My 1997 XK8 just started showing "coolant low" on the dash ... and I have smelled coolant a bit lately, after some long drives ... and I just took the car over 70,000 miles this morning. I think it's time for the 60,000 mile service (I bought it at 63,000), since I have no service history on the vehicle and no evidence that the service was ever done ... and I guess I should replace the thermostat, housing, and hoses all at the same time too.

 

Gaudin says they only sell the clamps with the hoses even though they are listed separately.

 

Yes, and pressure test the system and until you do top up the system with some distilled water. Pull over if you get a low coolant warning again and keep it topped up. Do not mess with low coolant. If it is too low you will not get an overheat warning and can ruin your engine.

 

Gaudin seems to be WAY high as far as radiator hoses, the upper hose is 38 and the lower hose is a whopping 104. You can get both for about 20 bucks from rockauto. For the clamps I used the screw on type you get at the autoparts store.

 

Good tip, but Gaudin is one of the very rare Jaguar dealers that sells to the public below list for OEM parts. Do not penalize them for if Jaguar's prices are over inflated.

We should support them! (I am not affiliated, but appreciate their service to the community.)

 

I got the screw type clips from OReilly as suggested - they work fine especially for the lower hose where I didn't want to mess with the Norma clips. The hoses from jagbits have a fat id - hard to get them on the radiator. I tried various things including leaving it out the sun to get it to expand a little.

Anyone come up with a solution for the thicker hoses?
Thanks

 

I use a heat gun. It takes less than a minute at the low setting to soften the hose enough to push it on.

 

Thanks - will get one at harbor tools.

 

I always use a little WD40 when fitting hoses,inside and out, makes them slide on easily and also helps position the clips.