Long wait for car repair.

CrustyClam

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Hi,

Posting this on behalf of my daughters partner to see what the consensus is and what to do next. (He doesn't know I'm asking )

Currently his Jaguar XE is awaiting to be fixed at a garage. It went in on the 6th December for electrical issues. Certain electrical systems had failed, but the car was driveable, but not really safe to keep using due to the systems that had failed. (Battery was replaced initially, another garage tested it and it was low, that didn't help though)

Various modules have been replaced and coded. Think the price has added up to a fair bit.

The car won't even start now. Just seems to be excuses now.

After 3 months i wouldn't class this as acceptable, especially shelling out some serious money for parts that haven't fixed it. The can't even get the engine to start now.

No end in sight yet.


Cheers
 

Gazwould

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Good reputation according to what ?
 

Tony Dyson

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Hi,

Posting this on behalf of my daughters partner to see what the consensus is and what to do next. (He doesn't know I'm asking )

Currently his Jaguar XE is awaiting to be fixed at a garage. It went in on the 6th December for electrical issues. Certain electrical systems had failed, but the car was driveable, but not really safe to keep using due to the systems that had failed. (Battery was replaced initially, another garage tested it and it was low, that didn't help though)

Various modules have been replaced and coded. Think the price has added up to a fair bit.

The car won't even start now. Just seems to be excuses now.

After 3 months i wouldn't class this as acceptable, especially shelling out some serious money for parts that haven't fixed it. The can't even get the engine to start now.

No end in sight yet.


Cheers
You need to manage your SIL better than you are doing! :) he clearly needs help, but until he requests it, you are on a hiding to nothing with only partial information from one party and filling in the gaps with guesswork and assumptions. I would arrange a dinner with Daughter and partner, have an open and frank discussion about the status-quo, offer to assist and make my first objective a meeting with the garage to assess them and their side of the story to date, I'm sure you'll be in a far better position to advise a way forward with both sides of the story so far.
 

mioba

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Garages who deal with many brands are a no go for specialsit issues like what you are experiencing, they are good for only mundane tasks like changing brake pads and disks. They are jack of all trades master of none.

"Many brand" gagarages is purely a advertising gimmick to make you believe they know what they are doing.

Without knowing too much about the car (beyong a quick google) its obv fairly modern (2015-) so will have some sophisticated electronics. Diagnosing a battery is easy and far too simple if you can use a volt meter.

Its an expensive car with a fault that maybe easiy to retify by one with knowledge (obv what your current garage hasnt got). Either get on a Jag forum and find a jaguar independent near you or bite the bullet and go to a dealer. Unfortuneataly you will need to explain to new garage whats been changed. Your current garage are sinply not fault finding, but fault assuming = big bucks

Things like this make one just fall out love with the car and its a actually the not the cars fault.

Jags will have complicated computers and use the equivalent of star, seems your current gagarge dont have this with thier approach.

Good luck!
 

grahamcol

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Absolutely as mioba above. A good specialist will know the model intimately and all its quirks + they will have the correct diagnostic gear and importantly will know how to use and interpret it.
If you have a heart problem you see a cardiologist, same with the car!
 

EXMERCTECH

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More details of the exact vehicle model.
Original fault or faults.
What’s been changed.
Has he personally used this garage before.
More details of the garage.

But yes three months is takin the ##ss
 

umblecumbuz

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... It went in on the 6th December for electrical issues.
Various modules have been replaced and coded. Think the price has added up to a fair bit.
The car won't even start now. Just seems to be excuses now.
No end in sight yet.

Human nature being what it is, my guess is that the mechanics - realizing they have bitten off more than they can chew - have put fixing the car on the back burner and are getting on with other daily jobs instead.
Squeaky wheel time!
Until your daughter's partner begins making serious noises, that's how the situation will stay.
Personally, I would get the car to a Jag Dealer or good Indie and let them sort it.
As a separate issue, I would also inform the original garage that they will be held responsible for any losses after the repair is completed.
 
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CrustyClam

CrustyClam

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All good points raised. Thank you.

So it's a 2015 XE, 3 litre petrol auto.

