Jagnumpty

I've been speaking to my local self described Jag mechanic and he claims that the AWD system on the X-Type is an all-or-nothing thing.

Disconnect the rear drive shaft or knacker the rear diff and you get lose all drive to all wheels.

Although the cost of supplying and fitting a warrantied used transfer box is ... acceptable I'd rather not spend that money at this moment.

Has anyone had any experience of isolating the transfer box and running just on the front wheels?

Ta very glad.

Nothing has happened yet, but there's an outline plan to outlaw the legality, at MOT time, of fitting after market HID lamps to cars not fitted with them from the factory.

Whether it will happen remains to be seen, but it's not the best idea to go ahead with this modification until it'd made clear as to what IS going to happen.

Thanks, Cubist. It appears to be the one I thought, although a smaller indent than it seemed. At least I've got all the socket driver handle sizes from 1/4" to 1" to play with.

Fingers crossed for no overnight rain and a successful outcome to fresh Oil.

So I've got it up in the air, but the only filler plug I can see (1/2" female square drive) seems too low to be a filler plug.

Is there anyone out there that can confirm or deny that there's another plug higher up the side of the box?

I've read a few threads about this bit of marvelous (Yeah. Right) technology and I'm slightly relieved that, having probably only lost fluid, mine might come back to life with a dollop of the fresh stuff.

However, failing that, would it be seriously out of order to just disconnect the front prop shaft and run the car on rear wheel drive only for a while?

I know it's possible on a wide range of AWD drive cars, but I'm not sure if it's universally true. Any ideas, chums? Ta very glad.

I have a need for all the basic specs of every model of Jag produced since (or even before) the company stopped being the Swallow Sidecar Company.

Any idea if such a database exists and, especially, where might i find it?

Ta very glad old buddies and buddettes.

You missed RTFI

As in: If all else fails ...

Pretty much overnight the TB on my Jag has started to make a noise like a Griffon trying to scratch it's way out of a solid steel cage.

The local expert reckons it needs replacing, but I have a sneaking feeling that it may have just run out of fluid which now needs replacing.

As is usual these days, the fluid isn't just EP this, or SAE that, but Jaguar gold and platinum infused M2C192A.

Before I go all the way to the other side of Sheffield is there a simpler alternative that is likely to be available at Bullseyes?

£850 for a new box? Someone is taking the wee-wee.

From personal experience I've found that you can get much the same results by squirting a fine mist of tap water into the engine while it's running.

Shudda gone to AWD.

Since your existing radio needs to be fully working, why bother?

DAB was supposed to be the future when FM was switched off ... 2 years ago, allegedly. Since the German DAB2 has proven to be not compatible with DAB1 the odds are that FM is here to stay.

Sometimes Number 2 catches up with me.

Earlier this year I started to overhaul the calipers on the Jag. By the time I'd got one rear one off I'd used up all my energy. Even over a week later I wasn't still up to continuing the task.

So I called on a local 'mobile' mechanic (it turns out he's got a garage as well). He sent out what I later learned was a trainee grease monkey. Instead of removing the whole calipers, he just took off the pad carriers. He would only return if I paid them more to finish the job I'd already paid them to do.

This is mostly why it's taken me 9 months to get her roadworthy again.

I have trust issues with parts suppliers, Joe. In particular how they price them by the model of car they're for.

eg. A front damper for a Reliant Robin or Regal used to cost £5. A rear damper for a Reliant Scimitar was £20 at that time. The catalogue numbers were exactly the same!.

However the inner plastic coating had become compromised on one side such that the steel cable had rusted. Not enough to weaken it significantly, but enough for it to expand and jam at the caliper end. I stripped off about 6", wire brushed it clean and repeatedly worked copper grease well into the gap between the inner and outer cables.

That should last a couple more years, then i can consider buying a new pair. That's Old School. Repair rather than replace.

Do you really need new cables, David? I found that a bit (!) of brute force and ignorance can free them off, followed by a boat load of copper grease worked into them to see them working freely again. That's how I got mine working even after one was horrendously sticky and the other was frozen solid.

I have the 2004 estate variant of this model. It's in the much paler blue. I bought it in early February and finally got it MOT'd and taxed last week! Insured in mid November.

It took so long because I did as much work as possible myself to make it roadworthy again. In many cases I did 'so much' (so little) work and then had to rest for several days before I could do any more. In some cases I couldn't do any more, so I had someone else do some. A local garage that should hang its head in shame sent out a trainee grease monkey to remove the calipers as taking off just one had almost put me in hospital again. But he only removed the pad carriers, so he had to return and finish the job (at extra cost!) later the same day. Guess who's door I shall never darken with any of my cars ...

For my next trick I'll be installing a bath into a shower only wet room.

You can't check the Oil level (and condition) too often. It's the same for the engine coolant.

Change both at (or before) the recommended intervals, use the correct grade of each and the engine might last you out.

So far everyone has skirted around the real reason you're car is giving a harsh ride. It's the wheel diameter/tyre aspect ratio.

For a given 'rolling radius' you need to alter the tyre's aspect ratio as the rim diameter changes. Huge 'fancy' rims require a lower aspect ratio of tyre to maintain the same tyre circumference.

Just to bugger things up, a very low aspect ratio means a tiny wall height which, in turn, means a stiffer tyre wall. Stiffer wall = harsher ride.

The only way to get a softer tyre wall is to increase the wall height and you can only do this (without making the speedo wrong) by going smaller on your wheel diameter.

Is this a 'safety' problem?

Most of the modern add on leapers (I call them Pouncing Pussies) are spring loaded so they don't cause any difficulty with local Construction And Use Regulations.

Now I've got my latest Jag fully roadworthy again (only took 9 months) I'll be putting one on the front. I'm told that drilling guides are already on the underside of the bonnet.

H Harold, the key specialists in Sheffield, got back to me this morning:

260 quid!

So I gave Hatfield's a tinkle:

75 knicker 'while you wait'.

Booked in for next Wednesday. 1 guess where ...

Enzo Ferrari himself once claimed that the E-Type was the car he wished he'd designed himself. He said it was prettier than anything he'd ever made.

If I had a few bob to spare I'd be parking the Eagle variant in my garage instead of the current fleet.

Don't talk to me about TC's, Pete. They once charged me for wipers and wiper arms they didn't fit!

That's just part of the reasons why I prefer to do as much on my cars as possible. Then there's the  money ...

However, what was, until relatively recently, one of their larger franchises is now a small shopping centre,

Works for me.

Thanks, Old peter. I'm currently waiting to hear back from a Sheffield based key specialist.

There's a Jag dealer in the Sharrow area of Sheffield that I used to frequent back in the 80's, but they have expensive overheads (the showroom is unbelievable) to keep up from their tiny (Yeah. Right) profit margin.

Who knows what I may have to swallow as a 'reasonable' price?

Thanks to both of you.

I don't suppose you know of anyone close to civilization (South Yorkshire) who has the hardware and software to do the job?

And while we're talking ...

Where can I locate the paint code? It seems there are several light blues, and I would prefer to get the right one first time.

So ... I bought a new remote for my 2004 Jag from eBay and programmed it as suggested on here. All the security facilities work just as they should.

To 'celebrate' it passing the MOT I went and had the metal key bit cut to match the existing one. However ...

The key guy wouldn't guarantee that it would work and even suggested that if the transponder failed to let it start the car even the original one would stop working and the car would never start again without expensive reprogramming!

Is he right, or just a senile old fool like myself?