Leo

Laz, I agree with your comments right now and for some years to come, though I would expect the environmental footprint of EVs to come down as the technology improves. Right now, one of the most environmentally friendly vehicles is the Land Rover Defender: Bult since 1946, more than 50% are still on the road. They are of course very simple to maintain, and even the body panels simply bolt on and off. Yet they are exactly the kind of vehicle which may be banned from certain areas.

Seriously, I have considered buying a Nissan Leaf (not to replace the XK!). I don't have anything against going electric, and being near the Nissan plant we have loads of charging points in this area, but I concluded that the battery technology is in it's infancy, and I decided against investing at this stage. In a few years the electric cars will probably be seriously quick, and have much longer ranges. They will then sell in far greater numbers, and I may well invest in one then. I'll still have the XK though: I don't see me selling that before I am too old to get in and out of it!

No, shooting would not be the appropriate method of despatch: He goes to the electric chair!

Yes, the MXS5 is what most members here go for: It should be a perfect choice for you!

Jeff, my usage is similar to yours, and I keep my battery topped up on a CTEK Battery Conditioner every week. I would really recommend this, if it is practicable for you: It gives great peace of mind, when you know that your battery is always fully charged!

I have had all sorts of cars over the years, with a lot of performance cars and a lot of off roaders. I came to Jaguar from a Land Rover Defender 90 XS, so even on 20 inch rims the XF ride seemed just great to me! Seriously, the ride was fine, though it did tramline on white lines in wet weather. For me the plus side of the 20 inch rims was only their looks. They may give marginally better handling, but I doubt I ever reach that kind of limit. The downsides did matter to me: Risk of kerbing, possible damage to rims and tyres from speed humps, and renewal costs. I was very careful, but still did sustain a little kerb damage. If they had not been already on the car I certainly would not have changed to them.

Hi Lee, and welcome to the Club. You have a lovely looking XF there, and as far as I am concerned the wheels look just fine. I had the XF3.0D S on 20 inch wheels. Whilst I concede that they looked great, I found the low profile tyres and rims were very easy to damage on curbs, and I was aware that potholes and speed humps were liable to damage the tyres and bend the rims as well. So my personal choice would be to stick with what you have, but of course we all have different priorities, and there will be many on here who would prefer the 20 inch rims.

I bought the appropriate CD on the bay of e and it worked no problem.

Sorry, I should have said Shell V Power: Optimax is their petrol equivalent, which I use in the XK.

Hi Keith, It is worth using the Shell Optimax diesel or similar, because this keeps the engine much cleaner. On my wife's diesel Citroen C4 Grand Picasso she used to hear it regenerating quite regularly. Since she switched to the Optimax a few months ago we have never heard it regenerate.

I have been using a CTEK for the last three years, since my XK is not my daily drive. It works a treat, and the knowledge that the battery is always fully charged is very comforting indeed!

Hi John, That looks a lovely XK. The grin is still on my face after three years: I still feel like the cat that got the cream!

I don't believe that a spare wheel came as standard: Mine certainly doesn't have one. I have read of owners sourcing their own, and of course they need a wheel wrench and a jack as well.

Buying the colour as per your car specification is obviously the correct starting point, but the leather colour does change with age, so some further mixing is likely to be needed for a perfect match.

Furniture Clinic sell the products to deal with this. They have a large range of colours, which you can of course mix to get exactly the colour you need. They will do it for you: I have seen their work and it is superb, but not cheap. Alternatively you can buy the products from them, and do it yourself!

I have had mine (though not the R) for nearly 3 years now, and the smile is still there! The V8 sounds so good I haven't turned the radio on since the first day I bought the car: I prefer to listen to the engine! I have gone through towns late at night, and had people who are busy at ATMs turn to see what is coming when they hear the V8 sound!

Hi Stuart, and welcome! You will find that members here are both knowledgeable and happy to help fellow members, so ask away if there is anything you want to know. In the meantime, enjoy both your XF and the Club!

I made exactly the same move from XF3.0D S to XK nearly three years ago. I loved my XF and love my XK even more: So much so that I intend to keep it until I find it too low to climb in and out. Hopefully that will be many years off! I still adore that V8 growl. I prefer to listen to that rather than the sound system, so the radio is never used! Mine is not the XKR, but I believe that the R is just as bulletproof as the normally aspirated XK, which is very bulletproof indeed.

Hi Paul, and welcome to the Club. This is a hot topic! I had the XF 3.0D S, doing similar mileage to yourself. I had a lot of regenerations, but no DPF problems. Having said that, I sold it when I retired precisely because I didn't want to have to worry about a DPF. There is obviously some cause for concern, but I suspect that only a tiny percentage of those who write about the problem have ever actually had any major difficulty, so I think that the problem gets blown out of proportion: I am one of the guilty parties! My wife has a diesel Citroen C4 Grand Picasso automatic. Because most of her journeys are short we did try to find a petrol one, but as with the XF they were nearly all diesel. She decided to buy it anyway. At first she ran it on normal Shell diesel. She had no problems, but regular regenerations. She then changed to Shell Optimax diesel, and since she changed we have had no discernible regenerations, and the fuel consumption and performance have both improved. So all is going well so far, but we have only had the car for six months. At the end of the day only you can decide which way to go.

Hi Andrew, good to hear how much you are enjoying your XF. I had the S version and found it brilliant: I only sold it because I retired, no longer needed four seats, and was not doing the regular longer journeys required to keep a DPF clear.

Hi Carole, and welcome to the club! I feel exactly the same about my XK, which is also pretty much showroom after only 32,000 miles. I have had it three years now, and have found that it is best to accept that there will always be a few marks that only the person polishing the car will notice. Otherwise I would have to visit the coachworks about four times a year, which I don't think would be good for either the car or my wallet...

Hi Tim, and welcome to the Club! No, this is neither normal nor acceptable in a new Jaguar, or any other marque. Clearly you should insist that they are all rectified immediately. If you have just bought it I would be tempted to threaten to reject it altogether, though I suppose that viewed objectively the faults are minor so that remedy may not be available.

I made a similar move to yourself, from an 09 XF3.0dS to an 06 plate XK (an early 150). I have no regrets at all: I loved my XF, and I love my XK even more! It is not my daily transport, so MPG is pretty irrelevant, and I only need two seats.

Plug it in to a CTEK battery maintainer or similar, and leave it charging for at least 12 hours. All of the warning lights may be down to a low battery charge. When you leave the car for MOT it may well have been unlocked for a while, possibly with a door open, and more battery power being used than usual. I would make sure that the problems are still there with a fully charged battery before getting a sensor changed.

That's great Dennis, I am sure that you are going to enjoy it. I would love to see some pictures!