Hello all
Been a Merc man for decades however i always loved the classic XJ model look and eventually got myself a 2007 xj8 now with 42k on the clock 4 months ago and i love it but the latest problem its testing my patience already. Now for the faults and the one biggy i could do with some help with if possible? bearing in mind im not that savvy but can have a go at basics.
First saggy headliner, was in Japan until 2018 so to be expected and doesn't really bother me apart from the few nice days in Glasgow and i have my window down but when i look in my rear view mirror all i see is headliner fluttering around in the wind, but as i say im in Glasgow so that wont happen much.
After washing the car three weeks ago i went to close the boot and the inside handle to pull down the boot was a bit loose so i pulled it out and for some reason i shoved my hand in the hole which went into a big puddle of water, I assume the boot lids leak when using a hose on them? living in Glasgow its rained everyday for the past two weeks and i checked the boot lid yesterday and its bone dry so must be just hosing where the rain doesn't get to and i will just have to be careful.
Twice in the past 4 months the air suspension warning lamp came on, first time the offside rear was 6 inches higher than the rest of the car but after two journeys it went back to normal and two months later the latest warning nothing looked amiss and went back to normal again after a couple of journeys. I can handle this frequency of faults that go away.
About 50% of times i start the car it wont come out of park for 10-20 seconds though (no dashboard fault lights) but i can sometimes shorten the delay by manually releasing parking break which lets me move the gear stick out of park. like the air suspension faults its something i can handle if it just stays a minor irritation and im not causing damage. BTW my bosch battery which has been in the car for 14 years sits at least 12.2 so remarkably that still looks ok but i get Jags are murder regarding batteries and faults so if it gets worse and too annoying i will replace the battery.
Now for the biggy, the bonnet release cable has just snapped !! their are solutions on forums and youtube pulling out the slatted grills then getting at the bonnet latches however my grill is a sport grill with metal mesh inserts that looks well in place and tucked behind the plastic grill so looking like they could only be removed from the inside.
My son has a 2005 pre production X150 and my wife warned me not to get a Jag and stick to Mercs so theres nothing worse than a told you so wife constantly drilling into my head like a Dremmel so has anyone got any suggestions or is it looking like an expensive garage job with all sorts getting busted.
Cheers In advance
