garbage-overlord

Ooo but it is lovely! I do like to see tools neatly stored in a custom case. Even if I never use them.😀

If it's automatic like mine, mine won't start unless my foot is on the brake pedal - are you trying to start the engine while standing outside? Otherwise, I'd suggest it sounds like an imobilizor problem, although I'm not that familiar yet with this cars electrics.

Good evening everyone, hope everyone is wafting along happily in thier Jagwahr's. I have a couple of questions that I can't quite seem to get definitive answer on, so I'm hoping the collective may be able to help. 1. Steering wheel - mine is badly worn, and I'd like to replace it with a wooden one if possible. I'd also like to have one with the cruise control buttons, as I understand that the car potentially has all the rest of the parts already fitted. Will the wheel from a pre facelift interior fit my 2004, and will the buttons be compatible? There seems to be more of them around at more reasonable prices. 2. Is there a source for suspension bushes? I'd like to replace the rear outer tie rod bushes without having to remove/replace the whole arm. Many thanks for any help.

In my last car, hitting a huge pothole at night resulted in offset steering wheel - it required the alignment to be re done to correct it.

I don't really have any decent pic's yet, but this is is what a few hundred pounds buys you...😀

I'll look into that at some point, don't have access to a vice I'm afraid. The hub puller made getting the hub off the drive shaft a breeze, great tool. Removing a front one may not be quite as easy when I come to it, but we'll see. I've seen some in YouTube who virtually destroy the carrier chiseling the old hub out, then have to re-cut the bolt holes for the new bearing. Er, I don't think I'll be doing that!

Well, what a jolly afternoon I had today - tackling a failed wheel bearing. How hard can it be? Er um... Well actually, not that bad. Now which side at the rear is it likely to be? Well the offside seems ok when jacked up, but the n/s had 1/2 inch of free play! Gasp. Guess I'll start with that one then... Now, I'm motoring on a budget, so if you are of a nervous disposition you may wish to look away now...a new bearing is only about £20, but since I don't happen to have a 10 press lying around, and having watched an excellent YouTube video showing "how easy it was" to remove the hub (I skipped the "take it to the machine shop" part - I can't imagine today's spotty yoofs would have a clue what to do with it...), I decided to purchase a second hand complete hub from a Jaguar breaker on eBay, with what I was assured was a good bearing. It duly arrived, and said bearing seemed good with no play. Since it's a while since I've tackled major work like this, I decided to purchase a additional tools - on a budget mind, so no Snap-on gear unfortunately. After watching lots of YouTube reviews and scouring the internet, here's what I purchased to over the course if the last month when I came across any bargains on my wish list, hopefully ensuring a successful outcome. 3 foot breaker bar for the hub nut battle £12.99 Halfords spanner set ( I didn't have the 19mm or 8mm spanners for the upper wishbone nut) £12.50 Hilka 2 ton "low profile" trolley jack from a shop called The Range - £39.99 delivered. 36mm impact socket £6.99 eBay Clarke 12v impact driver £35 delivered. Hub puller £12.99 eBay So what happened? Well it all went pretty smoothly really. Unlike other jobs where you need to apply heat on bolts etc, everything came apart well, and nothing rounded or snapped. And the floor didn't seem rotten, taking the jack with no problems on the "triangle" plates either side. Woo. The star of the show was the 12v impact driver, which I'll post details for if anyone is interested. You connect it to the battery with crocodile clips. It easily loosened every bolt I could get it in to (having pre wire brushed and lubricated all threads), but it's star turn was the way it loosened the 36 mm drive shaft hub nut, saving no end of heaving on a long extension bar. I'm really impressed with it, and highly recommend it. Also, the hub puller easily and smoothly pulled the old hub off the drive shaft splines. The Hilka trolley jack was excellent also, stable, and effortlessly lifting the car, and low enough to easily fit under the low sill. Reassembly was, as they say, a reversal of the earlier procedure. The road test gratifyingly showed much improvement, although it means I can now hear another rumbling at bit - a front one I think, although it's ok for the present. The second hand hub assembly was £30, so excluding the extra tools purchased, an economical repair for the present. Now I need to lie down and recover ; I'm not as supple as I once was...😁

No offence intended, just being tongue in cheek! I don't actually go for the "is it a real one or not" debate when it comes to cars - if it has thier badge on it and you like it, what does it matter? In truth, it's not really true that the X-type is a Mondeo in drag, theres not as much in common between them as the people image. And if you are basing your new model on another car, there's worse starting points than a competent car like the Mondeo anyway. Friends of mine have a gorgeous X-type estate in black with cream interior.😀 I'm just curious at how uncommon the S-Type seems around my local area - I haven't seen a single one, which makes me feel rather conspicuous...I know the early ones were bad for rot, but...

