Martin Ellingham

For those seeking a COC to enable registration of their vehicle within the EU, I offer the following advice: I just got mne for my XF. DO NOT GO TO A SITE WHICH CHARGES FOR A COC. Some are fraudulent. Manufacturers are required to supply a COC free of charge, if one is applicable. For Jaguar you can go to their main site and ask a question about COC (I chose the International Markets tab) I got a reply from a new email address: jagcrc@jaguarlandrover.com It all went like velvet from there. I'd start with this email address but I would include in your initial email the VIN and the registration number. If one is available, they email a copy and send the original by post. Hope this helps.

The pitch of the mat fixings on my 2001 s-type is approximately 17 cm. I too bought some emergency mats from a well known auction site. The pitch of the fixing holes was approx 18.5 cm!! I do have one (passenger front) mat which I think was fitted as a replacement before I bought the car. It is a genuine jaguar one but I think it's for the later models. The pitch of the fixings is approximately 19 cm and whilst it's fine just sitting there, I can't fit it to the clips. I conclude that there is about 2 cm difference in the fixings between the old and new.

I think they are turning the AM wick down. Medium wave has become unusable where I live. Personally, I quite like BBC5Live for sports coverage (AM or DAB only) and Test Match Special as well as other sports coverage - Long Wave or DAB BBC5SX. We are all being driven down the DAB route and I am a bit fed up when the BBC urge me to switch to DAB in the car. I have been advised that to upgrade to a DAB radio in a "Jaguar sort of way" would involve replacing the rear screen (which houses the aerial) and routing cable through the car. The cost is about 3 times the value of the car. My 2001 S-type standard kit doesn't do long wave (I wonder when the last receivers were fitted with long wave receivers) So I looked for a more reasonable and relatively unobtrusive solution. After looking at several pieces of kit involving wiring and fairly chunky boxes, I found one that was cheap, small and portable. A reasonably unobtrusive aerial on the passenger side front screen, lead behind the pillar trim and taken to the centre console where it's plugged in to the module which is simply inserted into the cigar lighter. All works well, even with the heated screen. Take the module with you in your pocket when you leave the car. I only hope that when the VHF FM frequencies are handed over from national to very local services we can reserve frequencies to allow us to use the after market DAB receivers which retransmit the signal to our FM car radios without being blotted out by random commercial stations as we drive from area to area. Sorry about the rant. For anyone interested, this link is worth a read http://www.frequencyfinder.org.uk/Opinion_AM.pdf

I've learned my lesson the hard way. A few days ago I had a flat whilst at the local supermarket. Over the years I've had a few such incidents but this one tops the lot. I've never had a puncture with this car. No problem I thought. Emptied the boot and accessed the tools and mini spare. Jacked up and tried to remove the first nut with the Jaguar provided tool. I'd never examined it before but I quickly recognised that it was not fit for purpose. It's made of alloy and the business part was mashed. I managed to get a lift home and collected a 19mm socket and bar and then returned to the supermarket. Could I get the socket on the shrouded nuts? No. Well, yes, all but one. Had to call my local garage, the man came out straight away and explained the problem. The Jag wheel nuts have a shiny sheath which is pressed on during manufacture. Unfortunately it allows water ingress and the steel nut rusts, which process makes for expansion. The mechanic had a very heavy copper mallet with him which he used to get a 19mm socket on to the wheel nut............. I'm glad I wasn't in the middle of nowhere. Anyway, the Jaguar supplied tool went straight in the bin and after trying a 19mm socket on all the other wheel nuts, I bought a complete new set of nuts. Also, after looking at this forum, I bought a set of locking wheel nuts to replace the fragile Jag ones. If I have any advice after this incident it is to check that a 19mm socket fits easily on to each wheel nut. If it doesn't, replace the lot. Don't wait until you have to change a wheel.

Many thanks to Andy Pandy. I was a bit reluctant to do this job until I'd seen Andy's post. Removed the fog lights this afternoon, quite a lot of abrasion to the glass but some 2500 grit wet and dry and three coats of clear coat made them look much better. On my 2001 S-type the lamp units are each held on by 2 "Torx" size 30 screws. There is a wire clip securing the electrical connector which needs to be removed. The rest is exactly as explained by Andy Pandy.

I have a similar problem. Traction control light is flashing continually at 2 per sec since my ABS pump was replaced. My local garage who did the work said that the traction control needed to be re-calibrated and that whilst he had all the latest diagnostic kit, he didn't have the software to do the job. The constantly flashing light isn't an MOT failure but getting Jaguar to do the re-calibration could be heart failure. Does anyone out there know of any independent with the necessary kit?

I've been putting this off until warmer weather but I think this is a pretty good guide, but Clear Coat doesn't last forever. Here's the link -

2001 auto. When I bought the car the ash tray top had been left open and whacked from one side so that the hinge mountings and switch lever were broken off. The cover is fine but the ash tray and cigar lighter unit needs replacing. Looking at the manual I need to remove the top of the centre console (arm rest to ashtray) in order to remove and then replace the unit. Fine. The manual simply shows four arrows and invites me to remove the top part. Presumably held with plastic clips. Any tips? Should I wait until this year's summer day to try it?

I got my spare from ebay for £2.50 (auction). I put a new battery in it and had it matched to the car by my local auto key person. Reprogramming it is a fascinating process involving specialist kit, tokens and lots of key strokes. The security seems excellent in that the identity of the locksmith owning the specialist kit and the date and time that the fob was reprogrammed are all recorded. Mine is the squarish 3 button type.

Hi, I had a similar problem when someone scraped one of the sensors in a car park. My local friendly garage used the diagnostics to confirm which one had failed (my cheapo ODBII scanner wouldn't do it) Apparently it's a Jaguar only spare and it cost me a shade under £60 plus fitting. One tip is that if you've got to replace one on a 10 year + car then get the garage to check the exhaust mounting on the bumper "iron". Mine had corroded and needed attention. The bumper "iron" or beam is aluminium and the exhaust bracket is steel - not a good mix. If they've got the rear bumper off then get both jobs done.

If you open the front passenger door there is a label on the inboard side of the hinged end which carries the paint and trim codes. The paint code on mine is a three letter code. My reg. document shows gold as the colour but it's actually called topaz (code SEC) Just Google the paint code with something helpful like "Jaguar paint code" and you'll get the answer. Hope this helps.

I've used these people for the last six years. Super service and a real interest in the car. They go the extra mile to keep costs down and will try to source decent used parts when appropriate. Harwich is a small town and I guess they need to keep their customer base happy. Motortech 9-10 East St, Harwich, Essex CO12 3AS 01255 552685

About the S-Type fob reprogramming - I tried all the switching on and off, flashing, boot open/closed, door open/closed, ad nauseam. When I went to the lock people they looked at that option but quickly established that they were in to a plug-in situation which then required (via key reader) a software token (which they have to buy). The re-coded fob is traceable to their machine and time stamped. Apparently there are variations to lock systems fitted to s-types of this age - the security of this set-up must be better than being able to flick a few switches to "clone" a fob.

I needed a second fob for my S-type. I managed to get a key and fob via ebay for £3. I threw the key away and had the fob matched to the car. Independent locksmiths with the necessary kit (avoid national chains and call centres) will do this very competitively. In my case they charged me £20 inc VAT. My jag is 2001 and, whilst fobs for several Jag models can be reset from within the car, this one cannot. I had mine done by keysisus.co.uk in Colchester. Excellent while you wait (10 mins) service. I was delighted. Don't forget to replace the battery in the fob before getting it recoded. Oh! and they will need the car, your keys and the fob that needs programming.