It had started with a system charging fault, and climate control functions failing, then ABS system failure, and few other system errors that I can't remember.

I initially stuck a standard obd reader on to see if anything obvious and I think it mentioned something about kvm (but could be mistaken). Couldn't connect to check anything

Anyway a module was ordered (possibly kvm)but Jag sent wrong version, so another wait.
That module didn't fix it, and I think another was ordered. That hasn't fixed it
Each time they have to wait for a mobile coding specialist to arrive.
They have changed a plug on wiring harness saying it could have been water ingress related.

It's been a few weeks since they said it won't start.

I have said "what have they done in the last few weeks then"

Latest update the car will be reset and coding redone.

The garage has an ex JLR technician who works there, but as mentioned they don't perform any coding.
 

Frontstep

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It's so hard to comment constructively with such a problem when clearly so much information is missing.
A garage that keeps swapping parts till it goes is expensive and wasteful knowing why would be helpful.

Parts can be so expensive these days that the exercise in parts swapping should not be used as a cover for lack of ability.

I am like many from an era where throwing a full set of "electricals" gave you change from a couple of £20 notes.

Someone who knows what they are doing needs to visit the garage.
 

Blobcat

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Saw a Jag at a garage today that’s taking awhile to repair...

9A0F6DB4-370B-49D3-A501-3E90515CBFC7.jpeg
 

davemercedes

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An honest local and well managed garage can be an asset. I am very lucky in that I use one such garage but if anything is out of the ordinary they tell me before they start mucking about. Transmission service was one example - they told me immediately to go to a specialist because they did not have suitable equipment etc. My closest MB dealership is 45 minutes away (and I object to paying with gold sovereigns!) and my favourite indy is about 1.25 hours away so I'm quite happy getting routine servicing done locally and I would recommend them to anyone on that basis.

I worked in the industry for many years as Parts Manager at a Jaguar, Rover-Triumph distributorship and the only time we ever had a car in the shop for a matter of months was when there was a legal issue e.g: a fire/ownership dispute - and it was moved around the back into a covered way with a notice that we were applying storage charges - we couldn't afford it to occupy a workshop space for that long! I'm totally astounded to hear that a car has been occupying a space in a workshop for three months - that's a space that at the 2019 average rate of £56 per hour (at a non-franchised garage) should have been earning around 13 x 40 hours labour (at a minimum of 75% utilisation - i.e. 390 to 520 hours) which = £21,840 to £29120! So that's an indication of how well the garage is being managed!

It's fairly obvious that the car needs to be removed to a specialist and the sooner the better! CrustyClam: It's sometimes very difficult giving advice to the younger generation but from the tale you describe your SIL very obviously does need help and I think Tony Dyson has laid out an action plan for you.

Very best wishes...
 
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CrustyClam

CrustyClam

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Thanks everyone for your input. As it happens they are round for Sunday lunch this weekend.
Will try and have a good chat with him, and see if he'd appreciate it if I popped down to garage with him.
I'd fully expect the car to be left outside and not being worked on. I think that is a good enough reason to start the conversation going with the garage.

Davemercedes agree totally I have an Indy 2 miles down the road who are great.
 

alexanderfoti

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I agree with Dave, a car hanging around for 3 months is costing us money, I want the car in and out as quickly as possible in the assigned time frame. If problems occur, then so be it, but the customer would be fully informed .
 

davemercedes

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All you detailers should take note, keep your buffing head moving or you will burn it.
You just evoked a voice memory of my son when he was little...: "I didn't mean to...!" Happy days!
 
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CrustyClam

CrustyClam

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Just thought I'd update.

My daughters partner has said the car needs to stay at that garage. The owner has agreed that no matter what it won't cost him anymore money, and its cost a fair bit so far.

Currently the wait is on acquiring a second hand ecu. Not many around for petrols.

Btw, it was a 2.0 petrol, not a 3.0

Whilst the loss of the car was causing a major headache with travelling to work, it's not so much of an issue now as he was let go from his last job. Thankfully he managed to get another job (the same day) at Asda (working nights), so the other car they have is sufficient for now.

Cheers

Lee
 

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