Wessex

Hi Tristan. Glad you sorted out your early problems so cheaply. Seeing as the seller was so rude to you when you complained of the problems I'd be inclined to let him know just how easy and cheaply it was to fix the problems. Probably the reason he sold it was because he thought he was looking at a four figure sum to repair it. It's my wicked streak coming out. Enjoy the car. Mine gives me a recuring problem now and again but I've learnt to live with it.

Threaten the garage owner with court proceedings. Also get an estimate for the repairs. If he doesn't offer to put it right then take him to the small claims court. https://www.gov.uk/make-court-claim-for-money/overview You should have driven it straight back to the garage.

Jaguar X308. As reported on another thread, I had problems with gearbox fault, engine safe mode, trac not available, asc not available. The throttle position sensor was changed which seemed to improve matters for a couple of days and then on a round trip of around 40-50 miles the fault returned and wouldn't clear until the engine cooled down. Had the whole throttle body changed and the fault hasn't returned in over 100 miles. HOWEVER! I wonder if anyone has had this fault I have experienced? Earlier in the year I was travelling on a motorway around 55-60 mph middle lane when a lorry indicated to pull out. I took my foot off the gas pedal and flashed my lights. I immediately got a "Trac not Available" message, the orange tyre warning light and other amber warning light lit and the radio went off. Within a couple of seconds, everything went back to normal. Tried it again later same thing happened. Then all was fine. Lift off, flash lights - no reaction. Until today. Travelling at 50 MPH off gas and flashed lights and "Trac not Available" lit radio went off. A couple of seconds later everything back to normal. I will get the codes read to see if it points to anything but is this a one off or has anyone else experienced this event?

I had the intermittent problem on my XJ8 308. First week went into limp home mode. Trac not available, gearbox fault etc. Stopped and restarted and fault gone for a month then it returned. after that 6,000 miles of trouble free motoring until about 4 weeks ago it happened a couple of times in quick succession and then just before the Brighton trip it happened 4 times in quick succession. I had to pull out of the meeting and informed Steve. The common denominator seemed to be at the point I lifted off suddenly when driving at or near the NSL So, into my trusty independent Jaguar guru and he said it isn't a gearbox fault. it is a succession of fault readouts and they found the sensor in the Throttle Body faulty and replaced it. The performance of the car has certainly improved immensely. Was a bit slow on the uptake unless the accelerator was pressed to the floor or lower gears selected. Now it's as responsive as a young cub. Hope this is of help.

Glad all of your hard work resulted in a very successful day Steve. My car was taken into care on Tuesday and was diagnosed with a faulty sensor in the throttle body. It was replaced with a second hand sensor (new throttle body £1,500!!!) so we'll see how it goes. However, I have noticed a marked improvement in throttle response and a much higher MPG figure without too much trying.

Good morning Steve, It is with huge regret I have to pull out of the meeting this Sunday. When I bought my Jaguar in October last year I had a couple of moments when the car went into limp home mode. Stopping the car and re-starting it normally reset the problem and the fault went away until a month ago when it suddenly re-appeared again just the once. However, yesterday the fault returned again four times in quick succession on a 15 mile trip from Poole on a National Speed Limit road with no pull in area. It is now booked into my specialist dealer so I cannot risk breaking down on route or worse still during the convoy. I trust the event will be the huge success you plan for and I'll post the reults of her diagnosis for the benefit of the other forum users. Regards, Peter

Bless, another one gone. :(

When I took mine in initially for a service I asked for an underside report. It would appear that all is well in general. Apart from the bits that needed doing (and was subsequently done by Hollygrove Jaguars) everything else is sound. Mind you, I still want the sills and other box sections blasting internally with Waxoyl or similar. I've heard Waxoyl dries out and cracks. Well, if it was treated every year or so then that shouldn't be a problem. In order to beat the rust bug it's something I'm prepared to do. Now this might seem paranoid setting in but until last night I never bothered about driving on freshly gritted roads but for some reason I wish I wasn't on the road with my Cat last night. The sight of that salted grit on the road gave me the hebee gebees. :( Seems like you're in for the long haul Paul. Be interested in seeing the before and after pictures. Save your kidneys; Cats can survive without them, you can't :)

