I have researched enough to know that one of the gremlins with these cars is the hydraulics having to do with the convertible top. I have had the car about 6 weeks now and have had the top up and down a number of times, always watching for the dreaded green gunk.

The top had been down for a few days and I put it up this morningno problem. However, a several hours later I noticed one green drop of oil on the console. It came from the little meshlike grill thing between the map lights near the rear view mirror. I assume it is a leak from one of the hoses that goes to the latch for the top. Since I have the Select Edition warranty, I assume this is covered but I was wondering if this was a relatively quick fix by the dealer that I can wait for? The prime reason I am interested in timing is that I would like to get this fixed without the wife knowing there was a problem (trying to avoid a bunch of I-told-you-sos if you get my drift).

Doug

 

YES YOU NEED NEW LINES, AND NO YOU CANT WAIT UNLESS YOU WANT TO WAIT ALL DAY, YOU HAVE TO TAKE OUT THE HEAR RAIL AND HALF THE INTERIOR TO REPLACE THE LINES. BUT THERES A BULLETIN OUT THAT JAG WANTS THE LINES SPLICED, I WONT DO IT AS THERE ARE TOO MANY RETURN FAULIRES FROM THE REPAIR, JUST MAKE SURE THEY DO BOTH LINES FRONT TO REAR

 

I am in phone conversations now with the local Jag dealer and they were a bit dodgy on whether this would be covered under SE since the repair is to hoses and hoses are one of the things not covered. I pointed out that I thought there was a TSB on this issue since it is known to be so prevalent and he thinks there might be and will call back.

Is there any way of playing hardball with Jag if they give me a problem?

Doug


UPDATE

Just got a call back from the service advisor and it looks sort of like a Catch22 situation. Apparently, there is a repair kit for this issue and that would be covered. However, the repair kit is NOT available so he is trying to get the okay from the Select Edition folks for complete hose replacement (he says that is better than the repair anyway). Do any others out there have experience dealing with Jaguar on this issue?

Doug

 

Go to my web page and select the roof hose repair. I hope it helps.

 

I saw that page some time ago. In my younger days maybe but now (at 58) I think I would rather stick pins in my eyes than tackle that job.

Doug

 

Well you are correct! I was 60 when I took on this project. I thought my information might give you an idea on what is involved. I would suggest replacing the entire hose. I have heard that many replacements short hoses leaked again. I do not know if it was workmanship or the connection at the old hose. What I did notice when replacing mine was that the old hose felt stiff and brittle. My failure was the hose connection to the fitting that connected to the latch. I often wondered if a short 2 – 4 inch splice hose to replace the one that is leaking at the latch would work? On the flip side how many times will Jaguar or warranty replace the hoses (TSB) when the short hose kit leaks again? Well good luck with what ever you decide to do. Keep a towel handy for when it goes completely.

 

As for the wife, say it's a recent 'recall issue', or as it simply states, a Technical Service Bulletin issue that the previous owner did not have take care of. Hopefully, you'll get the deer in the headlights look and be good to go... and if it is covered under Select, they give you a nice rental car while yours is being worked on. No inconvenience at all to you - one thing I like about Jag and their good service guys. They take care of good customers. good luck doug.

PS, don't work the top any more, i'd hate for you to get the bulk of the fluid on the next cycle. I think its calling for rain the next week or so doug...

 

It's really mindboggling that a component that has a fluid under pressure would be so poorly designed. How much would it have cost to either put in decent hoses or design the system in such a way that there were intermediate fittings so that a piece of hose could be replaced rather than the entire hose.

H20Boy: your approach is what I was thinking of but my cover is blown if there ends up being a substantial charge. As I mentioned, it looks like the service advisor is trying to get this covered but I may make my own call to Jaguar Customer Service in New Jersey and try and talk my way into this being covered. The car is only a couple of months out of the 48 month original warranty so maybe that could be a consideration. If it is covered I'll just tell the wife that there is a complimentary improvement that Jaguar wants to install.

Doug

 

My 2000 XK8 had the hoses replaced under the Select Edition warranty. They did the complete hoses but that may have been before the splice kit was introduced. Then I did the splice kit repair 4 years later. The real reason for the splice kit was to save labor hours for warranty repairs. If you are paying I would suggest that you are going to get the full job at about $1300. The 2002 car had the splice kit installed under the original warranty. My experience through 3 repairs on two cars is that the hoses are good for 4 years.

The kit is not difficult to install and I had no problem with leaks. Took 3 hours the first time; could do it in under 2 now. There was a very noticeable difference in the hardness of the plastic hoses at the top end verses the fuse panel splice point. Themost difficultpart is getting the bright strip off the sill plate without damaging it

 

and dealer replaced part or repair is warrantied for 12months unlimited miles. and select does cover, but most ext warranty companies do not since its considered a hose and a wearable item(sorry I dont make the rules), if you pull the carpet out from under the pedal and console you dont have to remove the sill plate and damage, therfore having to buy another sill badge when running the lines underneath

 

My question is what if it starts leaking after the top has been put down. Can it be put back up manually if the top won't work? IF it gets a full blown leak how much fluid can one expect to see??

