Looking to buy XJ L

l3ddy · August 10, 2014

I have seen a xj l at my local dealer took it for a drive and it was beautiful to drive, just wondering is there any known issues I need to look out for as I don't want big repair bills straight away

Cheers Ant

Old Peter · August 10, 2014

Hi Anthony,

Will the dealer give a warranty is the first question.The other things you will need to know is the service history.

Is the dealer a Jaguar main dealer, if so, they have a reputation to maintain?

Regards,

Peter.

l3ddy · August 10, 2014

Cheers for the reply, yeah Stratstone in Wolverhampton has full jag history only done 35k but I want to know if any common faults as I don't want to have it then it's at the dealer more than on my drive if you know what I mean

Old Peter · August 10, 2014

I have not heard of common faults, Anthony.

I got my S type from Stratstone in Solihull. I had emailed the Wolverhampton Showroom concerning a Black S Type but got a reply by telephone from the Solihull dealership.

Regards,

Peter.

l3ddy · August 10, 2014

Cheers Peter I have searched and couldn't find any either only thing was the roof noises but on early models and I couldn't hear anything too be honest,

Hows your car then, how long you had it?

Old Peter · August 10, 2014

Hi Anthony,

Prior to getting my S Type, I had an X Type 2.5AWD which I bought from Colliers in Tamworth which I had for 20 months and was stolen on the 7th June 2013.

I need a car to get around and looked straightaway for another jaguar and I got my s type on the 24th of June 2013. I had a three month warranty, and I wrote down every small issue and took it back to Stratstone a few weeks before the warranty ran out and they gave it a thorough inspection. The car had 48k on the clock but had a new engine fitted by Jaguar at 21k.

I have had one issue which was a sticky EGR valve, not uncommon on diesels --- my car is the 2.7 twin turbo diesel -- which was cured by giving it a good blast up the A38.

Other than that, the car has been brilliant.

Regards,

Peter.

l3ddy · August 10, 2014

Looking very nice glad your pleased with it, your dealings with Stratstone were pretty good then

knightsmith · August 10, 2014

Tony,

I had a XJ Supersport and it was fab, only got rid of it because the wife said it was ugly, and was too big for the roads around here, it was a tremendous car !.

Cannot agree with Peter about Main dealers having a reputation to maintain . In my experience I found that they don't give two hoots about the customer, they just want your money. Their prices are extortionate , as are their spare parts. The only reason I would use one is for the warranty, then get it serviced elsewhere.

My friend just bought a XJ (£30K) on my recommendation from the main dealers in Nottingham . It went back three times in the first six weeks for the same problem, he took the car back yesterday and got his money back .

But saying that, I hope you get what you want without any problems.

ATB,

Trevor

l3ddy · August 10, 2014

thanks for your feeback, do you have any idea what the problem he had was?

knightsmith · August 10, 2014

Anthony,

It was Exhaust manifold, paintwork , and loose trim . But his main problem was the arrogance of the garage .

But as I said , my XJ Supersport was brilliant , it was a Jag directors car they offered me after they mangled my Aston Martin . It was too big for the Devon roads and there are only two of us . But saying that I would recommend one without hesitation . It had every conceivable extra going including three TV's and a 1200 watt 20 speaker audio system , cannot fault it in any way .

Here are the pics .

http://www.jaguarownersclub.com/forums/gallery/album/98-jaguar-xj-supersport/

ATB,

Trevor

l3ddy · August 10, 2014

Trevor

yeah that looks beautiful in the pictures, the one im looking at is a premium luxury which is the same as my xf now, but seems to have more kit, i love the speedo etc, just need to see if i can sort a deal out

Ant

Old Peter · August 11, 2014

Hi Ant,

Trevor is not too enamoured of main dealers, but I do think that when it does to selling cars they are the best people to deal with as a bad reputation does not help them. As for using them for servicing etc, both he and I are of the same opinion. Far too expensive!

I did have a good relationship with Stratstone, but I do know what are the right questions to ask, and also the right answers to get. Knowing the answer before you ask the question is a good test on honesty.

Regards,

Peter.

jag2 · August 11, 2014

hi ant, before i buy a car i go onto used car expert site. ther you will find the common faults of any car. check it out. the only faults i know of on the new xj are condensation in the rear light units, and the gear selector should be smooth. all cars have faults, hope this has been of help charlie

knightsmith · August 11, 2014

Charlie,

Didn't have any problem with condensation in the rear lights of my XJ , and we were under water for about three months in the South West .

