Trans is not involved with the fronts.

Any competent mechanic should be able to cope with brake issues.

A cheap tool will only read the PCM, not any of the modules you'd need to read, though many brake issues don't throw codes anyway.

 

Wear on your front tires is very likely from excess negative camber due to worn out upper strut bearings. They collapse with age and cause the front suspension to sag. With the unequal length control arms, the top of the wheel tucks in more than the bottom, and negative camber develops, which wear out the inner edges of the front tires. The stock Jaguar part is junk, so consider the Welsh Enterprise poly mounts instead.

The transmission on the 4.0 cars is the ZF 5HP24. It has its weaknesses, reputedly from the valve body applying excessive fluid pressure to the A-drum and destroying it over time. Lots to read about that. On the cheaper end of things, these transmissions are very sensitive to fluid level, so maybe have that checked out. Lots of 5HP24 experts on this forum...

 

Jack,

The first essential is to determine if this is a brake fault or a transmission fault. The transmission is acting on the rear wheels only in the XK8 so it could lock up entirely and the front wheels should still rotate freely. Scrubbing off the front tyres that drastically suggests something seizing.

Jack up the front of the vehicle to check the wheels rotate freely. The brake pads should be in light contact with the brake discs but the wheels should turn easily by hand and not "grab" at any point. If not, you may have a sticking caliper preventing the brakes from releasing.

Graham

 

 

Good plan on the trans at that mileage. Let us know what you find out about the fronts...

 

Pictures of the worn tires would be interesting to see.

My bet is on the brakes not releasing properly.

 

 

 

 

Jack I wonder if part of the "feeling" was the car's Trac control trying to stop what it considered a skid when out of alignment wheels fought each other.

John

 

 

Sounds to me like nothing more than too much toe out wearing out inside of tires. Also the abs in not active in slow moving conditions like a garage. And that scuffing you heard is exactly that. Scuffing from misalignment. I always like to check toe deflection with a pressore bar aka mercedes alignment and i always set the front tire to almost the most specd toe in never in the middle. When you drive down the road the tolerances in the front suspension in taken up and the tires will toe out more than when stationary. If you set up in the middle then when driving youre toed out, and soemtimes into the red wearing out inside of tires. If you set up with more toe in than in the middle on the alignment machinge as you drive the tires will then be in the middle. As i always say. "you dont drive on to work on the alignment machine you drive on the road , you have to know what will happen with each individual car because of this" thats why i like to check suspension deflection as every car is different. More so as they are older . You should never have more than a 2/32nd tread depth difference between the insde and outside tread block of the tires.

 

 

Old brake hoses sometimes get clogged and let fluid go forward but not back.
Jack up your car and turn wheel by hand. Then open caliper pliug and look for jet spray. After you open it caliper can release brake pads. If it happens, replace brake hoses.

 

Thanks for the input, but was simply 17 year old srings were 2" collapsed and toe in of front wheels was far beyond limits.
Those of us with older, but nice low mileage cars, check your ride height, before you grind down $500 worth of front tires

 

JetJack - Looks like maybe auto correct took over on you (happens to me all the time)? What are srings?

edit - just realized you probably meant springs. If so, are you saying this whole thing was because of sagging / or bad springs? Wow, glad it's OK now.

John