 

AS LONG AS ITS LEAKING AND THER LINE DOESNT COMPLETELY BLOW OFF YOU CAN PUT IT BAck up under power, and keep a towel handy for the additional oil thatll come out. if the line blows off completely(seldom) you can still raise and lock manually.

 

So what did you need to say/do to have the Select Edition warranty cover this repair since hoses are explicitly excepted from the coverage? Does it really end up being at the discretion of the dealer or Jaguar? Also, am I correct in concluding that the dealer did the repairs one time and you did the repair yourself another?

Thanks,

Doug

 

Once the top is back up will it keep leaking or stop?

 

IT DEPENDS ON IF THEY EMAIL JAGUAR TO GET IT APPROVED ON SELECT, I LOOKED AT THE LATEST SELECT APPROVAL LIST AND ITS NOT LISTED SEPERATLY, BUT THE BULLETIN FOR LINE REPAIR IS...JTB00029, IF THE KIT IS NOT AVAIL THEY CAN PROBOBLY GET IT COVERED FOR COMPLETE LINE REPLACEMENT

 

Thanks for the info. By the way, where did you find the number for the repair bulletin and what significance is the bulletin compared with a TSB? I think the service advisor was trying to get the complete line replacement covered since the repair kit is not available, but I am waiting to hear from him.

In the meantime, I called Jaguar customer service and talked with an agent about whether or not this could be covered under the SE warranty. She said she had gotten similar calls about this issue, most recently yesterday. According to her, SE decisions were not really up to Jaguar but rather gave me an 800 number which turns out to be EasyCare. As a fallback position in case the SE warranty does not approve, I asked if there was any way this could be picked up under the original warranty even though the car is 2 months past the 48 month period. I mentioned that in the past I have had other cars that needed work within months of the standard warranty expiring and that these were oftentimes honored, particularly for a low mileage vehicle.

In reading the standard Jaguar warranty, there is actually a provision for this that is listed as "Extra Warranty Adjustment" that Jaguar can decide to allow. I asked the Jaguar rep if there was a way to implement this just in case the SE was denied and she thought there might be.

I am just trying to line up my ducks to do what I can to get this covered and need to know the right things to say.

Doug

 

JAGUAR(SELECT) USUALLY WILL COVER IF THE REPAIR KIT IS NOT AVAIL, BACK ORDERED ETC, AND BY BULLETIN I MEEN THE TSB, JTB JUST REFFERS TO JAGUAR TECH BULLETIN. BULLETINS DO NOT EXTEND WARRANTY COVERAGE, THEYRE JUST A REFFERANCE FROM JAG OR ANY MANUFACTURER ON HOW THEY WANT A PROBLEM TO BE REPAIRED. AND YES IF THEY DONT COVER THE LINES YOU MIGHT BE ABLE TO GET A GOOD WILL REPAIR FROM THE AREA MANAGER. BUT ON THAT REMEMBER THIS, ITS HIS DISCRETION AND THE FIRST THING THEY ASK THE DEALER IS"DOES THE CUSTOMER GET ALL SERVICE WORK, AND CUSTOMER PAY WORK DONE WITH YOU.? IE BRAKES ALIGNMENTS OIL CHANGES, ETC?" I MEEN WHERE WOULD THE GOOD WILL BE IF YOU ONLY COME IN FOR WARRANTY WORK AND RUN OFF TO INDEPENDANTS FOR EVERYTHING ELSE?

 

Well the last owner who only put on about 600 miles in the 21 months that he owned the car did get the car serviced at the local Jaguar dealer (Galpin in Van Nuys) just before I purchased the vehicle. I believe the first owner also got the vehicle serviced at the Jaguar dealer (although a different one). I left a message with the service rep at Galpin letting him know I also contacted Jaguar as I would like this to be covered (if not fully then at least partially) and suggested the Extra Warranty Adjustment as another option since the car is so low miles and only 2 months past the standard warranty (and also serviced about 2 months ago at Galpin). I am keeping my fingers crossed.

Doug

 

I THINK YOULL BE OK, JAGUAR WORKS HARD TO SATISFY CUSTOMERS, UNLIKE COMPLAINTS I HEAR FROM OWNERS OFNISSAN, TOYOTA, DOMESTICS ETC. HAVING TO CONSTANTLY FIGHT FOR THINGS, BUT MANY TIMES IT COMES DOWN TO THE DEALER

 

UPDATE: I am still waiting to hear from the service adviser at the nearby dealer but, in the meantime, I talked with a service adviser at a dealer that is further away and not as convenient but I have chatted with him before when I was researching these cars. He started out by talking about the belt and hose exclusion listed in the Select Edition warranty but I pressed him to check further as I do not interpret this to be a hose in the usual sense. Anyway, he was kind enough to make a few calls to check and he is fairly sure that the Select Edition warranty has now included this issue as something that would be covered. He basically said a dealer needs pre-authorization from Jaguar (which he expected to be able to get) and then the repair can be done. I hope the service adviser I am dealing with at the local dealer comes to the same conclusion.

Doug