I'm looking at a very nice 2001 XKR. With a cold start, there's a very noticeable metallic whine coming from the pulley/pump connection. Not the belt. After a couple of minutes, it disappears. Normal? Has the usual whine under acceleration. Fun to drive. Now have a couple of second gen XK8's. An XKR would be a nice add to the fleet.

 

Needs an oil change probably in the supercharger. That isn't normal behaviour but an oil change should fix that problem. Otherwise it's a new supercharger. Supercharger whine should only really be heard under high load like full throttle and at highe revs at least in my experience. Jaguar went out of their way to make it as quite as they could, a different air intake without any baffles will bring the supercharger whine out a bit more though.

 

Thanks. How hard is it to do the oil change? Obviously it depends on how hard the car is driven (and if it's maintained) but how long do superchargers generally last before replace (or rebuild if that's an option)? Are there other related problems and costs? Isn't it hard to service cooling systems problems? The supercharger on the 4.0 was a lot of fun. It will be interesting to drive an 03-06 XKR and see how the 4.2 feels. I've stayed away from an XKR because of potential problems. Having now driven one, it's tempting.

 

The supercharger should not have much of a whine on startup only at speed. You may be needing to have the bearings replaced. Changing the oil is not difficult, I would try this first as suggested. The access port is an Allen headed cap on the very front of it near where the belt passes it but it's accessible . You'll need a large plastic syringe with a 8 inch or so plastic tube on it both to take the old oil out and put in the new. There are some folks on eBay and Amazon that sell a kit of this with the correct oil. I have a 2006 XKR Victory Edition and have done this a couple times. The XKR is a great car with lots of power! No More issues than any other X100.

 

The oil is really easy to change, it's just a plug on the front that you remove and use a syringe that you can get a kit for. There are some videos online for it if you need some help. You can rebuild the supercharger if that is necassery or get a new unit but it's about £900 I think for a new one. The superchargers are very realible if the oil is changed frequently. From what I know the XKR is actually more realible then the XK8, the thermostat housing is asluminium as opposed to plastic which is prone to failing a lot. The transmission on the 4.2 engine cars is also a lot better. If the price is right get the 4.2 XKR, the XK8 is nice but the R is that much better.

 

The ZF transmission on the 4.2 cars was certainly better than the ZF on the 4.0 XK8, but it certainly isn't more reliable than the Mercedes transmission on the 4.0 XKR. I don't see any sticky threads on the forum about the Mercedes transmission lilke this one for the ZF:-

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...ooting-191975/

The supercharger is also more reliable than the VVTs on the XK8 - so you get more power and a more reliable car. What's not to like?

 

very well said.

I do wish the knock sensors and fuel injectors were easier to service on my 4.0 XKR. But that not withstanding, the somewhat difficulty of service is a small inconvenience when compared to the positive attributes of the 4.0 XKR’s.

Z

 

Regarding the ZF 6HP26 transmission on the 4.2 cars, the best insurance for a long, trouble-resistant lifespan is to change the ATF at least every 40,000 to 50,000 miles using the appropriate fluid (many of us like Ford's Mercon SP). For your first ATF change, drop the pan and replace the factory Mechatronic sleeve (it is prone to leak) with the more robust redesigned version. After that, I believe simple ATF drain-and-fills are sufficient. That is the plan I have followed with my wife's 2006 XK8 during our more than ten years of ownership. The car is approaching 124,000 miles with its ZF continuing to perform smoothly and properly during all driving conditions....

 

ATF advice is spot on both for our cars and any brand automatic transmission. My offer on a gorgeous Pacific Blue 06 VE was accepted. Car had 88k. Bad for the seller/good for me is that before I picked it up, the transmission "failed". Their mechanic told them the transmission needed a total rebuild (8k). I still wonder how the transmission completely failed on a dealer purchase one owner (older female) car w/ careful service. From what I've read, the 6 speed is very reliable. Possible one is that somehow it really did need a rebuild. Possible two is the mechanic didn't know how to fix the problem so recommended the rebuild.