My last deal fell apart, when the owner decided to keep his car..... So, I am looking at another 2000 XK8 with 98,000 miles... This one has extensive repair records from the dealer which showed up on the Car Fax... There were 11 service records before 25,000 miles.. and a bunch more up to about 85k, when the current owner bought it. A total of 26 service records on this car.

The earlier repair records show "differential overhaul" and "internal transmission repair" at 45,000 miles... Intake manifolds replaced at 53,000, and multiple "engine/powertrain/computer module" checks a couple of times a year.. I also counted six throttle body cleanings.. There were a few electrical items noted and two re-installs of the CD player before 16,000 miles.. Weird, huh

Hey, it's great to have service records, but I also wonder if this car might be a bit of a lemon after so many service trips to the dealer...Are too many service calls a bad thing in this case?

Despite all of the records, the one thing that is missing in the records is any mention of timing chain update.

 

Throttle body cleanings could indicate a misdiagnosed TPS issue and transmissions are a known potential issue. Differential repair could be something as simple as a leaking pinion seal that they examined further. It is tough to say whether it is a bad to have these reports because at least you know what has been done. I would look over it thoroughly and go from there.

 

I think that just comes with the territory on these. My '97 XK8 during its warranty period of 60k miles had power steering pump, water pump, thermostat, VVT sensor, front rotors, calipers and pads and about 20 little things like switches, bulbs, trim pieces etc. And at 57k miles just before the warranty ended the right side tensioner failed and took out 2 exhaust valves. That was in Feb 2002 so I am not sure if they used the 2rd gen metal tensioners or not so I still need to open it up and see.

I'm guessing most of these have had scary repairs done to them early on.


Dave

 

Sort of my thoughts when I bought my lemon. I wanted to see repairs because that might mean somebody was paying attention. Nevertheless, there are so many complicated systems involved anything can and will happen.