What the heck. Maybe relating my experience as a novice owner will benefit others.

Bought a '98 XK8 with 68K. Looked and ran great. Within the 1st 6K miles, with all work done by indy shops:

-- Coolant smell and frequent topping up. The PLASTIC thermostat housing was cracked. Mechanic said the repair kit contained about 50 parts. $500.

-- Overheating. Water pump failed. Mechanic said its impellers were PLASTIC and were long gone. $400.

-- Learned the PLASTIC upper timing chain tensioners should be replaced. Good thing, as the old ones were cracked. $800.

Why all the plastic parts in a $75K car?

-- Major front end work - replaced rack & pinion, control arm, ball joint, wheel bearings, maybe more. Lucky that shop let me buy parts online (RockAuto, AutoPartsWarehouse) at about 1/2 the local cost. Even so, roughly $3,500.

-- Passenger seat - replaced motor, control box ("seat module"). $600 with used parts.

-- Tranny flush, filter, and refill. $450.

-- Extra key, $150 (about twice that at dealer).

OK, maybe some of the latter items should be expected at that mileage.

Was it worth? If I needed a daily driver, absolutely not. For my casual 2,500 miles a year, maybe. It's fun to drive, gorgeous and timeless styling, and prob'ly fully depreciated. Nowhere to go but up. Just know what you might be getting into.

Are there any other gremlins we newbies haven't heard about? Thanks for reading.

 

Is your XK8 a convertible? If so, type "green shower hydraulic failure" into the search box, press "search", and buckle up for some scary reading....


I agree with you that Jaguar uses far too much PLASTIC. This is not just an XK8 thing. Our S-Type has suffered from plastic parts failure as well....

Our S-Type has been a very reliable daily driver. My wife is determined to make her recently-acquired XK8 her new daily driver. I am keeping my fingers crossed....

 

I was told by a Werks II tech that even Porsches use plastic tensioners, my Dad says Toyota does too so it's not THAT uncommon. Wow sorry to hear all that needed to be done. It's not a lemon though Jags just require more care than your average car, get a Toyota and be happy!

 

seat module and the 'rack and pinion', meaning the steering rack I assume, don't often fail...you just got lucky. Everything else there is a known, long-term weak point, suspension parts too.

 

Rear view mirror will leak it's fluid out -- $100; rear speakers will turn to crap -- $60-200 and a LOT of work to change; combo light switch MAY crap out leaving you without lights -- $150-250 for the switch, LOTS of time to replace it (gotta remove airbag); heater control valve MAY crap out leaving you with lukearm air in winter --$???, but hard to get at right above tranny and under firewall; keep youor battery strong.

But it's still a gorgeous and pleasant car to drive....one of the best.

 

$5000 in to my car over three years, finally perfect and then it got totalled: not too bad considering the PO put in $20k in four years.

 

You got a decent deal on the tensioners, but all your other 'charges' seem awfully high.

I'd suggest you find a local independent mechanic.

 

Yes, some of those charges are looking like a typo. There's not 50 parts to the plastic thermostat housing, I count 5 including gaskets.

These cars are great for someone who can do their own wrenching. My 97 is my daily driver to the tune of 600 miles a week. There have been a few weeks in the last 2-1/2 years that I had to drive my truck because the Jag was in the (my) garage. I chalk most of that up to learning experiences.

Also for someone wanting one of these, a bit of research goes a long way. I started reading this forum 6 months before I got my XK8. Then found one with the transmission recently rebuilt, timing chains done, 120k miles and less than $9k. There is a learning curve to these cars!

On the other hand, I've never owned a new car. I have to work on all my rigs, but, that's my sport. (what my wife thinks).

