Old Peter

Hi John, I had a coating for my S type which worked well for the guaranteed 3 years. The cost 6 years ago was £290 - about $400 then. Three years ago my wife had a ceramic coating for her Toyota Yaris and it was a similar price and the Yaris is still in a great condition. I don't know what the going rate would be in the USA, but a lot depends on how good the coating is. They improve year by year. Regards, Peter.

Welcome to the club, Alan. Joe has mentioned a few rather important caveats. I have the same model S TypeD as yourself, and I have never had a problem with the DPF due to preventative maintenance. I do a lot of short runs but I do make sure both DPF and EGR valves are looked after. The use of premium fuel and the adding of Millers Diesel Eco Plus at every full fill up is a first, and a long run -- about 20 minutes at over 45 mph -- can clean the DPF, and an oil check every week can make sure that the DPF regeneration is not sending some fuel oil back into the engine. What I do if the engine oil has increased is to remove 2 litres and dispose of it safely, and then add 1 litre of fresh engine oil. You can buy a gadget that can extract oil via the dipstick tube, and a bottle of Coca Cola can clean any spillage The EGR valves in my car - there are two - were replaced a few months ago, not a too expensive bill and worthwhile. Some drivers might think that a car is just a car, but you have a Jaguar, and one that, in my opinion, is a future classic and should be looked after. The first Jaguars were designed and built in Lancashire, and as a Lancastrian in exile I am rather proud of the marque. Regards, Peter. My car outside a rented holiday cottage in the Trough of Bowland.

I just connect my dash cam to the power point and it switches off when the ignition is switched off. The wiring can be easily disguised. Peter.

Hi Phil, Rod is quite correct. I don't know why there are those who make those changes to exhaust systems when the Government will catch them in the end. Regards, Peter.

Hi Leigh, and welcome to the club. It is probably the bulb that has failed, and a replacement is quite easy. -- It is on the s type! Regards, Peter.

Hi Elle, I will try to help you as much as possible. You can get some assistance by googling Wikipedia and titling Jaguar XJ. Pages 5 & 6 are the appropriate ones, but there is no reference to the CS, although the engine used might give you some help. I wrote a book on Jaguar which is now at the printers but all I can say s that my research at the time was hindered by the fact that Jaguar was part of British Leyland [whose records were not that good] and was in process of being made a separate company owned by the State, i,e. Nationalised and under the aegis of Sir John Egan. You could say that from the time that Jaguar was sold to British Leyland the records were very sparse and did not improve until after 1984 when Sir John Egan was firmly in control. His Book, "Saving Jaguar" is well worth reading. While I was writing my book I wrote to Sir Joh and was privileged to meet him at his home in Warwick and ask a lot of questions, mostly concerning the period from 1980 to 1990 when the company was on its way from British Leyland ownership when Jaguar was on the rocks to the time the company was purchased by Ford. You could also contact Jaguar Classic Cars who could help. If I find any more details I will contact you. Regards, Peter Lightfoot.

Welcome to the club, David. The s type in my opinion is a future classic. "Grace, Space and Pace" as Sir William Lyons said. Regards, Peter.

The most popular colour of a car often depends on two things -- the first being the model of the car, and the second being the colour that is in fashion at the time. We have had several very popular colours over the last few years -- silver and then white seemed to be very popular over the last ten years, with black always in the background. The smaller cars were a popular red which was passed on, as it were, to larger cars but with a metallic gleam on them. I like my blue S Type but would not say it is the most popular colour --- every car owner has their own favourites. Peter.

Welcome to the club, Mike. You will enjoy the Jaguar and I hope you enjoy the club just as much. The x type is a nice comfortable car and I wish you luck with the changes you want to make --- there are members with the kind of expertise you need. I have never done anything like that myself! Regards, Peter.

Hi Jon, I think you can relax a bit. 105k miles or 10 years is the criteria. My s type which has done 85k miles but had a new engine at 21k miles which leaves it with 64k miles and 11 years, BUT the belts have been examined by my mechanic and are found to be in excellent order. Regards, Peter.

Welcome to the club, Kieron. Jaguars do have that magic, and reading the history of the marque you can understand why. They have gripped me so much I spent two years writing a book about Jaguars and those people who designed them. [Book now at the printers]. Regards, Peter.

Hi Alan, and welcome to the club. My s type has a spare wheel and nice boot space next to the battery. I do not know the setup in the XF, but it does surprise me that there is no room in the boot for a "proper" spare wheel. Good luck in your search. Regards, Peter.

