Checking sills

[bertie1249]

Just a quick question guys. I'm viewing a 2006 s type tomorrow which is supposedly in superb condition. I've just read some horror stories about completely rusty sills.

Could I ask whether all s types are prone to this including the facelifts 2006 model

and having little knowledge about cars how can I check for rust if the sills are covered with the plastic strip. Dealer is prepared to put the car on ramp for me.

i know to check the tyre well for signs of water and check for knocking on the wheels and to check all electrics including air con.

Im starting to worry now especially if this is a common problem with the sills. Should I even bother and avoid the model, as I have no garage and car will be parked on drive

Thanks all advice appreciated am I worrying too much?

 

[Raistlin]

My S-Type is a 2006 model and the sills were practically non existent. Ideally you would get the plastic covers off to make an accurate assessment of their condition Phil.

Even with the car on a ramp you won't be able to accurately assess them. Sometimes, if they are well gone, you can push the plastic cover in with your thumb and feel  / hear a sort of cracking noise as the rust underneath breaks up. If they are at that stage, walk away.

Other than that, the covers have to come off.

This is a very common problem with S-Type and X-Type.

I had no thought of getting rid of my car, even when the total cost of repairs became apparent. Depends how much you like S-Types I suppose ;)

[bertie1249]

47 minutes ago, Raistlin said:

My S-Type is a 2006 model and the sills were practically non existent. Ideally you would get the plastic covers off to make an accurate assessment of their condition Phil.

Even with the car on a ramp you won't be able to accurately assess them. Sometimes, if they are well gone, you can push the plastic cover in with your thumb and feel  / hear a sort of cracking noise as the rust underneath breaks up. If they are at that stage, walk away.

Other than that, the covers have to come off.

This is a very common problem with S-Type and X-Type.

I had no thought of getting rid of my car, even when the total cost of repairs became apparent. Depends how much you like S-Types I suppose ;)

Thanks Paul 👍🏻

[javaman]

I was just about to post the same question.

Is there any other places prone to rust,

I understand the rear subframe can be bad. Is this something that can be checked with the car o.n the ground

 

[Raistlin]

Rear sub frame not as prone to rust as sills but still high up on the list of checks. Best to look at it with the rear wheels on ramps.

[JOE-DOT-COM]

Hi

usually if you at the top of the sill, nearest to the rear, by the wheel arch, it will come unclipped there quite easily and you can look in, from what i've seen, when they go there worst at the back, also if you bang them with your hand, from the bottom, if it sounds like there's a load of loose stuff in there, then you need a closer look.

my car a 2004 S-type R, the sills still look like new, but when I purchased mine , the garage let me put it on the ramp and even gave me a screw driver so i removed some of the plastic clips and had a proper look, I liked the car and told him if the sills are good its mine.

as for the rear cross member as far as I know there no issues with 2002 onwards, it was pre face lift that had a different rear sub frame and was prone to rotting, these are quite hard to find now good second hand, like I say laters ones are better, don't rust  and second hand ones are plenty

take it for a good test drive as well, if its a auto make sure its all smooth, most common issue is lurching and surging in the 1-2, 2-3, 3-2,2-1, listen out for any knocking or bumping, there's a large amount of bushes on these that can fail, should be silky smooth

also every time you stop try the parking brake, these also can be a common fault, you get EPB fault,

check every thing works, especially all the electrics, check both remotes work

check inside the boot, some were prone with filling with water

check the headlights, its a common fault that headlight adjuster break inside the headlight, which usually means the beams are very low, sagging, auto adjuster wont work, give very poor lighting, they can be repaired, but very time consuming, HID headlights means headlight off and bumper off to replace bulbs and to repair adjuster inside.

service history will be a good indicator on the car, more the better, look at the tyre's, descent branded tyres on the rear are a must,

these are just a few, but check them sill's

cheers

Joe

[bertie1249]

1 hour ago, JOE-DOT-COM said:

