Discussion
I only had mine for 9 months before it got written off. Whether I had a bad one I'm not sure, but the auto box was never predictable. Sometimes it would kick down, sometimes it refused to - you never knew quite what was going to happen when you pulled out to overtake and put your foot down. I found 'Sports mode' pointless; unlike previous Jags I'd had it just put you one gear lower, wasting fuel. But the car was deceptively fast thanks to oodles of torque, and had loads of luggage space. Interior is nicer than the rivals. I replaced it with an XK convertible which I preferred in every respect.
The engine has a terrible reputation in Land Rovers but appears to be pretty good in Jaguars - I see loads of XFs and XJs going through the lanes at BCA with absolutely intergalactic mileage on them and very few in the non runners.
Change the oil at half intervals (6k miles) to avoid oil dilution, and use it appropriately for a diesel and I think you'll be fine. As with all diesels lots and lots and lots of users with bad experience are using the car entirely inappropriately for any diesel, let alone a larger one.
ZF6 is a bit old hat now, although I've not found them as bad as the previous poster, post 2012 you get a ZF8 which would be nice to have.
Change the oil at half intervals (6k miles) to avoid oil dilution, and use it appropriately for a diesel and I think you'll be fine. As with all diesels lots and lots and lots of users with bad experience are using the car entirely inappropriately for any diesel, let alone a larger one.
ZF6 is a bit old hat now, although I've not found them as bad as the previous poster, post 2012 you get a ZF8 which would be nice to have.
Lincsls1 said:
stickleback123 said:
As with all diesels lots and lots and lots of users with bad experience are using the car entirely inappropriately for any diesel, let alone a larger one.
What do you mean please?Basically the sort of supermarket/school run/5 miles to work stuff. It wasn't good for pre DPF diesels and it's absolutely fatal for modern ones.
stickleback123 said:
Lots of short journeys, city driving, no nice long hour+ runs to get properly hot, do a DPF regen etc.
Basically the sort of supermarket/school run/5 miles to work stuff. It wasn't good for pre DPF diesels and it's absolutely fatal for modern ones.
Ah yes of course. You're quite right.Basically the sort of supermarket/school run/5 miles to work stuff. It wasn't good for pre DPF diesels and it's absolutely fatal for modern ones.
I recently sold my Portfolio edition after 10 years of ownership. Never once let me down, but the electrics can sometimes do some funny things, e.g. my wipers played up occasionally, wiping painfully slowly. The drivers power window got stuck half open and refused to move, both fixed themselves after a while and for no reason. A power off and on, or performing the relevant reset procedure usually fixes things. Had to replace the steering rack, two rear arms and all the wheel sensors but that was all.
The engine has bags of torque, dynamic mode preloads the throttle to make it seem a bit quicker than normal. Sport mode makes it hang onto the gears a bit too long for my liking. It's pretty quiet as diesels go, with smooth power delivery. Never had any gearbox issues and found mine (6 speed) to be very consistent. Did around 26 mpg in town but nearly 60 mpg on a decent run. Never had any DPF issues even with some protracted town usage.
The interiors are a class above the competition, the only downside on early models is the dash top, it cracks and bulges and comes away at the edges. Big job to change it as its basically the whose dashboard and a repair isn't easy in-situ,unless you take the glass out.
Cam belt change (100k / 10 years) is a nasty big expensive job, as is servicing through the Jag network but but there's plenty of independent specialists around. Properly serviced and looked after they can do some galactic mileages. Older models are a lot of car for little money if you can find a low mileage example.
The engine has bags of torque, dynamic mode preloads the throttle to make it seem a bit quicker than normal. Sport mode makes it hang onto the gears a bit too long for my liking. It's pretty quiet as diesels go, with smooth power delivery. Never had any gearbox issues and found mine (6 speed) to be very consistent. Did around 26 mpg in town but nearly 60 mpg on a decent run. Never had any DPF issues even with some protracted town usage.
The interiors are a class above the competition, the only downside on early models is the dash top, it cracks and bulges and comes away at the edges. Big job to change it as its basically the whose dashboard and a repair isn't easy in-situ,unless you take the glass out.
