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Old 08-07-2010, 09:53 AM   #1
nickthelimey
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Unhappy 2003 Jaguar XKR Convertible Roof Hydraulic Woes & Jaguar Customer Service

Here's my tale of woe which includes deep deep disappointment with Jaguar USA customer service.
First off; I love my 2003 XKR except for the reliability issues. Although a 2003, I purchased it "new" in the summer of 2005 from the dealer, who's wife had put about 1,100 miles on it in the 2 years the dealer had it on the lot. Of course, the warranty started from 2003, so I only got 4 years, even with the select edition warranty.
Not withstanding a bunch of minor items like headrest motors going bad and the sub woofer needing to be replaced, the car has been pretty good, as it should have been since the original price was nearly $90,000 and today it only has 14,050 miles on it.
Back in May 2010 (8 months after the warranty expired) I was starting to close the roof when all of a sudden, I got drenched with a couple of quarts of warm hydraulic fluid that poured down from above the windshield. All over the leather seats and lots of it seeping into the shifter mechanism. Lovely!
After checking some forums, I of course realized that I wasn't the first to experience this event. I called my Jag dealer who made sympathetic noises but reminded me I was out of warranty. He knew the price off the top of his head to replace the hoses ($1,417 + tax), plus an extra grand or so if the pistons had also gone bad.
After a long discussion about how my car was essentially new in terms of wear and looks, he suggested I contact Jaguar USA about having them cover the repair. This I did:
First I spoke with someone called Maximo who also stuck by the Jaguar line that out of warranty means out of warranty even if the issue is a clear engineering one. I did ask if they were designing major parts to fail after 14,000 miles but it went on deaf ears. I did eventually get an email back telling me they wouldn't help. So I escalated to the next higher person to someone called Migliozzi. He was none too helpful and also refused to deviate from the company line. He didn't want to put me in touch with his boss until I insisted. When I spoke with her, it was the same thing; terse, unhelpful and not willing to stand behind their product. She would not let me escalate further.
To cut a long story short, I never really expected Jaguar to come to my aid as they have a long reputation for being less that wholly customer focused. So I paid up at my local dealer - $66 for the fluid, $351 for the hoses and $1,000 for 8 hours labor - OUCH. At least the pistons were OK.
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Old 10-15-2010, 06:53 PM   #2
danielsatur
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Re: 2003 Jaguar XKR Convertible Roof Hydraulic Woes & Jaguar Customer Service

It sounds like an accident, see if your insurance will cover it!
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Old 10-16-2010, 01:05 PM   #3
Franco2112
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Re: 2003 Jaguar XKR Convertible Roof Hydraulic Woes & Jaguar Customer Service

A pay check is more important. When Jag goes out of business they will wish they would have taken care of their customers better. No more pay check.
Franco
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Old 10-30-2010, 05:49 PM   #4
SeismicGuy
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Re: 2003 Jaguar XKR Convertible Roof Hydraulic Woes & Jaguar Customer Service

Sorry to hear you joined the "green monster" club. I bought my 2005 XKR a couple of years ago from a private party (only 16,000 miles on the clock and 2 years left on the Select Edition warranty). A month or so after I got the car I noticed a couple of drops of fluid coming from the overhead console. Since I had the SE warranty it ended up being covered (although it was not a slam dunk but Jaguar eventually agreed). More recently the pump motor for the top died just before my warranty expired. Again, this was covered but the pump itself lists for about $2,000.

A word of warning--now that you have gotten your new hoses you should install one of the 2 kits available to lower the pressure to reduce the possibility of another failure. This is discussed in excruciating detail on another Jaguar forum or you can google LSI relief valve to find one of the solutions.

Good luck,

Doug
2005 XKR Convertible
Los Angeles
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Old 11-02-2010, 05:26 PM   #5
danielsatur
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Re: 2003 Jaguar XKR Convertible Roof Hydraulic Woes & Jaguar Customer Service

I would drain all fluid, clean the mess up ,keep the top down, and save it for summer driving.

Who cares, if the Dual Climate control (DCCU) go's bad, because you don't need heat in the summer with your top down.
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