Hi

usually if you at the top of the sill, nearest to the rear, by the wheel arch, it will come unclipped there quite easily and you can look in, from what i've seen, when they go there worst at the back, also if you bang them with your hand, from the bottom, if it sounds like there's a load of loose stuff in there, then you need a closer look.

my car a 2004 S-type R, the sills still look like new, but when I purchased mine , the garage let me put it on the ramp and even gave me a screw driver so i removed some of the plastic clips and had a proper look, I liked the car and told him if the sills are good its mine.

as for the rear cross member as far as I know there no issues with 2002 onwards, it was pre face lift that had a different rear sub frame and was prone to rotting, these are quite hard to find now good second hand, like I say laters ones are better, don't rust  and second hand ones are plenty

take it for a good test drive as well, if its a auto make sure its all smooth, most common issue is lurching and surging in the 1-2, 2-3, 3-2,2-1, listen out for any knocking or bumping, there's a large amount of bushes on these that can fail, should be silky smooth

also every time you stop try the parking brake, these also can be a common fault, you get EPB fault,

check every thing works, especially all the electrics, check both remotes work

check inside the boot, some were prone with filling with water

check the headlights, its a common fault that headlight adjuster break inside the headlight, which usually means the beams are very low, sagging, auto adjuster wont work, give very poor lighting, they can be repaired, but very time consuming, HID headlights means headlight off and bumper off to replace bulbs and to repair adjuster inside.

service history will be a good indicator on the car, more the better, look at the tyre's, descent branded tyres on the rear are a must,

these are just a few, but check them sill's

cheers

Joe

Thanks Joe 👍🏻

[Mr Lawrence]

That said, my 06 cars sills are like new. 

[JOE-DOT-COM]

3 minutes ago, Andy the tyre man said:

That said, my 06 cars sills are like new. 

hi

Yes also my 2004 ones still look like new

I think a lot of it depends where it kept, damp garage will kill sills

and also sunroofs, when the outer seal leaks, there drains each side of the sunroof, that the pipes go down into the sills

I sprayed all inside the sills, inner sills, well Ive done the whole car now, with wurth cavity wax, which will hopefully prolong the cars life

cheers

Joe

[O.T.H]

Hi Garry I always think another must is to check the past M.O.T's that tell if

its had a notice on the sills and what has had to be done to get it through .

 

Vehicle MOT History

Frank

 

[JOE-DOT-COM]

Hi

Only problem is the sills can be completely rotted out and you can't see a single thing with the cover on

what you get on the mot is, "cant' check sill's due to covers fitted" and "cant't check floors due to covers fitted"

on a mot they can't remove anything, the can only tap it or prod it with out excessive force, so sill's get missed.

pauls 2006 s-type, he was shocked when he checked his http://www.jaguarownersclub.com/forums/topic/13904-a-nasty-shock/#comment-41101

some others here

http://www.jaguarownersclub.com/forums/topic/14389-jaguar-s-type-2003-rust/#comment-43523

http://www.jaguarownersclub.com/forums/topic/12503-sills-worse-case-scenario-cost/#comment-32763

if you have a android phone , go on google play store and look for " VEHICLE SMART " app with this you can check the vehicle milage and any previous mot advisory's

cheers

Joe

 

[Raistlin]

14 hours ago, JOE-DOT-COM said:

if you have a android phone , go on google play store and look for " VEHICLE SMART " app with this you can check the vehicle milage and any previous mot advisory's

cheers

Joe

 

Also works on iPhone. Excellent little app, and free as well.

[Russ68]

Good link from Frank re MOT history, didn't know about that! It takes mine all the way back to 2006 where she failed on a pitted rear disc and a leaking power steering pipe! I've printed it out and added it to the history 

[Old Peter]

I have just got it on my iPhone.

Mine has had a couple of failures in its history.  One for a bad tyre, and the other for the restraint light coming on.

Peter.

 

 

[Old Peter]

I have also used VEHICLE SMART -- basically to try it out  --  on another car parked in the road [next door neighbour] which is hardly used - 38 k in 19 years  --  and it needs an MOT as from last Friday.

Oops!