Cam belt change (100k / 10 years) is a nasty big expensive job, as is servicing through the Jag network but but there's plenty of independent specialists around. Properly serviced and looked after they can do some galactic mileages. Older models are a lot of car for little money if you can find a low mileage example.
Those weird electrical gremlins appear to be common to every car from every manufacturer now. Off and on again almost always sorts it.
Bad luck on the rack though, bet that was a kick in the wallet. I've had quotes of between £350 and £500 for the cambelt job, so count on £400 - £450 and you won't go too far wrong.
Bad luck on the rack though, bet that was a kick in the wallet. I've had quotes of between £350 and £500 for the cambelt job, so count on £400 - £450 and you won't go too far wrong.
Just into my 6th year of ownership of a 2010 3.0d Portfolio S. Bought it at 7000 miles/6.5 years old and currently on 44000. It had a faulty fuel filter water sensor on the day I got it (common fault, cheap fix) and the aircon gave up after 3 days, probably because it had been sitting going nowhere for several years before I bought it so the seals had dried up and the gas escaped. A new condenser pipe, service and a re-gas and it has been fine since.
Tyre Pressure Monitoring System was a bit scatty on long journeys, losing communication with the sensors frequently. I changed the TPMS ECU for one from a late model facelift XF and it has been much better, although not completely alleviated (still loses comms occasionally but resets after a few minutes).
I'm on my third set of brake discs. The first set were ruined because the car had been static for several years. The second were OEM and were terrible for stopping plus developed an unexplained wobble (not warping or pad-pickup), so I them changed for (Italian made) LPR discs and Pagid pads and everything has been great since. Also had to replace the age-hardened Dunlop tyres.
Biggest issue was an MOT advisory in 2021 for corrosion on the rear subframe and perishing of the rubber subframe mounts (again, probably due to the car sitting idle over many Scottish winters before I acquired it). I bought a second-hand subframe which I refurbished myself, new mounts (from the USA - much cheaper than from UK suppliers even taking into account VAT and import duty), new lower arm bushes (to refurb the existing arms) and completely new upper arms (because the balljoints are not serviceable), plus new-old-stock genuine Jaguar/Bilstein dampers (which I got relatively cheaply because the part numbers had changed due to a logo-font update by Jaguar - I kid you not), track control arms and ARB bushes and used it as an excuse to completely overhaul the rear end. Replaced the diff oil at the time too.
I am now contemplating timing belt replacement (nowhere near mileage wise, but age-wise it is getting there!), and my investigations into this job revealed that it is prudent to replace the crank-shaft driven oil pump at the same time, or at least have one on hand for a very specific reason. It appears that one of the reasons the 'Lion' diesel engine has had so many failures in Land Rovers yet fewer problems in Jaguars is that JLR quietly modified the oil pump design to take into account a physical weakness in the pump where the tensioner for the timing belt was bolted to. If I have any reason to believe mine is the earlier design I will change it!
This is the longest I have kept a car and I have never felt any need to replace it. It is relaxing, comfortable on even the longest of journeys (I have complete several pan-European trips in it), deceptively quick (a hoot on the autobahn) and still gets attention, admiring glances and knowing looks.
Probably the best thing to come out of the Jaguar/Ford tie-up.
Tyre Pressure Monitoring System was a bit scatty on long journeys, losing communication with the sensors frequently. I changed the TPMS ECU for one from a late model facelift XF and it has been much better, although not completely alleviated (still loses comms occasionally but resets after a few minutes).
I'm on my third set of brake discs. The first set were ruined because the car had been static for several years. The second were OEM and were terrible for stopping plus developed an unexplained wobble (not warping or pad-pickup), so I them changed for (Italian made) LPR discs and Pagid pads and everything has been great since. Also had to replace the age-hardened Dunlop tyres.
