PontiacBonnevilleClub.com

My mom bought this car new and after it lost reverse, finally decided to let it go.

Since its got 67k, was garage kept, super clean, dealer serviced unless I was working on it, and does well in the snow, I asked my mom to let me have it for what she would get for a trade in. $500 later, it was mine.. well, my girlfriends. It'll be her car and the goal is to get 4-5 years out of it to avoid high insurance and new car payments for that time period. The advantage over other used cars is knowing the car's history.

The exterior will look new with a detail and headlight refinish. The interior is in good shape. The dash needs some attention around the defrost vents and there's some minor bolster wear.

I pulled the trans this weekend and pulled it apart to see if it was a common band or servo issue. Turns out it wasn't.. One of the drums ripped at the top where the clutch pack retention snap ring landing is. There were signs of this metal making it's way through the trans too. Since it's not a simple fix and required purchasing hard parts, I'm going with the used replacement route. I'm going to see what my buddy's can do through their shop contact and go with whatever they find or one of the low-mile options I've found on the interweb.







^^And the culprit. See the teeth up top? That's because that section of the drum is missing.

The basic disassembly wasn't too bad. I put it all back together to use as a core and lining up the clutch packs was more annoying than I remember my 4t60-e being.

The new trans cam yesterday as well as the fluid, axle seals, transfer case to trans o-ring, but the input shaft seal did not.. Ebay estimated it to be here today. I messaged yesterday to no ship it if it hasn't gone out and to cancel because I need it by today because the tracking number only showed a label was created. Sure enough I go to check the tracking number and it was accepted yesterday and due to be delivered Monday.. I called and btched but only got excuses so I hung up. So, tomorrow morning I'm driving an hour and a half away to go pick up the seal at the closest jag dealer that has it in stock.

I got the new seals and all in and a resealed the two side pans today but that's it.

Awesome. I've always liked these cars. I nearly bought one but it lacked headroom for me

Is it AWD? I think they all were then, but I could be wrong.

The X-Type got a lot of stick from Jaguar purists for not being a 'proper' Jag as it was built on the Ford Mondeo platform and used a lot of Ford parts, but they're a nice driving car and are great value for money nowadays. Of course Jaguar is now having another go at cracking the compact luxury sector with the XE.

@Cody, Thanks . Yeah the ceiling on these is a bit low.

@Simon Yep, they were all awd. A lot of people say the x-type is a luxury Ford Contour (Mondeo) and it does use the Ford 2.5l Duratec. The trans is shared with Landrover, VW, and Mazda. So, yeah a bit of a hodgepodge. But, from what I've seen, the overall build quality is good, the styling is Jag enough for me, and it does really well in the snow.

I actually tried to convince my mom to wait and get an XE. She ended up with a 2.5l Fusion.. Not a terrible car but a step down IMO.

FWIW, I saw a ton of these in Gibraltar when I was there last month. Interesting to see a British Overseas Territory with LHD cars driving on the right.

95naSTA wrote:and it does really well in the snow.

Indeed it does! I remember this from Top Gear:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2QvSymMUL4A

Haha. I've never actually seen that.

Sweet! Very nice-looking car. And I hear you, as an avid ancient-car driver, knowing the history of the car makes it worth so much more. Looking at those pictures makes me want to take apart a transmission someday... I think I can do it.

Thanks Rach.

Good news. I finished the car up Friday afternoon. Shifts good and has reverse. The g/f and I drove it around for a few hours yesterday and today.

I already fixed the headliner, e-brake boot, and glued the dash back down. So the interior is very minty now.

Looks good!

Awesome work!

Your ability to work on any and all cars amazes me. Haha.

nos4blood70 wrote:Your ability to work on any and all cars amazes me. Haha.

Lots of people think I'm a pretty decent mechanic, but my skills pale in comparison to yours, lol.

Thanks guys!

FWIW, I had the trans removal section of the FSM printed, grouped everything in baggies, and took a couple pics for reference. I could do it all over without all that but since it was the first time pulling the car apart I didn't want to miss anything. All the plastics, shields, random brackets and other b.s. I would normally take out went back in. The closer I have this car to stock, the less chance I'll have of getting a call about it when I'm on travel or something.

Now, if this was my car it would be 5-speed swapped already and I would be figuring out how I want to lower it.. lol

Hahaha. Transmissions just scare the crap out of me, like doing brain surgery...

00Beast wrote:Hahaha. Transmissions just scare the crap out of me, like doing brain surgery...

THIS

Definitely with you on keeping family member cars stock, ha!

After a few mins the faded rear valance is no more with Mothers Back to Black.

Pics from a couple weeks ago, all cleaned up. I still need to refinish the headlights but otherwise the car is in good shape.

14 years young.

Looks like a brand new car. And you can't beat the price! Transmissions...the final frontier..to go boldly where I've never gone before...

I've got to say though, with the bounty of tear down videos and general information out there, I'm not nearly as afraid to tackle one as I was back in the day. Though the valve body is probably still the scariest part for me...that's the brain surgery there. Confidence is what most home mechanics are lacking. Which is why I love working with people above and below my skill level. I like to show people that actually, you can do this job! And I also like to work with people that can show me that actually, You can do this job! And this is how you do it! I have to admit, I'm a bit of a junky when it comes to car repair videos and the like. Welding, that's my next skill to learn...another scary one for the beginner.

Nice job on the car though! Keep us up to date on its performance. Seems to me though, if you can run it through its paces and it works, it's generally going to keep working.

Lately I've getting this thing ready to be shipped out to San Diego for my wife.

Back in Feb the car was running a little rough. Since it had 82k on it, I decided to do the plugs, belts, all the gaskets from the LIM up and the PCV + tube. Here are a few pics I snapped during.




The old:


The oil pan had been a little damp the last couple oil changes so I opted to do the seal while I still have access to a lift. It ended up being rough enough for me to not take any pictures. One of the pan bolts is shrouded by the transfer case. You can either drop the case which runs the risk of damaging the hard to replace trans to transfer case seal or grind down a section of cast webbing on the case to clear. I went the latter route and it probably would have taken me less time to drop the case and do the seal. Oh well, the pan is bone dry on the outside now.

Today I replaced the fuel pump which is unfortunately the second time in a year. This time around it had the same symptoms I had experienced with the 528i. The pressure was good but it would not hold pressure during prime or after key off, making for hard starts. The internal pump check valve wasn't working. Having done this back in December, it went a lot quicker. Even though the exhaust/driveshaft have to come down and the rear moved, I think it took just over 3 hours.



The only other thing it really needs is a headliner. I may just do that at a buddy's house in San Diego sometime down the line.

Nice! Looks like you're getting the years you wanted out of the thing.

While it takes up your time, fixing cars on your own saves a whole bunch of money.. Even before you consider what a car payment is like.