are not inclined to DIY, consider the most well preserved/best maintained example that your budget allows.
It is possible for the dealer software (IDS/SDD) to identify active and historical trouble codes, so a pre-purchase inspection can be very informative.
In my opinion, the XK is generally a dependable vehicle, unless it was "driven hard and put up wet".
Good luck in your search, let us know how you make out.

PS: why did you not consider the 2012-15 face lift?

Best regards,
Bill



 

I agree with Bill's comments, I also owned, briefly, a 2007 XK with the NA 4.2....At least as reliable as the 5.0L, probably better, but the power in the 5.0L is a big upgrade and worth any extra maintenance IMO. My car already had relatively high mileage on it when I bought it; it was a Florida car, and the previous owner was using it to run between his winter home in the Florida Keys to his summer home here in Toronto. So lots of time on the highway. Body and interior were in very good shape and not at all reflective of the mileage, so I took a chance on it and 3 years later I couldn't be happier.

 

Have a 07 xkr vert for 3 years now and great car, only issue is I have a P0430 which indicates cat is going but other than that runs great. would drive it anywhere

 

Any thoughts on the 2011 Jaguar XKR175 75th Anniversary Limited Edition?

 

Thanks very much for all of your useful commentary, Bill. Much appreciated. If the 2012-2015 cars are also reliable, I would certainly not rule them out. I simply have not come across them. Any changes of significance from earlier?

 

Thanks again for everyone's continuing thoughts, experiences and remarks. As an additional follow-up. assuming both cars were in excellent condition, as a long term purchase, would you recommend a 25k mile 2008 XKR, or a 2011 Jaguar XKR175 75th Anniversary Limited Edition with 50k miles? The 2008 is available for roughly $5k less.

 

(much) higher price for not much more, a raised speed limit that you'll probably never see anyway, and a few other trinkets.

The front sheet metal and headlights are much sleeker and look more modern, and they have sticky interior buttons that will need to be cleaned off. Oh, and they are newer.

 

I had two XKR convertibles (4.2) in the past; no problems at all - 100,000km with each of them.
Then changed to Porsche since I did not like the F Type, went for 991 Turbo Convertible.

Towards the end of last year, after seven years and 120,000km with the Porsche, returned to Jag taking the risk on a used XKR (2007)…
… this should tell you enough w.r.t. your question.

Btw, don’t try to compete with the Porsches, this could be hugely frustrating. Technically speaking, the 991s and 992s are lightyears ahead of the XKRs. But where on earth can you use the performance without risking to be put in jail when caught? You just need to be aware that these are really two very different kinds of sports car.

Good luck…

 

For the last 8 1/2 years, I've had the privilege of having a 5.0L 2010 XKR as my daily driver. I will pass 200,000 miles on her sometime next month. As Cee Jay mentioned earlier, essentially the only issues I've had are stuck fuel injectors (twice) and leaking water pumps, both fairly well known issues on the 5.0L cars. Other than that it has been very reliable, very enjoyable, and even after so much mileage, an absolute pleasure to drive every day. Obviously, with 200,000 miles on her, this is not a babied car. I have tracked it dozens of times, it was pulleyed and tuned right after I bought it, and it just soldiers on.

A word of caution, these cars do not like batteries that are not fully charged as you will get all sorts of crazy warnings when voltage drops, these engines do not like to be low on oil (does any engine?) or coolant, so checking levels frequently has to become part of your regimen. And one other thing to consider, Jaguar is no longer providing all of the parts for these cars, so it can be challenging finding some things. I have a faulty bluetooth module that not only prevents me some of the time from using bluetooth phone calling, but also causes my screen to turn on and off (I have unplugged the module to see what affect it has and the screen goes dark). I have looked for both new and used modules to no avail over the past couple of months.

On the plus side, the performance of the 5.0L supercharged engine is extremely good, and my ZF tranny has had its fluid changed twice and no other service in 195,000 miles, and still shifts crisply and without hesitation. Name another 600hp car that can make that boast.

Obviously, try and get a car that has a service history showing timely and frequent oil changes which is more important than mileage.

 

John,
Having re-read your original post, I offer the following:
The "horror stories of Jaguar reliability and maintenance issues" were generally resolved under Ford ownership. Gone are the Lucas gremlins.
Ford invested very significant modern electrical/electronic engineering know-how. However, the cars are somewhat intolerant of low battery voltage.
Tata did not "cram a lot of technology" into the XK/R. To the contrary, it appears that they took a hands-off approach.
The 2012 XK/R gained a back-up camera but Blind Spot Monitoring, available much earlier on the XF, was never added to the XK/R.
Other changes to the 2012-15 models (excluding XKRS) are styling related.
Through the years, engines changed (4.2L/5L) but the bullet-proof ZF 6HP28 remained.
Differential: electronic locking (XKR), open (XK) remained. Same ratio too.
Electronic features are nearly unchanged through the years with improved auxiliary input in 2009(?)
Nearly all electronic control modules have multiple updates that improve function and eliminate problems.
Failure to know/update may be the source of some consumer complaints.
All US models have Navigation that is outdated as of 2014/15. No further updates available.
Active (radar) cruise control and heated windshield are other, somewhat rare, options.

So where do you start your search? Consider:
1. Coupe or convertible?
2. XK or XKR?
3. Automatic or Manual transmission ... (just kidding!)
4. Preferences for interior/exterior colors and options
You should be aware that special editions included interior colors (navy and truffle) not otherwise available.
I would expect desirable examples of special editions to fetch a premium.
As previously stated, rubber boots on suspension components are weak (dissolved by ozone exposure) and may contribute to premature component failure if not replaced.

Stating the obvious:
Beyond that, sharpen your used car buying skills, looking for original or repaint, body panel fit. ("Mind the Gap")
At this point, minor repair of scrapes and dings may not be off-putting but major damage/rebuilt should command a lower re-sale value.

Final thoughts:
New replacement parts, in a few instances, are NLA. Tata depends on suppliers, and both must remain economically viable to continue to supply replacements.
That said, most functional parts are shared with Ford, Volvo and BMW and/or are available from aftermarket suppliers.

I do not consider reliability to be a problem for a properly maintained (or reconstructed) XK/R. But I'm an avid fan and work on my XK(s) as a hobby.

If you are not a DIYer, find the most pristine example available.
Keep us posted.

best regards,
Bill

PS: OEM equivalent (2012+) back-up camera is possible on earlier XK.

 

Bill, once again, thank you very much for taking the time to provide such complete and valuable info. I cannot tell you how much it is appreciated. My used car purchasing skills are fairly well honed, but within individual brands, especially ones such as Jaguar, it's important to know the key things to look for. Your help has been more than I could ask.

John