I'd like to talk to you all about a serious matter for a moment, one that affects many in today's selfish and unthankful world. Many people are on thier own these days, and while it's great that we are all supposed to be looking out for each other, as a single man I've recently felt the loneliness more acutely. You see, since I got my Jaguar S-Type, I haven't seen a single other example while driving around. Now normally, when you get a new car you suddenly start noticing other examples passing you every day, so you can understand my emotional stress - just where are all the other Jaguar S-Type drivers? Where are you all? Don't you know how it cuts a middle-aged man up inside to be unloved, alone in a sea of bland Nissault Cashcows? I pulled up behind an X-type at the lights earlier today, and I just wanted to jump out and hug the driver, until I remembered that it was really just a Fraud Mundano in a party frock, so I composed myself, and carried in in lonely isolation. I'm not sure how more of this secret sorrow I can bear - a man must have the company of like-minded individuals. Where are all the S-Types?😕

The battery ideally needs to hold 12.6 volts for over 24 hours. If it tails off down to 12.5 or 12.4 then it's failing, and needs replacement. Remember that a reading of 12.4v actually means the battery is only at 75% capacity.

Check the battery first - if it's holding 12.6v, and the alternator output is around 14.5v with a load it's unlikely to be battery related. Having once owned a BMW 5 series that developed similar problems suddenly, which turned out to be 2 faulty coil packs, I'd be inclined to continue looking at something along those lines. Also check the MAF sensor, as my last car coughed and hesitated under acceleration when the MAF sensor failed.

I does indeed stay off. After sitting with handbrake applied for most of the last week, it came off with a jolt today. Before switching off engine when parking up again, I operated the handbrake on and off a number of times to keep it moving.

Mmm, that wood looks nice. Much as I loved them, I wouldn't have another 75 - the V6, while a lovely engine, is difficult for some jobs, ie the cambelts (there are 3!) are an expensive job, and the plastic inlet manifold is difficult and expensive to source now, and the thermostat is awkward to do being situated inside the "vee". Good examples are going up in price now, quite rightly as they were undervalued for years. But enjoying the S-Type so far, although I'll enjoy it more when it's 2 worn wheel bearings are replaced!

Does the one on the left have a plastic impeller?😮

A Rover Sterling? That must be an Rover 800 - a lovely car, I had one too. But I'd certainly agree - the S-Type is much better.

