I usually don't put a lot of weight in dealer junk mail, but when I did some checking on what's involved in the 70k service for an XK8, I figured it might be worth paying attention to.

Still, I am estimating as to what actually goes into the service, as I can't find a formal list of what officially goes into a 70K service. Anybody got one? What do dealers usually charge for this?


Oh, and here are some horror stories about people alleging timing chain (not just tensioner) failure. There are about a dozen stories from other owners of early XK8s on the responses page. I don't suppose any type of routine service can prevent this from happening, but it sure is frightening:

http://thevenom.net/jaguar/index.htm

 

Never heard of a 70k service.

 

Interesting. I called the shop today to ask what was done, and he said he'd get back to me because he didn't have access to the stats for a 1997 model year XK8. So he called me back ten minutes later and explained the usual padded service dealer package which included among other things: inspect wipers (bull$hit), inspect hoses (more bull$hit), rotate tires (oh please, I can do this in my sleep), oil & filter (ditto) and changing the spark plugs.

The serpentine belt is not replaced unless inspection reveals problems, so the only semi-serious item on his list was the plugs, which I've recently learned are not terribly hard to change. I went out and bought a set of Bosch Platinum +4 plugs and will get started on that tomorrow. For fifty bucks and two hours of my time, it beats the dealer price of $309 for that same job.

The price of the total '70k service' would be closer to $700 bucks with all the other padding. I suppose for someone who knows absolutely nothing about cars, it may be worth it to have someone do all these things, but anybody with a modicum of experience or willingness to learn should not have to fork over that much money. Thanks for the heads up!

On another note, they did agree to do a transmission filter replacement and fluid top-up for $292. This price does not include a complete flush, but so long as the filter is changed I'm happy. People have told me transmission flushes are not always a hot idea anyway and may actually make things worse.

 

Welcome to the wonderful world of Jaguar!

I know that the dealers have to make a profit and there are many owners out there that need the comfort and convenience of dealer service. The dealer - owner clients just do not read this forum.

On the transmission filter; the written Jaguar procedure call for draining the ATF into a clean container and REUSING it.

Let us know how it works out.