Old Peter

Hi Trevor, You always have to wait a while when the engine is hot, even with a dipstick. I give mine a check while the engine is cold in the mornings. The last car I had with a starting handle was a 1962 Austin A 40 Farina with a 998 cc engine that would do 65 mph with a following wind and a slight downwards gradient. The advent of transverse engines caused the demise of the starting handle.. Regards Peter

I use Castrol Magnatec, but there are other good brands, too. I always use the top quality oil, -- why order Fish Sticks when lobster is on the menu? The mechanic who services my car always uses the appropriate oil and brings back the oil he doesn't us for use in top ups. Can't you get a dipstick as a retrofit? The dipstick is a fairly simple means of checking your oil, and why have to depend on a sensor is beyond me. Regards, Peter

A beautiful day today, the sun is shining, the car washed, dried and polished and vacuumed throughout yesterday, and a nice trip and Lunch in Lichfield. There were a few people standing by my car in the car park with admiring glances. That is why I love my Jaguar.

Hi Mick My employers had a account with Kwik Fit, and we were obliged to get tyres/brake discs and pads there. I told them that I wanted to see all the bills in detail, and found that one of my staff in my Office had been charged over £800 for two tyres and disc pads on a Rover 420. I queried it and wouldn't sign if off till there had been a reduction in the bill. Lo and behold, £550 off immediately. I have 245/40 s on 18 wheels and most premium brands are over £150 -- there is only one tyre company that is what you could call a privately run business in the area -- all the rest are the big brands, but he only uses Vredesteins. Unless I can find someone who charges a reasonable price in this area I might well tell Doris to take me to Peterborough for a day! Regards Peter.

Hi Mick, years of experience has told me the same. I always use the combined figure and if I get better than that it is a bonus. I look to get about 40mpg as I rarely do long motorway trips these days, so I am quite happy with that. Regards, Peter.

David, ... Why did I not think of that?........ Possibly because I am a creature of habit who checks the old and other fluids every week and tops up the screen wash every week whether it needs it or not. I believe that if your car has headlamp washers the screenwash reservoir is bigger. Peter.

I have though about a Leaper on the bonnet for my S Type but decided against it, settling for a small leaper on the boot lid. Peter

Welcome to the Club, David. The problem sounds very electrical. Is there any message in the message centre? Regards, Peter.

Hi Dave, You do notice the mileage per gallon difference when you change from petrol to diesel. A caveat, however, is don't let the tank get too empty. If it does run out of fuel, there is a page in the owners manual of what to do, and having read it, I look to fill up my S type when the range gets below 100 miles as a restart seem a bit of a pain. The trip computer on your car will tell you the miles done, the range, the mpg, & the instant mpg. I check mine after every trip! Cost of filling up usually comes in at £70 + -- my local Shell filling station sells its diesel at 134.9p a litre. Regards Peter

Hi Matthew, I think all the remote controls have contacts, rather than switches. One of my key fobs that came with the car had worn buttons and I was able to buy just the set of buttons on ebay for £3.50 --- a bit exorbitant for a small piece of rubber, but it does stop my son from opening the boot instead of unlocking the doors. A bit of WD40 on the locks themselves might do the trick. Regards, Peter.

Welcome to the Club, Ashley. A nice bunch of Jaguar owners post here. You must always remember that wheels and tyres are very important parts of any car, and unless you are certain that you can get the rim repaired properly it might be worth getting a new one. It could also be worth having the other rims checked before making any decision on replacement. I live only 6 miles from Castle Bromwich, the main Jaguar factory, which built my S Type. Your X Type was built in Halewood, 100 miles away, coincidentally 6 miles away from where I was born. Enjoy your Jaguar, nice colour too, the same colour as mine. Regards, Peter.

