Buying s type s avoiding pitfalls and problems

[Gazbo]

Is their a link to potential problems with the s type.

I' m Looking at 2007 2.7d with 63000 on the clock.what should I be looking out for?

2nd question is:how reliable is a jag s type?

I know this is a very general question but I want to spend time driving rather than fixing

Thanks in advance

[JOE-DOT-COM]

hi

if you use the search bar, this is quite a common question and always pops up

most important sills, sills can completely rot away, there hidden under a plastic cover, so cant be seen easily, but if the rear arches have bubbles, there most likely the sill are gone, as in completely gone, don't matter what year, there completely random

check for knocking and banging from the suspension, theirs loads of suspension bushes front and back, if driven hard these can fail, should be silky smooth drive

check all tires are worn even, uneven Tyre wear usually means worn bushes or rear tie rods

front and rear doors, check front and rear vertical seam on the inside of the door, they start to corrode first there, looks like spiders under the paint where the seam sealer is, front of front door is hidden under a plastic trim, this just pulls off and slides up out of the way

check every thing works all the electrics, check abs, engine management, air bag lights, light up on the dash and go out, seen lots of these led's removed or taped over

check fuse box and boot well for water, they leak in around the rear lights and can cause fuse box, rear reverse module and other modules to fail.

check all the keys supplied fit and work on the car, because its got a second key, dont assume it fits and works

ifs it got electronic parking brake, test it at least a dozen times, these also fail regular

also use a app like "VEHICLE SMART" which will give you its old mot history and advisories, lots of corrosion advisories is usually a bad sign, also you can check all its old mot mileage history on the same app

take it for a good run and let it idle for a good while, some are known to have overheating issues, with faulty thermostats, clogged radiators or even failed head gaskets

service history is always nice as well, looked after examples will all ways come with a pile of receipts

its also worth checking the headlights as well,if there normal halogen, then you can adjust the height of the beam on the dash, operate the switch and make sure they go up and down, the adjuster inside go brittle and break, you can buy replacement adjuster, but you have to remove the bumper, to remove the headlights, if its got HID lights, when you switch the ignition on, the lights go up and down and then self level, every time you switch the ignition on, adjusters in these also fail and if you unplug the headlights with the battery connected, you need jaguar software to reset them and they wont self level till they are reset

 also worth checking the Oil level, check its under, not well over, diesels have a tendency as they get older, get leaky injectors, that can weep when the engine not running , seep past the rings and raise the engine Oil level

if I was looking I would also only buy a completely standard one, chipped ones offer more power, the standard unit is plenty powerful enough and tuned ones are known to snap crankshafts

cheers

Joe

[Old Peter]

Welcome to the club, Gareth.

I couldn't add to what Joe has said, and from my experience the S Type Jaguar is very reliable.  I have had my 2007 plate S Type SE 2.7 Diesel for four and a half years, and  it has passed all its MOTs without even an advisory.

I had to replace the water pump a couple of years ago, but apart from new tyres I have spent nothing else on necessary items.

Great car to drive, and the engine is more than adequate for all your needs.  Treat it well, use premium fuel, and it will give you over 45 mpg on a long run.

Regards,

Peter.

[Gazbo]

Thanks for your replies folks.i took out a 2007 with 80800 miles on today and it was absolutely amazing.it had so much power and coming from a Honda civic type r 2009 I don' feel I'm losing in the power output in any way whatsoever.there was water in the boot but only a small amount.dealer said he would fix and then I will take through a car wash.it needed 4 x new tyres and there was a bit of uneven wear but nothing to concern me as the car drove pin straight and didn' move off line at any point.the only thing that concerned me was whilst doing about 30mph I plunged my foot to the floor and the gear box seemed to make a deep thud..........now I think I caught it between gear shift cycles as my old mazda auto did this sometimes and I couldn't get the car to do it again and I was in it for 1/2 hour.i will go back and check all the other things you guys have advised aswell.can I remove these sill covers easily without damaging anything as I won' own the car at that point but want to make sure it' right.is there a link to sill cover removal.thankz again folks

[Old Peter]

Hi Gareth,

I sometimes get the odd shudder but there has been nothing to worry about.  Some owners have their gearbox oil changed ar around 70k miles. I generally do not accelerate very  hard as I have found that it is quite easy to get the car into the Red, which `i try to avoid.

Water in the boot is not uncommon if the car has been outside/unused for a while.  I had it and managed to clear it by cleaning and revitalising the rubber boot seals.

Regards,

Peter.

[Guest]

Hi Gareth and Welcome to the Club,

Ditto for all the advice given above the S Type, if given generous doses of TLC will reciprocate in kind.

The sill covers are easy to remove, just a few screws, but do make sure you have a little help and put an old rug or whatever under them to avoid unwanted scratches.

Enjoy the Jaguar Grin - Rons right, it can only be removed with surgery.

[Gazbo]

Is there a way to see potential rust on the sills without removing the sill cover.because the car is still with the dealer I don' think he'd be to happy with me removing bits.i am also ok with rub and rust proof once or twice a year but no good with a welder and I'm considering spending £4000 so could do without the hassle if I'm honest.

Also what is the cure for the leaky boot.is it the seal that maybe needs some sort of paste or Vaseline to moistened up the rubber again

[Guest]

Hi Again Gareth,

If the dealer really wants to make a sale he should be prepared to remove the sill covers so that you can inspect the condition of the sills themselves. It's only a few minutes work particularly if they have a post lift of some sort. Bluntly put if they're not prepared to do this much to allay your fears re rust then you may be better off looking elsewhere. Check out a post by Suppedraken(Knut Are) he got his dealer to do this for him when he was looking for his S Type.

Regarding the boot seal. There are other threads on this site that will provide a steer and I've copied the following from a post from Joe.dot.com that may help. This and other similar leaks can be fixed with some silicon sealant.

"water in the boot is common on early s-types

its not the boot seal usually, it leak in around the back lights

if you look at the light, the top edge, look at the rubber seal, where the black part of the light is, between the light and the body, there is sometimes a gap in the rubber seal, as the water runs around the boot and down the lights, it will enter the boot here.

cheers

Joe"

 

Cheers,

Steve

[JOE-DOT-COM]

Hi

When I bought my STR, the dealer let me put it on the ramp, the bottom fixing on the covers, come out there the type below, and come out quite easy if you find the correct fitting screwdriver

once the bottom fixing are out the cover will move out enough to look at the bottom of the sill and feel for solid metal

a descent dealer wont mind

cheers

joe

 

[Gazbo]

You lot are cool.thanks for your time guys.i really want this car and don't want to buy a lemon