Biggest issue was an MOT advisory in 2021 for corrosion on the rear subframe and perishing of the rubber subframe mounts (again, probably due to the car sitting idle over many Scottish winters before I acquired it). I bought a second-hand subframe which I refurbished myself, new mounts (from the USA - much cheaper than from UK suppliers even taking into account VAT and import duty), new lower arm bushes (to refurb the existing arms) and completely new upper arms (because the balljoints are not serviceable), plus new-old-stock genuine Jaguar/Bilstein dampers (which I got relatively cheaply because the part numbers had changed due to a logo-font update by Jaguar - I kid you not), track control arms and ARB bushes and used it as an excuse to completely overhaul the rear end. Replaced the diff oil at the time too.
I am now contemplating timing belt replacement (nowhere near mileage wise, but age-wise it is getting there!), and my investigations into this job revealed that it is prudent to replace the crank-shaft driven oil pump at the same time, or at least have one on hand for a very specific reason. It appears that one of the reasons the 'Lion' diesel engine has had so many failures in Land Rovers yet fewer problems in Jaguars is that JLR quietly modified the oil pump design to take into account a physical weakness in the pump where the tensioner for the timing belt was bolted to. If I have any reason to believe mine is the earlier design I will change it!
This is the longest I have kept a car and I have never felt any need to replace it. It is relaxing, comfortable on even the longest of journeys (I have complete several pan-European trips in it), deceptively quick (a hoot on the autobahn) and still gets attention, admiring glances and knowing looks.
Probably the best thing to come out of the Jaguar/Ford tie-up.
Evercross said:
Tyre Pressure Monitoring System was a bit scatty on long journeys, losing communication with the sensors frequently. I changed the TPMS ECU for one from a late model facelift XF and it has been much better, although not completely alleviated (still loses comms occasionally but resets after a few minutes).
My 07 XKR does this. It's always the NSF tyre and will reconnect after a few mins. I thought it was the batteries or the wand needs replacing.I had the module replaced last year as it threw up a system fault that wouldn't go away. Annoyingly that fault popped up again on boxing day but this time it reset itself on the way back home yesterday.
Fingers crossed....
Had mine for around three months and still love it. It's deceptively large but doesn't feel cumbersome to drive which seems the right balance to me. Mine doesn't have front parking sensors and my wife (5ft 6") can't see the bonnet unless she puts the seat up which she doesn't like. Just a thing to bear in mind if you're a bit shorter!
Mine had an issue under warranty with the turbo actuator valve. There are two turbos, a small one and a big one, and it kicks over to the second one at 2800rpm or so. Mine would sometimes kick over, sometimes not and throw up a "restricted performance" limp mode. All good since replacing though! Apparently quite a common issue and if you potter around you'll notice it changes gear before it actually uses the second turbo which I suspect may be the cause of it seizing up over time.
Also had battery issues but despite all the panic about batteries on these the early ones are like any other car and can be replaced in the usual way. I replaced a reversing sensor (£35) because one failed which cleverly knocks all of them out and I currently have an issue with a rear door actuator sometimes refusing to unlock. It's a 13 year old car so I did expect the odd niggle. Average around 35mpg with mixed driving too which seems ok to me.
It has the worst auto wipers and wipe/wash function of any car I've ever owned.
Mine had an issue under warranty with the turbo actuator valve. There are two turbos, a small one and a big one, and it kicks over to the second one at 2800rpm or so. Mine would sometimes kick over, sometimes not and throw up a "restricted performance" limp mode. All good since replacing though! Apparently quite a common issue and if you potter around you'll notice it changes gear before it actually uses the second turbo which I suspect may be the cause of it seizing up over time.
Also had battery issues but despite all the panic about batteries on these the early ones are like any other car and can be replaced in the usual way. I replaced a reversing sensor (£35) because one failed which cleverly knocks all of them out and I currently have an issue with a rear door actuator sometimes refusing to unlock. It's a 13 year old car so I did expect the odd niggle. Average around 35mpg with mixed driving too which seems ok to me.
It has the worst auto wipers and wipe/wash function of any car I've ever owned.
StoatInACoat said:
Had mine for around three months and still love it. It's deceptively large but doesn't feel cumbersome to drive which seems the right balance to me. Mine doesn't have front parking sensors and my wife (5ft 6") can't see the bonnet unless she puts the seat up which she doesn't like. Just a thing to bear in mind if you're a bit shorter!