You're welcome Steve

Hi Steve. Can you please add our names and Cat to the list please? Peter, Carole & Claire the Cat (XJ8 3.2 2000 Emerald) TIA

Hi Steve, Hollygrove Jaguar is just outside Ringwood on the west side of the New Forest. That's Hampshire about 5 miles fro. Verwood which is the Hants/Dorset border. About 85 miles from London. A lot nearer than you thought. He actually has an E-Type in at present belonging to a guy in Spain. That's how good his reputation is. National Express runs from Bournemouth to London and stops off in Ringwood en route. Not on commission Steve just thought I'd mention it as it's not Devon but perhaps half the distance your were thinking of. ;) Regards, Peter

Hello again fellow cat lovers! It's been six weeks since I picked up my car and it's been a bit topsy turvy to say the least. However the light at the end of the tunnel is shining bright and clear. Here's what's happened. First day after picking up the car discovered no heat from the heater. Rang the ranch (cowboys don't use garages) and spoke to the cowhand that sold me the car. Arranged to bring it in the following Saturday. They looked at the car and apart from cover the wings, roof, window and front passenger seat with oil did precious little else. There were hand prints all over the place. Considering they were just looking at fuses where did all this oil come from? I had had a gearbox fault come up on the dash and when turned off & on again it cleared. I mentioned this to them but they were just so none plussed. Told to bring it in the following week and they would have a "Jaguar Expert" look at it. The fact that the car had been abused meant that it would never go anywhere near them again. Perhaps that was their plan...... Anyway, started looking at other forums and found that there was a common fault with no fog lights, no headlamp levellers and Fuse 3 blown. Replaced but blown again. Disconnected the sounder and replaced the Fuse. Success!!! Fogs, levellers and heat. Incidentally, the sounder electronics are encapsulated in rubber. After 15 years it was the nicads that had shorted out through age not the ingress of water. I tried to dig into the rubber but ended up destroying some parts on the circuit board. I have bought another sounder and it blips on locking and unlocking the door but blows Fuse 3 when the ignition is turned on so when next under the wing I'll look for the fused feed and disconnect that and then see if the unit still blips. I then looked round for an independent to do a service and found one not to far away. Charged £215 for a service and I asked them to check and reports on any corrosion found. Just a small amount on the front off the sills where they met the wheel arch and a couple of small holes under the front footwell. Charged me £56 for this information and then quoted me £800 for welding! They also said the lower ball joints had worn and it would cost £200 per side for the arms and £245 to fit. £774 + £800 = £1574 plus other essentials they said needed doing around £420 for front discs & pads. The discs are a little lipped but there is still plenty of meat on the pads. A couple of other things and the quote came to a little over £2,150. After the initial feeling of panic had disappeared I rang Hollygrove Jaguar, I had been recommended to them, and they told me they press new ball joints in the suspension arm. £20 each side and £18 for new bushes. So £38 per side and labour. Cash price £340. Welding was investigated and quoted £480 Got that sorted this week before a trip up to Chesterfield last Thursday return Friday. The car never missed a beat. New suspension parts being fitted this Thursday. Had a nice payday from work so looking forward to owning her again. Buying a compressor and tools to give the rest of the sills, box sections and underside a thorough going over with Hammerite. Waxaoyl. Roll on the next few years before I have to sell her.

Well, if you are prepared to travel there is Hollygrove Jaguars near Ringwood/Verwood. They are a very very long established independent garage. They have just done some underbody welding for me. I was quoted £800 from another Jaguar/Porsche/Aston Martin indy outfit but felt ripped off. Hollygrove charged £480 and did it in two days. £60/hr as opposed to £80 at the other place.

Hi Andy, looks like something off of the Mike Brewer/Ed China show. I envy your skills and fearless approach. Had a conversation recently with a guy I've bought a couple of things from and his theory is that these areas are left unprotected on purpose to limit the life of jaguars. I think he had a point because Mondeos don't seem to have this rust problem or any other make over the last 15-20 years.

Looks like the salesman from the car lot in Bowerhill Melksham was but BSing me. Didn't replace the battery.