Breaker

Replacement for the S8 comes in the form of this 2011 XJL. I’m a sucker for a large car if that’s not already obvious I’ve always loved the XJ look and styling, I think for a large car, it is large! It holds its style really well, plenty of dispute on the rear end and lights, but I really like the individuality this car brings over pretty much anything else in this class. I also feel it has aged well now a few years on. The supercharged version would have been adorable however, some, sanity prevails and this is nearly the 5.0 V8. 380 odd horses. Most of my daily work is motorway so an easy cruise on the V8 is no issue. Petrol consumption should be considerably better then the V10 (for sale) or V12 E38 which will now be a more special alternative drive. Aluminium body is quite light for its size which will help both fuel and handling. Long wheel base over short, well I think cohesively the shape works well in LWB and I feel you can see it was originally designed this way so why not, no major disadvantages to it other then the extra 125mm in length. Good parking sensors and camera, definitely necessity. The sound is glorious! More AMG muscle throb then BMWs more muted reving V8s that I have heard, yet sublimely quiet on motorway duty. Interior is also unique and beautifully crafted, even 7 years on, no rattles or squeaks apparant, although only 50k on this import example, ex Singapore incidentally so likely more equivalent to 100k NZ new with the round town driving it would have been in service for. Infotainment is a bit more mid 2000s then super current but you get, Nav, Bluetooth and streaming, iPod connectivity and USB, plus dual viewing capability so your passenger can watch a DVD while you have Nav on, probably pointless but cool nonetheless. Seats and adjustments and sublime also, better then the S8 and the F01s I have driven before getting this.Plus heated and cooled seats front and rear, Adaptive cruise control and it’s a very pleasant place to be. So a great start, 2 year warranty to cover any concerns but overall these have a pretty good rep and are a much cheaper warranty then a 7 series or S class.

Well all done, bit of a mission but well worth it. while I was mucking around I pulled the hydraulic boot motor and reservoir out, topped it up and got that back to 100%. Boot works great now Now wheel alignment to tidy up the suspension change and just about done! Yes

Lovely E32, nothing like a nice 7. Hope you enjoy it. plenty of good info on bimmerforums.com as well, very specific and might be useful for you.

Yeah they are ok, just lacking some flair though in my opinion, that with stem seal issues on the v8 and things don’t look so rosy, they feel very big to drive as well compared to even the Jag. Drove an A7 as well, that seemed a little numb but was well appointed interior, budget didn’t stretch to even looking at an RS7, unfortunately

Righto, Audi has been in ownership for coming up 2 years and time for a change, anyone looking for a V10 with 170k on the clock. Hit me up $15k sound like a deal? Front end was tided up recently after it got pulled off backing out of a car park so looks great, here’s a couple of pics from Saturday. Funny @Michael. you mentioned the XJ, I’d forgotten that till I looked back at this, always knew you had good taste. I just couldn’t do a 7 F01 or an F10. Details on the XJ to come ....

Can you stretch an M2 from a 2002t, both fast small 2drs in a time when over inflated cars getting bigger and fatter? Both lightweight versions made to thrill. interesting ideas, what else?

Yes it is, balancing cost, quality and life. We will see how it goes. Good fitment so far and it’s wasnt the cheapest but ends up 1/2 the price of Lemforder ex ECS or FCP.

Front suspension changed, control arms etc. Not that hard except for the damn tie rod ball joint on the steering arm. Idler arm came off ok. Ended up taking it off with the tie rod, using the ball joint remover on the garage floor at full tension (much as I could anyway) and ended up slicing the end of the bolt off, took plenty of care with that amount of tension on the tool, reverted to a BFH and a metal wedge thing. Back end next. Pic of parts being replaced.

Started this fun, front first then rear ...

Doesn’t count no E38s - 69%

Old favourite from the 38 brigade

Idler arm replaced on the 740, didn’t seem to bad but has tightened up the steering nicely. Should be good for it’s warant recheck now

I thought that’s what the 2 series was for, shame

Yip!

Better add them to the order ....

Suspension replacements all arrived, start that when the 740 gets a warrant,Yes. fail that. No. Steering idler arm replacement needed. Ordered that and got another for the 750, while under the 740 left engine mount is going, ordered that and will do both obviously ? at the same time. Bingo with the 750; why not change everything at once. Oh and the steering fluid reservoir is leaking on the 740 so might as well do that as well, might be another couple of weeks before I start on the 750 .... All up a couple hundred bucks extra from FCP so can’t complain and its worth the effort to tidy up. ????

It is an inherent issue, I’ve heard values over 10k so likely on the money, once done they apparently are a great engine again

Will be epic with some love

Weekends are my round

Would love to mate but parked in AKLD now. Novotel is a good spot right in town. The Quest serviced appartments are great option, Grand Chancellor is a little older but still good standard. Better to be right in town, you can walk everywhere then, restaurants , out to the water front etc. Great spot is the social kitchen if your after something to convince the better half and are partial to a meatfest. Most of the restaurants in town are pretty good though to be honest, all walking distance. Taxi or shuttle to town is an easy cheap trip fro, the airport. good luck !!

Probably running on 22s in the pic, look like 15s the thing is so huge! Makes the 7 look compact

Heard plenty of stories re spraying parcel trays and no epic fails so I’d try that, just some fabric spray from repco or alike

Gut tells me 95 minimum would be suitable from my uneducated internet knowledge lol. E39 was probably built before 98 RON was commen

Part it out, few hundred dollars for the key parts, rest is junk unfortunately. Outside of the 95s I’ve seen better examples already scrapped