I'm looking for advice and answers. My 2001 XK8 has 40,000 miles on the odometer and still looks good, so I'm planning on keeping it, but I'm persuaded from stories and comments here on the forum that I should get the timing chain tensioners and slides changed/upgraded. I don't have the tools or confidence to do the job myself, but my checkbook is flush so I'll be taking it to my local northern Virginia Jag dealer.

Can I save a few bucks in labor costs by having the thermostat housing upgraded at the same time? What about the water pump? Can I save bucks on parts by getting some from sources other than the dealer? Except for a coolant leak, nothing is broken yet. I'm just anticipating the common faults.

Any guidance is appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

The tensioners are indeed a great preventative maintenance item to take care of. While you might think that there might be some common labor on the items you mention, the only real one is the coolant replacement.

Parts are available on-line for sometimes half of dealer parts counter prices. The tensioners especially are available for a lot less as a Ford part. The water pump is the one inexpensive part on the Jaguar principally because I suspect it started off life as a Ford part. An independent shop labor rate is going to be 2/3rd of a dealer.

With all that said your most cost effective path is an independent shop rather than a Jaguar dealer. A dealer is not going to be receptive to parts brought in where that might be negotiable at an indy.

Glad you are able to professionally support your car. Many of us just enjoy working on ours.

 

I enjoy working on mine, too. A few months ago I installed the pressure relief valve for the convertible top hydraulic pump. I just don't want to screw up something as critical as timing chains which can ruin an engine. It is a thin line between confidence and foolishness.

 

The tensioners are very easy. Taking the valve covers off is the hard part.

 

OK, so I got almost everything I wanted done except for replacing the thermostat cover. The dealer didn't have an alloy one that worked. I think they had previously tried using the ones that needed to be ground down. What about the kits from Welsh Enterprises? Do they fit a normally aspirated 4.0 without having to be modified?

 

I put in a set from Walsk and they went in with no problems. I have a 2000 XK8

 

Do you mean Welsh?

 

Walsk, Welsh, Either one will work. Spelling in not my strong point, sorry.

 

I came across these two videos the other day. They show how to change the tensioners on a 1998 XJR. I think the XJR engine is the same as the XKR engine, but one of the other members will have to verify that. I don't know much about the XJs. The two videos make it seem very doable as long as you have the right tools.

How to change the timing chain tensioners part 1

How to change the timing chain tensioners part 2

 

I have not seen the upgrade date when they switched to metal tensioners. Also, do the metal tensioners ever require changing, or have they not been in use long enough to provide that info?

 

Conversion to metal tensioners occurred in August 2001. Further details available in the FAQ above under 'tensioners'

 

Please excuse my ignorance, but I do not understand the meaning of " the FAQ above under "tensioners"".

 

If you hit the "back" button and go back to the XK8 and XKR forum you'll see a bunch of "sticky" threads at the top of the page. One of those threads is a giant list of frequently asked questions (FAQs). Just search the thread by hitting the F3 button and enter your search term in the little box.