And certainly, YMMV (your mileage may vary),
Mike

 

Oh....forgot one to keep an eye on: the coolant reservoir. They crack over time, so I'd start looking for a "cheap" replacement to keep on the shelf. I was able to epoxy mine, but most of them need to be replacedn at some point. Jag wants tons of $$$ for them, but if you can grab one up at a wrecking yard you should do it. Try to have your cap tested periodically. When the cap goes bad (not the one on the tower, the one on the tank) it will allow pressure to build and blow everything from lines to the tank. These Jags seem to make a boatload of pressure in the cooling system.

And, keep your throttle body clean.

 

Good remarks.

It really pays to do some research so you know what to look for and what questions to ask.

One of the best bargains, when you can find one, is an "enthusiast owned" car that has been treated to all the upgrades and all the usual failures have been already fixed....with records to prove it.

I say "bargain" because, although the asking price will probably be higher, you'll probaby save money in the long run....and, trust me, the is likely taking a much bigger loss.

Cheers
DD

 

Amen. Whoever gets mine when I find the '03 I want will pay a little more than for some "mystery" car, but they will know that all the necessary stuff is done and done right.

 

So why did you buy it in the first place?
Did you expect it to cost you nothing?

Just buy a toyota if runningcosts are your thing

 

My friend drives a butt ugly BMW 3 series of about the same age as my XK8 and he has the same level of troubles, just in different areas.. "Don't lower the passenger window, it runs off the track; if it won't shift out of 5th gear at a stoplight turn it off, set the parking brake, wait 60 seconds and restart; that oil smell is from the leaking cam cover, etc., etc."

For perspective, hop on the Mercedes SL500 site and see what REAL problems look like.

Yes, the Jag is a handful - I'm working on mine today - but probably not out of line for a 12 year old car approaching 100,000 miles.

 

Yep 3 things that kill all cars
1)miles
2)time
3)miles and time
they should use metal in everything on the cars. That way theyde weigh 8000pounds, accelerate and brake like a tank. Fuel mileage??? What fuel mileage. Cost? Much more expensive to produce parts in metal than plastic parts soooo$75k new would be more like $100k or whatever it might be it would be more....

 

I think it is just that cars in this category are going to have repairs that are more expensive than more mainstream vehicles. My 7 years of BMW ownership were certainly no walk in the park and is the main reason that I will not seriously consider another one.

Doug

 

I think some of you are replying as though Hawkeye was complaining. I, for one, didn't take his post that way. I think he was just passing along his experience.

<shrug>


Cheers
DD

 

Im not taking it as complaining, i take it as passing on personal experiances, for which i did the same

 

Yup, expensive, high-end cars are expensive to repair. Some grumble but I can't imagine anyone actually expecting otherwise.

Any car will eventually need repairs.

Used cars almost always need repairs...even "good" used cars.

Jags, BMWs, Corvettes, luxury cars, sports cars, etc have never had a reputation for inexpensive repairs.

I could never afford to run a Jag without doing my own repairs.

Cheers
DD

 

And that is exqctle why once expensive cars are inexpensive to purchase.
Anyone can buy a Jaguar, but can they pay for it?

 

I've never had a new car or a car with a warranty of any kind.

I always came in with the expectation that I'd have to spend money on maintenance and repairs. I researched every car beforehand and determined if the parts costs and worst case situations (ie - need a new block) were acceptable. That's why I didn't buy the SL55 or CL600 I looked at and lust over; the risk of buying a AMG SC'ed V8 or AMG TT V12 for $10-20k USED or a $1500 ABC pump, or expensive roof cylinders just didn't seem worth it for me.

I've been extremely happy with the low maintenance and repair parts costs for my car. $250 for both fuel pumps and wires; $300 for upper tensioner parts; $70 O2 sensors; $350 for front end suspension rebuild(ball joints, bushings, bearings, tie rod ends) with top notch Moog & Timken parts, etc. I spent more for equivalent parts for a 1998 Toyota Camry 4 Cyl Auto car than on my XKR. So far, this is the favorite of all the cars I've ever owned; reliable, quick, luxurious and inexpensive to operate.