Welcome to the Club, Peter. The Ingenium Engine, whether Diesel or Petrol is a good and quite frugal one. A longer journey once a month or so does help the Diesel Particulate Filter to keep clean. My 2.7 diesel has never given me any trouble over 6 years, and I find that premium fuel should go into a Jaguar! Regards, Peter.

Welcome to the club, Peter. I think that the s type is a great car and I hope you enjoy it as I do mine. There a quite a few Jaguar owners in Australia who you might see around -- but Australia is a big place. Let us know how you car fares. Regards, Peter. PS. My car but not my house. Just a great holiday rental

Hi Paul, The 2.2 D you had in the Mondeo is now used in the Jaguar -- Ford owned Jaguar until 2007. The best trim level is the SE which does provide a very nice interior. Regards, Peter.

Hi Paul and welcome to the club. One of my sons has an X Type 2.0 Litre X Type estate and he finds that it is a reliable workhouse. I find that it is a bit noisy. [I have a very quiet s type 2.7D] I had an X Type 2.5 Litre AWD [All Wheel Drive] which was a great car, plenty of class, and very comfortable. The 2.0 litre Diesel is the old reliable Ford engine, and the 2.2 Diesel is a more modern engine and well thought of. Current owners will assist. Regards, Peter.

Hi Steve and welcome to the club. I have found that the Jaguar experience is quite unique. I have wanted a Jaguar since I saw a friend refurbishing an early model in 1964, but limited funds and then 30 years of company cars prevented that. I have had two Jaguars, the last one for over 6 years, and s type which has given me great performance with very few issues. Regards, Peter.

Welcome to the club, Andy. I have never seen an s type with roof bars and I don't think that the design of the car would lean to them. Regards, Peter

Welcome to the club, Brian. The Jaguar experience is quite a unique one as can be seen by the history of the cars and the people who designed them. There is an Online Bookshop called "Transporterama" where you will find a good book still at the printers about "Jaguar, its cars and its people" that could interest you. I live just 6 miles away from Castle Bromwich where there is a big Jaguar Works. We see a lot of Jaguars, but the well looked after ones still get heads turning, even in the rain. Regards, Peter.

Welcome to the club, Shaun. I hope that you will enjoy the club as much as you enjoyed your Jaguars. My S type [2007] which I have owned for 6 years has been a very reliable car, as yours has been and provided be with much enjoyment. Just Enjoy. Regards, Peter.

Hi Richard, I got mine by just looking around on the internet. I can't remember exactly where. It was over 5 years ago, Regards, Peter.

Hi Richard, and welcome to the Club. I have the Leaper on my s type, and I used the adhesive one that has worked well for 5 years. You must fit it if it is the bolt on type at a suitable distance from the front of the car and not protruding over the radiator grill. Regards, Peter.

Hi Tim, Very useful post. Regards, Peter.

Hi Vincent snd welcome to the club. I have had my s type 2.7 diesel for over 6 years. I do mainly short runs and so have to be aware of what can happen to the DPF if you don't ensure that it doesn't get full. The problems can come from the fuel system so if you use the best quality fuel you will probably get fewer particulates getting through the filter. And you can add to that the use of an additive on a fairly regular basis. I also ensure that I do a longer run once a month and it is not the time you drive for, it is more often the speed which will get the particles burnt away, If you are driving along a speed limited road you can go into the manual mode and keep the revs around 2000+rpm. The maintenance of a diesel engine should be preventative rather than sorting it out after it has happened. I have never had a problem or even a warning light on the DPF with my car. Regards, Peter.

Hi Tim, and welcome to the club. I sometimes get both the ABS and the gearbox fault come up intermittently, which annoyed me somewhat as all seemed well. The ABS issue was basically an old reference, and the message was removed and only comes back if the battery is low on power. The "Gearbox fault" was a slightly different matter. I was advised to use the manual gear control [the J gate] when going downhill as it provided some drag and slowed the car down to stop it exceeding speed limit. But appears that I was using it too much and the gearbox did not like it and gave me an amber warning and "restricted performance". My mobile mechanic, who knows everything about cars, connected his diagnostic system and found that the problem appeared to be that when using the third gear the gearbox expected to then go into 4th gear and then 5th rather than directly into auto. Cheap fix! But you gear box is an older one than mine and an oil change could be useful, and failing that there are several gearbox experts who could advise. Let us know how you get on. Regards Peter.