Jag Newbie
 

Hello everyone ...Starting tomorrow, I'll be the proud owner of a 2001 XK8 convertible (118,000 mi.) ...light metallic gold/tan with oatmeal interior and brown top...gorgeous car ! Total newbie here to the Jag world as I've been a Vette guy for the last fifty years so I am a bit afraid of what I'll be getting into ? I know my way around a tool box somewhat but have heard the old stories of owning a Jaguar....


anyway, the car has been owned for the last nine years by a guy who has a
real nice auto repair shop and is quite confident in it's mechanical condition but I'm just curious as to what gremlins, if any ? to look for before I take the plunge...The Corvette forum has been a real life line over the years as I'm sure this site will be too...

Just drive it. Any problems, the car will tell you.


I will star out by saying, change the oil/filter, change air filter,have Jaguar change the tranny filter, change the rear end oil(they suck it out with a tube, then add new).

That's that.

Welcome Eloianjag,
Check out the stickies in the XK8/XKR section, there is a ton of information.
cooling system issues and cam chain tensioners are the most common problems. Don't worry about the old stories, with a bit a maintenance and pro active repair they can be a joy to own and drive. Head over to the new member area and introduce yourself. Then change the labels on your tool box, they are spanners now, not wrenches.

Welcome to the forum.

I also have an '01 XK8 convertible with 119k miles. It is my daily driver and very reliable. Routine maintenance plus the occasional fix you would expect on a any car of this age.

The more you drive it, the better it will behave has been my experience. It doesn't like sitting in the garage.

Welcome to the forum! I, too, am a graduate of the Corvette Forums. I sold my C5 last year, but only after countless fixes, thanks to the guidance of the forum. In the two weeks since I've owned my XK8, it's been the exact same situation: Countless fixes, all thanks to the guidance and expertise on this forum.

Welcome to the forum! Enjoy your XK

Juke

Welcome to the forum. Please visit the new member area when you have time and introduce yourself there:

New Member Area - Intro a MUST - Jaguar Forums - Jaguar Enthusiasts Forum

Took over ownership of the jag this morning...spent the day getting to know one another....It's a real nice car for it's age and mileage/ 2001, 118,000 mi. the only two big issues with the car are (1) passenger's side seat doesn't work (2) CD changer not working I haven't really looked into either problem at this point as I'm still enjoying the rest of the car...

Congrats! Hoping you get many years of enjoyment out of her.

+1 on making sure the cam chain tensioners have been changed to the third generation.. if not, given the mileage of the car, that should be your number one priority. Plenty of information here on getting it done

I checked my build date and engine codes. Both confirmed a May 2002 build date. Am I safe from the crappy plastic tensioners?

Well, the answer is kind of. There are 3 generations of tensioners used in the X100. The first, the most vulnerable, was used from 1997-2000. Specifically, cars with VINs from 001001-A24195 have the first generation tensioners. These are almost guaranteed to fail, and many were replaced under warranty.

The second generation tensioners were fitted to the remainder of the 4.0L cars from 2000-2003 (AKA your car). While they're a better design, they're still (crappy) plastic.

So, to be completely safe, it's recommended that ALL first and second generation plastic tensioners be upgraded to the third generation metal tensioners that were introduced with the 4.2L in 2005.

Probably not the news you were hoping for..

See: Jaguar V8 Secondary Tensioners - Preventive Replacement

Some may disagree and say that the the second generation are safe. I'm not a mechanic by any means, so I'm only passing along what I've been told or researched myself.

Thanks. It's strange that only the 2nd Gen tensioners (which I have) were replaced under warranty, and only if signs of failure were apparent. Given the amount of money I'm into it, I'm gonna roll the dice, baby!

I have replaced gen2 secondaries on a couple of cars and observed cracks. The big difference with them is that the springs keep the chain from rattling when they are about to fail, so they are probably less likely to skip a tooth until final failure.

If your engine was built in 02 you are probably using metal body tensioners. But, if it were my car, I would still pull a valve cover and check.

If you have the 2nd tensioners made out of plastic they will fail and you will have to pull the head on the failed side and fix the bent valves. I did mine at 42K miles and the cracks were already starting. Only the 4.2L and some very late 4.0L engines came out with the 3rd generation.