Mine had an issue under warranty with the turbo actuator valve. There are two turbos, a small one and a big one, and it kicks over to the second one at 2800rpm or so. Mine would sometimes kick over, sometimes not and throw up a "restricted performance" limp mode. All good since replacing though! Apparently quite a common issue and if you potter around you'll notice it changes gear before it actually uses the second turbo which I suspect may be the cause of it seizing up over time.
Also had battery issues but despite all the panic about batteries on these the early ones are like any other car and can be replaced in the usual way. I replaced a reversing sensor (£35) because one failed which cleverly knocks all of them out and I currently have an issue with a rear door actuator sometimes refusing to unlock. It's a 13 year old car so I did expect the odd niggle. Average around 35mpg with mixed driving too which seems ok to me.
It has the worst auto wipers and wipe/wash function of any car I've ever owned.
I've wondered that about the turbos, if you drove normally the 2nd one would never get any use. Like any car it really does need to be used properly on a regular basis, which means more than 2800RPM!Mine had an issue under warranty with the turbo actuator valve. There are two turbos, a small one and a big one, and it kicks over to the second one at 2800rpm or so. Mine would sometimes kick over, sometimes not and throw up a "restricted performance" limp mode. All good since replacing though! Apparently quite a common issue and if you potter around you'll notice it changes gear before it actually uses the second turbo which I suspect may be the cause of it seizing up over time.
Also had battery issues but despite all the panic about batteries on these the early ones are like any other car and can be replaced in the usual way. I replaced a reversing sensor (£35) because one failed which cleverly knocks all of them out and I currently have an issue with a rear door actuator sometimes refusing to unlock. It's a 13 year old car so I did expect the odd niggle. Average around 35mpg with mixed driving too which seems ok to me.
It has the worst auto wipers and wipe/wash function of any car I've ever owned.
You're right about the auto wipers, all these things are always a bit naff and under developed on a Jaguar, but if you want something really half arsed and crap try the "High Beam Assist" that came with the X351. Flashing the lights on and off when it feels like, dipping them again only after some poor sod has had a full 2-3 seconds of full beam in their eyes, total crap.
StoatInACoat said:
Mine had an issue under warranty with the turbo actuator valve. There are two turbos, a small one and a big one, and it kicks over to the second one at 2800rpm or so. Mine would sometimes kick over, sometimes not and throw up a "restricted performance" limp mode.
I had this exact issue with mine just after the first lockdown as the car had been stationery for months. The problem isn't the actuator per-se but the joint between it and the switchover valve, which was originally made of a material that corroded and caused the actuator to stick. Exceptionally common issue and almost all will have been replaced by now with a modified part made of a different material.Mine had never been done before (because the car was 7 years and 7,000 miles old when I got it) so missed out on it being a warranty fix, but the part was about £30 plus an hour's labour for fitting.
The car drove like a bag of spanners before it was done and it was quite alarming considering what a seemingly insignificant little part was involved.
Some garages not aware that an improved joint is available from dealers as a specific repair part will overcharge and replace the whole actuator - beware!
stickleback123 said:
You're right about the auto wipers, all these things are always a bit naff and under developed on a Jaguar, but if you want something really half arsed and crap try the "High Beam Assist" that came with the X351. Flashing the lights on and off when it feels like, dipping them again only after some poor sod has had a full 2-3 seconds of full beam in their eyes, total crap.
I suppose I imagined they might be a bit less rubbish than the ones I had on a Peugeot years ago that was built in 1999 
I regularly find myself shouting "WIPE YOU IDIOT, I'M BLIND!" or "PLEASE STOP WIPING YOU IDIOT, THE WASHER JETS ARE FROZEN AND YOU'RE MAKING IT WORSE!" at them. Perhaps I should find a way of disabling them and just having old fashioned intermittent.
I did drive my Dads old X350 from time to time and I did like the fact I could set all the auto stuff on it like a normal person and he could set it back to analogue when he'd worked out why the lights and wipers were doing their own thing. Modern, but with an optional old man mode.
I've got a 2012 XF 3.0D premium, and I will probably drive it now until major failure or write off.
