Hi. I have just taken delivery of a 2000 Coupewith 80K miles on it. This has been little used over the last few years, and virtually stationary for about 4 months. I am having a full service done , but wondered if it would be advisable to get them to give the engine and radiator a good flush-out. Having had a waterway block with disasterous results on an Aston Martin some years ago, I am somewhat aware of possible repeats! Or are we likely to cause more problems than we cure?
Any thoughts or advice would be much appreciated.

 

Hello, first and foremost have you checked if the secondary tensioners have been changed to the latest aluminium ones? If they have not been changed, at 80k miles you are really pushing your luck. Check the history and if nothing there, lift a cam cover ( r/h side is easiest ) and look for the dreaded reddish plastic tensioners. Loads of threads on this subject, sorry but its a top priority.
Good luck.
Arty

 

I always do an engine oil and coolant change on a new (to me) vehicle as soon as possible. The reason is that, regardless of service history, I don't know exactly what oil is in it or the concentration and age of the coolant. If the engine oil is especially dirty, a further oil and filter change after a few hundred miles is a good plan.

If your memories of blocked waterways refer to the AM six cylinder engine up to the era of the first DBS, the main reason for blockage in those days was the recommended use of Bars leaks (also recommended by Jaguar at the time). When my DB5 engine was rebuilt the first time as 35K miles, we had to steam the solidified Bars leaks off the cylinder block water jackets after pulling the wet liners. Both manufacturer recommendations and coolant specifications have come a long way since those days!

The cooling system on the XK8 does have known issues mainly due to the use of plastic components. The Thermostat Tower and Expansion tank are frequent failures but you should examine the hoses carefully. Rubber deteriorates with time and low use doesn't mean longer life.

Graham

 

+1 on all the advice above.

Add checking the battery condition to your list. After sitting for so long the charge will be down and these cats hate low voltage. You will get all kinds of seemingly unrelated faults.

And congrats on the new ride!

 

Many thanks, Graham - and you were correct - it was one of the last 6-cylinder DBS'!
Is the anything you don't know??!!