Tuesday 9 October 2012

The Jaaag - A Progress Report

In April, I fulfilled a dream by becoming the owner of a Jaguar.
The multiple 'a' in the title is because the name MUST be pronounced in a Terry-Thomas/Leslie Phillips/1950s Bounder type way.
And so 6 months on, is it a case of "Never Meet Your Heroes"?

Not quite.
At first I was somewhat daunted by the apparent size of the car, but after a short time I realised that it isn't much bigger than a Mondeo, and only a little bigger than the Renault Laguna which it replaced.
Once I'd got the size issues sorted in my head, and despite it being a diesel, it is the smoothest driving, most comfortable vehicle I have owned.  Previously, long journeys (ie in excess of 150 miles) usually necessitated at least one comfort stop.  But now 200 miles plus can be done easily,comfortably and with no need to stop and stretch the legs.

And now the downside:
In 6 months, I have had two punctures - once when a bolt went through the rear tyre, and secondly as a result of a small crack in the alloy wheel at the front (subsequently repaired).
EDIT: Since publishing this yesterday, make that 3 punctures - I had another puncture/knackered tyre today
The other prime annoyance has been the abundance of black smoke emitted from the exhaust when under hard acceleration (particularly embarrassing when overtaking cyclists).
This has been diagnosed as a problem with the Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR) Valve, which gets clogged up with soot from burnt diesel fuel.  A common problem and a simple fix - I have a blanking plate which should prevent the dirty black plume happening.

Teething Problems? I'm sure they are, but none of it has detracted from my joy of ownership.

Driving around, lording it over the plebs in their lesser vehicles - maybe I should buy a sports jacket and a cravat to complete the transformation from suburban 40-something to a proper old-school cad.

The illustrative song choice is pretty obvious, but has to be done.
Queen - I'm In Love With My Car

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