Xenophobe, CAN YOU FEEL THE LOVE??? Jaguarforums.com is awesome! Everyone here is so helpful. Maybe you had a wee bit of buyers remorse after reading about some of the potential issues, but this forum can make all of that go away. You're in good hands.

Plus, when you see that everyone LOVES your car, maybe you'll quit being so xenophobic. A very scary looking black guy walked up to me in a parking lot the other day to compliment me on my car. (And before anyone starts calling me a racist, I have adopted Asian sisters, a Mexican brother-in-law, and a black sister-in-law. I belong to the most diverse family on the planet. This guy just looked like a total gang-banger with the baggy clothes, dreads, a "grill", tattoos on his neck, etc.) Anyway... this guy walked up to me and started telling me how much he loved my car. We talked for a minute and I told him it was an '03. He was blown away. He thought it was brand-new. Then when I told him that he could probably buy a used one that looked almost identical to mine for under $10K he was REALLY blown away. We stood there talking for 20 minutes. I showed him all of the cool stuff. I popped open the hood so that he could see that it opened backwards (he loved that). He saw how bright and shiny my engine was (I had just cleaned it). I told him about the 300 horsepower engine and how I passed two cars the other day and got up to 105 mph in a matter of seconds. I told him about Craigslist, which he had never heard of. I KNOW he went home that night and started looking for XK8's on Craigslist. We just stood in the parking lot bull****ting about the car for 20 minutes.

That's the kind of attention you're car is going to get. People will stop you out of the blue to ask about the car. Enjoy your 15 minutes of fame.

 

Haha! Thank you. It's on the way home.


Yeah, this is a great place and tons of info. I'm going to upgrade my lowbeams to xenons next. Still cringing at the thought of the suspension, but I'll get that done too.

It is pretty amazing how much attention a 15 year old car still gets.

 

The suspension can be labor intensive, mainly on those lower arms. Have it looked at first, let a mechanic put a prybar to it for excessive play and see if the ball joints are still tight and the gaitor in tact. My bushings were dissolved by a power steering leak, and a ball joint gaitor tore open, so I felt I needed to do all the lower items. You may be fortunate and perhaps require only a couple, which won't hurt the wallet too much.

I still think the $30 tie rod ends are a no-brainer on that age of a car, before you get it aligned of course.

 

Yeah, the place I took it too didn't seem to interested in doing the work. They had her up on a lift, said the bushings are original so they're probably soft and they didn't bother checking them. Originally said it would cost about $3k then said maybe more and didn't want to give me a quote.

So, anyone in the Silicon Valley/South Bay Area, California area know of a good shop that is competent and won't overcharge me? lol

Oh, I won't get it aligned until I get the suspension redone. The tires have probably 10k left on them, so it gives me a little time to get stuff done.

And from what I can tell by driving it, the suspension doesn't feel loose or wobbly or anything. It feels quite tight, but perhaps it needs new shocks... or upper shock mount bushings or whatever...

 

Hi Xeno,
I'm a little late reading this thread, but I noticed partway through it your signature had an XKR added to it. Did you "go crazy" and buy the twin or is that an aspirational signature?

 

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...ent-did-53078/

 

Congratulations and Welcome! Make sure that your coolant overflow tank is full (when the car is cold). If it is than you can forget about the coolant smell. Might want to check it again in a week. If your losing coolant anywhere you should get an obvious "coolant low" light. Checking the level a couple times will insure the sensor isnt broken.

 

I did go crazy I guess. I liked the 97 so much that all the modifications I would have wanted would have cost as much as an XKR, so I found one that I liked after a bit of searching. I don't regret it one bit.

 

Xeno;

Not sure you will respond to me given your handle, but your first XK looked great!

The photos were good.

And I noticed that your early XK had integrated head rests that were close in look to the very early XKE's buckets....they weren't all that comfortable back then but they looked good.

More power is always good and in fact I never drove any of the new XK's before I bought my XKR....so I am sure you are even happier with your new XKR.

Did you ever post any photos of it or the two of them side by side?