I've had it since 2016, and these are the issues that have cropped up.
Rear wheel bearing replaced. A kerb clip at speed had introduced a back end judder at speed. Misdiagnosed several times as buckles, balancing, alignment, but it was the bearing. Instant fix on replacement.
Lots of brake replacements. Judder under braking seems to be a big one for the XF. I have heard that heavy braking followed by sitting on the brakes can cause warping. This matches my driving, but I've not found a convenient way of changing this yet, so annual to bi-annual disc replacement has been a feature.
Inlet manifolds blew at 105k. The inlet manifolds/rocker covers are plastic. Apparently these can become brittle over 100k. Mine did, and rejoining traffic under heavy acceleration cause a pop and restricted performance. Fix was around £2.5k at dealer and independent. Replaced these myself for around £400, but it is a big job.
Timing belt replacement at 100k, don't scrimp on this.
Alternator failure. There is no computer on the XF to tell you the alternator has failed. The first indication is often computer messages about gear box issues. The gearbox system is most sensitive to low voltage. Followed by a Christmas tree of lights and a dead car. Quotes for this seem to be around £1k, but Halfords did it for £400. I couldn't even buy a reconditioned alternator for that at the time.
Coolant leak. The thermostat housing seam failed. This part is not too bad to replace, but the car will let you lose a lot of coolant before telling you this, and the coolant isn't cheap.
Regular Jaguar or authorised independent servicing. I have recently extended official servicing out to 18 months, as it is older and I am doing less mileage, but it helps keep it in good condition.
Saying that, the car has been very reliable, body work is solid, and interior very comfortable. I love the upgraded audio system on the premiums.
I've had it since 2016, and these are the issues that have cropped up.
Rear wheel bearing replaced. A kerb clip at speed had introduced a back end judder at speed. Misdiagnosed several times as buckles, balancing, alignment, but it was the bearing. Instant fix on replacement.
Lots of brake replacements. Judder under braking seems to be a big one for the XF. I have heard that heavy braking followed by sitting on the brakes can cause warping. This matches my driving, but I've not found a convenient way of changing this yet, so annual to bi-annual disc replacement has been a feature.
Inlet manifolds blew at 105k. The inlet manifolds/rocker covers are plastic. Apparently these can become brittle over 100k. Mine did, and rejoining traffic under heavy acceleration cause a pop and restricted performance. Fix was around £2.5k at dealer and independent. Replaced these myself for around £400, but it is a big job.
Timing belt replacement at 100k, don't scrimp on this.
Alternator failure. There is no computer on the XF to tell you the alternator has failed. The first indication is often computer messages about gear box issues. The gearbox system is most sensitive to low voltage. Followed by a Christmas tree of lights and a dead car. Quotes for this seem to be around £1k, but Halfords did it for £400. I couldn't even buy a reconditioned alternator for that at the time.
Coolant leak. The thermostat housing seam failed. This part is not too bad to replace, but the car will let you lose a lot of coolant before telling you this, and the coolant isn't cheap.
Regular Jaguar or authorised independent servicing. I have recently extended official servicing out to 18 months, as it is older and I am doing less mileage, but it helps keep it in good condition.
Saying that, the car has been very reliable, body work is solid, and interior very comfortable. I love the upgraded audio system on the premiums.
slimmct said:
No... 
I admittedly had not picked up that's a thing. Is this common enough to get it serviced proactively??
If you changed the timing belt and tensioner at 100k miles and you are now up at 105k miles then you are probably fine as far as having the pump with the strengthened tensioner mounting already fitted. The failure usually occurs shortly after the timing belt change because the process of removing and replacing the tensioner causes the older, weaker design to crack. It seems that almost all XF 3.0 diesels are fine and it is only likely to be the older 2.7s that will have the inferior pump. I admittedly had not picked up that's a thing. Is this common enough to get it serviced proactively??To be honest though it probably isn't worth changing it now for the sake of it as the labour is identical to changing the timing belt (because the pump is fitted behind the timing sprocket on the crankshaft). Might be worth getting your oil pressure tested for peace of mind and if it is showing within tolerances for now just leave it.
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