Old Peter

I don't have Jaguar voice in my S Type, although it appears it is set up for it. But I have heard that those who have it get a bit annoyed when it doesn't recognise various words, and accents can be a problem. Peter.

Hi Keith, With your speed at about 68mph on a flat road, your rpm should be 1950 with the 2.7 litre diesel engine. I then switch on CC. A bit different with the petrol engine. I use 1950 revs as the second turbo charger comes in at 2000rpm. I assume you have the 3 litre petrol engine which is very different. Regards, Peter

Appeals don't work. "You did it" is what they say, and you can refer it to the magistrates court, where they will say " Not seeing the sign is not our fault". Fine £100 plus costs £32.50. Pay your £80, sit in a police station for 4 hours, say nowt, no 3 points. Peter.

This one was road works on a dual carriageway with a normal 70 mph limit. I did not see any speed limit signs but slowed down to 50 mph, which is the usual temporary speed limit. This time it was 40 mph and even the wife did not spot any signs either. But a speed camera at a very high level took a photo and I now have to go on a speed awareness course. Peter.

Keeping an eye on speed!! Watch out for variable speed limits and temporary ones too. One did me last month. Peter.

Hi Dave, I live at the edge big conurbation, and the roads are frequently not suitable for cruise control, and when on the motorways there are spots where you know that you have to drive the car. I have 130 miles to drive tomorrow on the M6 and the M1 and I can't see myself thinking of switching on CC. Peter.

Very useful to know, Dave. When I use CC I usually set it at 1950 rpm which gives me 68 mph and the best fuel economy. Peter.

Hi Adrian, An interesting issue, and I think you have got to the nub of the problem. I have never removed seats for about 50 years -- the last car I did that on was a 1962 Triumph Herald -- but I do believe that it is not too difficult. To prevent it happening again, deeper pockets would be the solution :) Regards, Peter.

Welcome to the Club, Muhammad. I am afraid that I have not experienced that Dashboard message, but on the other hand I have not experienced travelling at 100mph either, with national speed limit of 70 mph in the UK. I guess your S Type has a 4.2 litre supercharged engine which could all be going into top gear when driven at 100mph and it could be a slight jerk from the gearbox. I am slightly tempted to take my S type out onto the local dual carriageway and give it a bit of a power and see if it happens to me, but the speed cameras and the local police take a dim view of exceeding the speed limits. Regards, Peter.

Looks good, Chris.

I will also look into that, Mark. The problem has never occurred since. I think the previous owner just used to leave it in Park Mode.

I haven't encountered that before, Keith, but I would check out your braking system starting with the DSC switch.

Hi Trevor, The XF was the first generation of the new models -- but designed under Ford Ownership. But I do appreciate you were not disagreeing with Ken. TATA came in really reaping the fruits of what Jaguar/Ford had sown with the X type - Jaguar's first big production run, and the S Type which was designed basically in Detroit. Regards Peter.

Hi Bill, I left Widnes for North Wales -- worked there -- in 1967, then to Derbyshire in 1971 -- changed jobs, and then to Sutton Coldfield -- promotion -- 1982. Still here. I did have a season ticket at Widnes Vikings till this season. I read a lot about hub your problem on a few sites and a lump hammer was mentioned more than once. Regards, Peter.

I think Ken has got a very good point, Trevor. Jaguar had been quite moribund in many ways for a few years without producing a car that could be within the reach of the general public. Ford, with its fairly vast volume car experience and technology, decided to discontinue the Ghia version of the Mondeo and use the Jaguar Badge on that Model for a very short time until they saw the light and let the Jaguar engineers design a car that was a real Jaguar. OK, they used the Mondeo platform and some of the Ford technology, but sharing parts has been done for years and still is and will ever be so. Ford had a very good manufacturing base with Halewood and it was ideal to produce a volume car. Had the X Type not been a success, then TATA would not have been interested in purchasing Jaguar when they did. The other thing that Ford did while owning Jaguar was encouraging the Jaguar design team to start to design the new generation of Jaguars when they decided to discontinue the S Type [also a contributor to making Jaguar a success] and start production pf the XF. And long may this success continue. Peter.

Welcome to the Club, Terje. I think you are our first member from Norway, and I can see that you love your Jaguars. Let us see some pictures when the bumper job is done. Regards, Peter.

Welcome to the Club, Kenny. The X Type is a beautiful car but sometimes much maligned by the ignorant, and the 2.5 litre engine is also a very good and reliable unit. I had the X type SE AWD with the 2.5 V6 which was my first Jaguar till I was carjacked. There are plenty of members who are very knowledgeable and who will also like to share some of your experience too. Regards, Peter.

Glad it is sorted, Bob. Driving a Jaguar should always be comfortable -- there are some advantages of being 5' 6". Regards, Peter.

I have a good bottle of the Irish Whiskey still unopened from my 80th birthday 2 months ago. Here we have cocktails before dressing for dinner at weekends. As for food, we have our fish sent in from Grimsby, and our vegetables from the allotment. And as it is past the glorious 12th there is plenty of grouse. Peter.

Hi Alex, That is a nice car --- the same colour as mine. I have dragged it into iPhoto, and will print it off and put it in my photo gallery, which is in the corridor between one half of the upstairs in my house. Your X Type could have sat in a dealers showroom/garage for a few months before being sold. A friend of mine always used to buy his cars prior to a facelift or new model in order to get a better price. That is why you could well have a chat with him. Regards, Peter.

Welcome to the Club, Alex. The x type 2.2 estate is a very good car, and a 58 plate should be worth more than you have been offered. The x type had an update in March 2008 with the most noticeable being a bolder front bumper and a different radiator grill. From the photo's you have posted the front end looks a little bit like the pre March version. There were three differing grills, the earliest on being the classical Jaguar "waterfall", and the second being yours. But as you say, the car was registered in September 2008 and of that there can be no dispute. There might have been a Grill change, as some owners do things like that. I would be inclined to go back to the main dealer from whom you bought it for a friendly chat and ask a few questions without giving the impression that you think you have been misled somewhere, and if you could get a letter from him that the car is a post March 2008 model it could stand you in good stead when selling it. Cars can drop in value immensely. I Bought a July 1999 Rover Sterling with every conceivable extra in March 2000. Price new had been £27k. I paid £12.5k. Hope I have been able to help. Peter.

Welcome to the Club, Wes. You will enjoy the S Type - good looking and a dream to drive. Jaguar do say that the gearbox is sealed for life but most Jaguar owners seem to indicate that a gearbox oil change at about 75,000 makes a difference. Gearbox oil is not cheap but doing it yourself will save you some money. I don't know the best places for parts in the U.S. but I have come across sites in the U.S. when I have been looking for parts dealers in the UK. Google is a handy tool! Regards, Peter.

Hi Bill, and welcome to the Club. I have had a look around and this job does not seem to easy from the experience of others. I don't get my hands oily any more, I'm afraid. However, some members will be able to advise and assist. I am guessing that you know bit about cars, and have used all the usual aids such as WD40 to get it free. Let us know how you get on. Regards, Peter. PS. My S type knows Halton quite well, as I lived in the Borough, north of the river, for over 30 years.

Good idea, Tom, although by looking at the number of JOC members in the Midlands and nearby, I thought that there would have been much more interest in a good day out before the winter starts. Regards, Peter.

Welcome to the Club, Calvin. I am afraid I do not get oily hands any more, but there are quite a few members who know their way round the technical bits who will assist. There is also a topic on good independent garages across the country recommended by Club Members. Also I would advise that you google S Type Jaguar Dashboard removal and you will usually get a diagram on the HOW TO which seems a good place to go. Peter.