Looks like you are in the Central Valley somewhere....I used to cut across that nearly weekly on my way to rafting and skiing from the Bay Area to the Sierra's, if you can believe it in either my red '74 BMW 2002 or my red '59 XK150.... weren't the 70's the best time ever to be in California?

cheers,

jj

 

I know from crazy. Around 2003 I bought a showroom-condition 1990 XJ40 Majestic, a gorgeous, very reliable car. Next thing I knew I had purchased a 1995 6.0 XJ-S convertible from Texas on eBay. Magnificent car with a couple of annoying quirks. Totaled the Majestic in a ice storm, running off the road and tearing up the underside. The convertible was my showpiece until I sold it to help offset my daughter's college tuition. I always lusted after the XK8, but never imagined I could ever afford one, so I became content driving a nice little VW Cabrio. Then about a year ago, I read an article in an old Jaguar World Monthly, which rekindled my interest in the XK. Upon investigating, I was shocked to see they were now in my price range. After ten months of searching and reading about the car, I found a 2005 on eBay, located somewhat near me on Long Island. The poor seller was dropping the price by $1,000 every couple of weeks. Why no one bought it before me I don't understand. The car was/is immaculate. I held out and managed to snag it for about $6,000 less than his original asking price just before he was about to throw in the towel and auction it. I could not be happier and have no desire to ever drive anything else.

 

Hi Xeno,
You are not alone on an impulse buying. Last year we bought a 1997 coupe with no research and little knowledge, only knowing it looked beautiful. It was low mileage, only 26k and very clean with a new set of Michelins. After purchase, we found this Forum, and though it, the built in plastic flaws. Chain tensioners, water pump,and thermostat housing, being replaced, we now have a outstanding auto that we love for very little cost. We have driven 8,000 trouble free miles and are looking forward to many more.

 

I just joined you recently with a '97 coupe that seduced me. Loved the look and didn't do any research. I wanted to take it to a local indy shop but the seller was too cagey and put me off that idea with some last minute manuvering. He even waved a carfax at me and I didn't realize the car was a salvage title until after I went to the DMV with him and read the paperwork after the fact. Smoging it was a bit of challenge but I perservered and now I have the joy of ownership. After a post-sale eval I now have a laundry list of items to attend to but do I regret the impulse, not at all, at least not yet, 4 weeks and counting.

 

I have a 1999 XK8 with 163000 KMs. Has been fantastic. If the hydralic pump for the roof has not been repaired yet (plastic tubes just wear out) you might want to set aside a buck or 2 for that. I spent $800.00 fixing it with an "outside" Jag technician, but the dealer wanted ALOT more. The throttle body has had some issues on the early late 90's years. I think there was recall for 1998 anyway. Condensation in the headlamp, drill a hole in the side of it to let the air in. My main issue was with the tranny. It is a ZF, a first class tranny, but mime was a bit of a melon. Anyway the guy I bought it from split the cost to fix it 50/50 because he said he should have noticed something before he sold it. I think my tranny is 1 in 10,000 so dont worry .
Great gas mileage as well for a V8

 

Paul, I'm also having condensation in the driver's headlamp. Where did you drilled it?

 

Great looking Cat. I think you'll love it. And welcome to the forum. The forum is great place for info. And, also darn fun just to read. That English sense of humor!

EZDriver 95XJ6 2000 XK8

 

Hey, sorry for the late response... Yeah, I'm on the Peninsula and the 70's were before my time. The 80's and early 90's were great for me though!

Here's the side by side, sorry I don't have a good camera so I didn't try taking anything better:

 

Xeno;

Those look great together.

Which one are you driving more?

It's hard to beat California in any epoch....I would still love to live up by Inverness on the coast north of San Francisco. People forget there is still 400 miles of Calif. north of SF.

cheers,

jj

 

Well, I've just come across this thread. Looks like a really beautiful model; no reason at all for you to feel embarrassed at following your heart, on a car which surely should be good for over 300,000 miles.

I think that the resistor method is not very satisfactory for hydraulic protection, because it does not deal with the pressure spikes which occur just after fully closed and fully opened, and I would fit the pressure reduction valve as a better form of protection. It is also worth double checking that the hydraulic fluid is correct, since (as I understand it) some fluid used with earlier models was prone to gelling, leading to major problems. I don't know if this is something which applied to your model year - maybe another forum member might be able to give a more knowledgeable answer.

 

Oy! I see storm clouds forming on the horizon. Let the games begin!

Doug

 

They make a lovely couple. Did you notice a big difference in the performance?

Cheers Al