ATB,

Trevor

jag2 · August 11, 2014

trevor its a common fault with them ive even seen with my own eyes the local dealer taggarts on their forcourt xj with moister in the back lights. my xk had it as well rear cluster lights , they were replaced under warranty, also seen the same prob with audi s again rear lights charlie

knightsmith · August 11, 2014

Charlie,

Perhaps it's something to do with it being colder up there . Never had a problem with the XKR either, or any other car. Maybe i've just been lucky ( there again I did once own a Vauxhall!).

Saying that , Jag do clear themselves in the handbook saying it is "natural and is caused by changes in enviromental conditions and is not detrimental to lamp performance and will clear during normal usage" .

But as I said, it isn't something i've come across .

ATB,

Trevor

jag2 · August 11, 2014

trevor after my last message i just reminded my self on a problem i had with the rear lights. yes the dealer replaced the clusters both sides that are on the boot. but i had slight mould best way to describe it on the other set of the back lights on the wings.about 2-3mm inside the outer edge of them. dealer said it wasnt going to replace them as it was only cosmetic. got jaguar customer services involved a lady called anne manly . said she would moniter the situation when the car was in to get the cluster thats on the boot replaced. cut a long story short they .JAGUAR UK did nothing whats o ever to remide the problem even had the cheek to send out a feedback form to see how they had done. i gave them a score of -10. well they done nowpt so why should i give them a score . JAGUAR UK customer service is terrible as i have read on many a website. they are JUST THE SAME AS ALL THE REST ONCE THEY GET YOUR MONEY THEY COULDNT CARE LESS your friend was very lucky he got his money back. it was prob beacuse only had it for a few weeks. regards charlie

l3ddy · August 11, 2014

hi ant, before i buy a car i go onto used car expert site. ther you will find the common faults of any car. check it out. the only faults i know of on the new xj are condensation in the rear light units, and the gear selector should be smooth. all cars have faults, hope this has been of help charlie

Cheers Charlie never heard of that site before thanks I'll check it out

knightsmith · August 11, 2014

Charlie,

I couldn't agree more . The treatment I have had from the Jaguar/Aston Martin stealership in Exeter is nothing short of disgraceful after the amount of money i've spent with them over the last two years . It has got to the stage where they don;t speak to me any more; they are a bunch of con merchants , and I told them to their face ,

I got similar treatment from the BMW franchise in Barnstaple . I have bought a total of six cars from these garages, the cheapest being £38K, the dearest £64K . All paid for in cash by instant bank transfer

Other people I know have had similar trouble with Ford and Vauxhall dealerships.

I bought an ex dem BMW M3 convertible from the Barnstaple dealer for £55K cash . With the medication the wife takes, she has to take great care in the sun as she burns very badly very quickly . I asked the salesman if she could have a baseball cap, he said she could have one at cost price ! , I really could not believe what he had said .

I will only use the dealership for any problem that crops up under the warranty, I am getting the car serviced by the independent garage that used to do all my previous cars .

Any car I buy or sell in future I will do through him.

I will never use a dealership again !

ATB,

Trevor

jag2 · August 11, 2014

trevor i love the xk. but its the last car i will buy for a long while i hope, ive wasted thousands over the years like you on them and could buy a f-type 2mora if i wanted but they loose their value too quick. iam happy with what ive got. HM said to me today what do you want for your birthday and at the same time said dont say a new car. i said i have all i want. but if i had said yep a new car she would have gave in. regards charlie

knightsmith · August 11, 2014

Charlie,

It is the wife who always buys me cars for my birthday,

I like the XKR a great deal, The reason i didn't get the F Type was because the F Type R they had was £94K, and it really doesn't look that much different to the XKR .

I have lost loads in the last couple of years, including £15K in eight months on the XJ Supersport as 'er indoors decided she didn't like it after all.

Having the final work done on the house after the floods earlier this year, that's going to be another £4K, so i'm being sensible for a bit now .

But saying that, I might buy an F Type in a couple of years, i'll see how it goes .

ATB,

Trevor

qman3428 · May 28, 2015

Be wary of the XJL especially if it is petrol. The USA site reports that the engines are giving problems from damaged crankshafts to water pump failures and the L is so long the body flexes and the plastic trim cracks. I have the short wheelbase (big enough for UK roads) and it is the 3.0 diesel and can say it has been completly reliable since I picked it up and have done 7000 miles in 3 months and the car had 19k on the clock when I got it. Main dealer services, not worth the paper they are written on!

Old Peter · May 28, 2015

Welcome to the club, David.

Experiences are useful to know, and for the reason that my road is a busy one, and the turn into my drive cannot always be easy, the LWB Jaguar XJ has never come into consideration.

Regards,

Peter.

Lancastrian in exile.