Having had 5 Rover 75's previously, I'll consider myself well qualified to comment! The 75 was a car I always wanted when launched, and when the opportunity to purchase my first one for £500 came, my love affair started. We'll leave aside all the Rover politics and saga, never interested me anyway. What Richard Pulley penned was a masterful design - it's been called the British Alfa Romeo, and I agree, a design with elegance, character and style (pre hateful facelift). The S-Type was of course launched at the same Birmingham motorshow, and to my eyes, lacked the styling success. For me, it only came good with the heavy restyle that straightened the rear end. But, I will say that as an owner now, it is growing on me a little. The colour of mine helps! What about quality? I'd say, having had so many examples, that the 75 walks away with this one - at least on pre-project drive examples, before they started de-contenting them. Early dashboards were real wood for example, and the cabin was well made, and an gorgeous design. Modern, as Rover tried to say? Of course not - as retro as they come, and beautifully done. James May said the orange instruments were like sitting by the fire. Fine, I like sitting by the fire. I lost count over the years of the amount of passengers I carried who said "wow, I never knew these Rovers were like this!" Sadly that ignorance led to many potential buyers staying away. The Jaguar by comparison? Well I can't comment directly, but my XJ type facelifted interior is certainly nice compared to the ugly looking earlier ones I've seen, that reputedly were of poor quality. It's very comfortable, yet it gives me the feeling that Jaguar were trying to avoid looking "old fashioned" and so ended up with a compromise - the dreadful plastic "Maplewood" a good example, just make the wood look like wood and stop being embarrassed by it! But I'd personally say that the interior in my 2004 version is what the S-Type should have had from the start. Until then, the 75 was way ahead with interior quality and ambience. I got tired of people saying what a nice Jaguar I had... Driving then. 4 of my 75's were 2.5 v6's, 3 automatic and one manual. The manual gearbox was just "wrong" somehow, and even non-car enthusiast passengers used to comment on it! If ever a car should have been automatic as standard, it was the V6 75! Ah yes, the KV6 - good them Honda engines, aren't they mate? Actually, it's not - it's Rovers own KV6, which first saw a disastrous introduction in the 800, where it devoured head gaskets, warped cylinder heads, and dropped liners for fun. Fortunately BMW gave River the money to tool it up properly, and so the result was reliable and durable - one of mine was still purring at 190000 miles when I sold it. The result was also silken and refined - I really was able to balance a coin on the engine when it was idling, and it whoosed pleasingly when power was applied. Oh yes, power. Given the Jaguar 2.5 is 201 versus 174 bhp, it's difficult to know where exactly Rover put the missing horses. However, it was plenty quick enough for me, and capable of surprising economy - I managed 39.9mpg in a steady motorway trip once. And the automatic transmission was smooth too, a lovely combination. So 5 stars to the Rover then. Apparently the S-Type V6 is a Ford engine, like many parts. Personally, that doesn't bother me, I'm not an engineering snob, especially for what I paid! So whatever its origins, I give the Jaguar engine 5 stars too, I'm impressed with the silky smooth engine and gearbox combination, surely what you expect in an upmarket car. Driving comparisons? For the way I drive, (not like a racing driver, but enjoying the comfortable refinement on offer) I'd say there isn't really a lot in it. Yes really. That's an amazing achievement for the Rover, which wasn't supposed to be a competitor for the Jaguar at all. The Rover is very competent, smooth and comfortable, and in fact probably over achieves. The Jaguar is gorgeous too, maybe a couple of notches further on in terms of refinement and handling, which really it should be. So, is there really any competition between them? There shouldn't be, but it's a mark of how right Rover got the 75 that all these years later, they are closer than you'd imagine. The Jaguar is lovely as it should be, and I'm enjoying it so far. But if you've never tried one, don't dismiss the V6 75, it's much better than you might imagine. Rover stated they wanted to design the best front wheel drive car in the world, I personally thought they succeeded. But if the S-Type is a fusion of Ford parts, I'd say they succeeded with that too - it's a beautiful car to drive, and the way a luxury car is meant to be, instead of today's hard riding "sporty" horrors. Consider me a new fan.

My carpark is on a very slight slope, but it's sitting quite happily in park just now😁

At present, with current restrictions et la, my lovely Jagwahr is idle for much of the week, and I'm wondering about the wisdom of the electric handbrake being applied all the time. I've read that it can be problematic. When I've parked it up today, I've left it off. What's the perceived wisdom of collective? On or off? And is there anything to be gained by operating it in succession several times once a week to keep it from seizing?

Ah! Thank you!😀

Is it possible to park the car with the handbrake off? Mine applies automatically when the engine is switched off, but I'll want it off for when I remove the rear hubs. Is there a way of preventing it applying itself? Many thanks.

Ooo, now that does sound interesting. I'd like a wood wheel anyway, so changing it for one with buttons at the same time sounds like a plan... ...however that's for later - first I need to find out why this car weaves all over the road like a battleship in a gale, and can't decide which direction to point in when the brakes are applied.

You can?

Mine (2.5 auto) indicates an average of 31mpg. True or not, I'm actually quite pleased because it's not really costing me much difference to my last car, a Vectra 1.8. I'm looking forward to a longer trip to see what I can eke it up to. My only real disappointment with this car so far is an absence of cruise control, which I miss.

As a buyer of older, secondhand cars, colour is immaterial, but the BRG with light biscuit(magnolia? cream? beige?) leather of my S type does look nice. I just wish I could find a good leather paint to match the steering wheel which is badly worn.

Thank you, I'll try that.