Going down to Weymouth last summer I got 46.1 mpg from my 2.7 Diesel s type. Mostly at 68mph to ensure that the second turbo charger didn't cut in. Coming back with a busy motorway and driving a little bit quicker I got 37 mpg which is about normal on a longish run [over 25 miles]. I can normally get circa 40 mph on a run over about 70 miles, which I consider pretty good. Peter.

I think that I will make an enquiry with the very helpful guy down at Halfords, Mick, to see if he get BFGs at a decent price. Otherwise I will be looking to come over to Peterborough. The best price for Pirellis I can get round here is about £205 a corner. City prices! Peter.

Welcome to the Club, Neil. There are quite a few experts who will be able to assist you. I just enjoy driving these wonderful iconic cars. Regards, Peter.

That seems a good price, Mick. I have had no problems with the Pirellis, but they do get some criticism at times from users. I have had a look around on the internet but can't find a dealer near me that seems to want to sell them. The plus point for me at the moment is that all five tyres are in good nick. Halfords have offered me a free tyre check which I will take up before my MOT in June, and I will make some enquiries of them. The guy who runs the local Halfords is a good bloke who will tell me the best price etc. Peter

Welcome to the Club, Bernard, and enjoy it. I do believe that there are kits that can be attached to the headlights of any car to make the headlights conform to conform to RH driving on the Continent. Just as important is to ensure that the car carries the requirements of the countries you are going to visit, such as a warning triangle and a fire extinguisher, inter alia. Regards, Peter.

I have heard that when the battery is starting to fail, the less important things are the first to go wrong. Peter.

Hi John. I have had the same problem with my s type 2.7 diesel --- Handbrake Malfunction pops us on the message centre, and the procedure I followed was not dissimilar to Trevor's suggestion. I did post something about a week or so ago, and the solution I came to was to disconnect the battery for 10 minutes as it had happened before. Then do all the other bits when the battery was connected again. My ultimate solution would be having a switch on the dashboard to reboot the computer when this happens. Regards, Peter.

My Rover was a Foreman's Friend, Mick, destined for the MD of a big Rover Main Dealer. He kept it for 8 months and then changed to a Rover 75. Friday night cars and Monday cars are the ones to avoid. The two Jaguars I have had are the best cars I have ever driven in 50 years of driving. Peter.

Welcome to the Club, Simon. Similarly I had a Rover Sterling 2.5 Auto for 11 years till I changed to an X Type 2.5 AWD. The Rover was a passengers car, but still a good drive. The Jaguar is a real drivers car and far more fun to drive. Regards, Peter.

That looks like a nice clean car, Mick, and I can see why you recommend that dealer. And the Petrol 2.5 litre seems in good condition too. Some people don't like the 2.5 litre Jaguar but one of my friend bought one from new in 2000 and has still got it without anything serious going wrong with it. And when your read this Dave, let me know as I am less than a hour away from Derby. I can even take you up there from Birmingham. Regards, Peter,

I think I have got it, Trevor, via I cloud. I will let you know how I get on. Peter.

Looks great, Trevor, but I don't seem to be able to get the App on my Macbook pro. Peter.

Welcome to the Club, David. I really enjoy my S Type, great to drive, and surprisingly good fuel consumption. I had a 2.5 Litre Rover Sterling for 11 years and struggled to get 30 mpg. When I had a 2.5 Litre petrol X type I could get 35mpg on a steady run, even though it was a heavier car than the Rover by 200 kg. There are a lot of very knowledgeable Jaguar owners on this site who are very helpful. Regards, Peter.

Hi Dave, I have looked at the biggest of the main dealers [stratstone Jaguar] and they have 6 pages of X Type but nothing under £4800. Piston Heads will give you a big selection as will Autotrader, and they will also give an indication of whether it is a private sale or trade. With a mechanic in the family you will be able to follow the excellent guidance from Mick. The biggest "MUST" is always have a good look at the car you like best and see the service history, make sure there are two keys and the Owner's Handbook. Let us know how you get on. Regards, Peter.