Time to walk away?

[Majordog]

Would be good to hear some thoughts as I’m genuinely in two minds at the moment on my recent purchase of MY16 V6 manual from JLR dealer in Bristol.

I bought it online 3 weeks ago, it needed a service to bring it up to date which they were doing and would be looking at delivery the following week.

Then discovered the active exhaust failure: new exhaust replaced, plus a new windscreen. Delivery was suppose to be last week but this was delayed to yesterday: then I got a call saying rear camera fault. This was ordered and replaced this morning but I’ve just had another call to say the camera has been blown again so they’re suspecting some sort of wiring issue which they need to get to the bottom of.

As it was a spur of the moment buy, I’m now wondering whether it’s just one of those “lemon” cars (we all know they exist).....buying from this dealer gave me some comfort and to be fair to them they haven’t been willing to just let the car go without thorough investigation and repair / replacements, but I’ve got a slight feeling that when that car is sat on my drive fault light after fault light will be pinging on!!

But I might be being overly cautious here. Perhaps a better option might be to try and get an extended warranty out of the sales manager who again, I should comment has been honest and communicate and definitely understands this is not the customer experience they want buyers to have.

Thoughts and suggestions welcome!! Maybe I paid too much given the car I bought at the time has shown itself to be a little more delicate than I would’ve liked? Or maybe I should leave as is because a lot of the issues on the car have now likely been addressed.....

[scm]

How many miles on it? Could be the previous owner(s) didn't use it much and were a bit lax on keeping on top of maintenance. If the dealer is attending to all that, the car could be worth having. I woudn't say the F-Type is a delicate car, but it does need looking after, though not excessively, IME.

But you have to decide how confident you feel about the car and whether you trust it not to keep letting you down. And being a manual, be aware that early models had clutch issues - there have been 4 generations so far, although the latest does seem to be up to the job. So having a warranty that'll cover the transmission would be a good idea.

[Jarramag]

I’ve recently bought a 4 year old car from a main Jaguar dealership and I’m reassured by the 165 point check before the sale and importantly the inclusion of a 12 month warranty. They also say they cover up to £750 against repairs at the next mot. These aftercare products put my mind at rest, comparing to buying from a non-Jaguar dealership. Hope this helps.

[Majordog]

Thanks both, it has 33k on it, the person sold it to them as px against a 2016 type R and he’d only put a few thousand on it. There was a slight gap between service 2-3 I think but jag was putting all this right. I’ll check on the warranty covering the transmission and I’ll ask again those points re fourth gen clutch - I paid £27k so even if you look now on approved used it isn’t silly money so I thought given it was a manual it was worth it. I do think the previous owner didn’t drive it much (according to the sales manager only a few trips a month etc) so it could be this is the reason why the faults are surfacing now....

[scm]

Yeah, cars are made to be driven, F-Types especially so ....

[Majordog]

I’ve also looked at the approved used website and nothing really takes my fancy over this car which is dark sapphire metallic with ivory sports interior etc. The next V6s up is £31k and not in a particular loaded trim that i would value over the manual..... maybe I’m placing too much emphasis on having a manual on this car!

[Majordog]

Rather than renegotiate the price on the car Id probably feel better off with an extended warranty and id hope their JLR warranty is a good one Eg covers transmission plus money toward mot costs...

[Popeye]

I can fully sympathise with how you feel as I am going through a similar experience myself with JLR dealer in Guildford. I purchased mine on 30.01.21, returned it 17.02.21 and they still have it now. At least your sales manager there has kept you informed as I have had to chase for updates on mine though they have said I will be compensated.
I am going to wait as if they have done all the work they say they have it would be crazy to give it back but if they haven't I will ask for my money back.
I'm just grateful I did buy from a main dealer and all said and done I do like and still want the car.
Hang in there a little longer and if when you do get it the warning lights start coming on the approved warranty should cover any issues anyway.

[Lunar]

Rather than renegotiate the price on the car Id probably feel better off with an extended warranty and id hope their JLR warranty is a good one Eg covers transmission plus money toward mot costs...

From experience the JLR warranty is generally excellent yes - and having the car and warranty from the same seller puts the ball firmly in their court should anything crop up in future.

Be aware that the Used Approved scheme used to be for 2 years, so I would strongly look to have them add a year on, or at least agree a contribution to the following year - it's roughly £1k a year depending on age, if you go for the top option with European breakdown cover too.

Certainly a point worth perusing for peace of mind.

[mickjaguar]

Given the previous owner changed it for an R, it doesn't sound like the car had been a lemon. The exhaust might be down to standing around and not being driven much.

Camera is an unusual one, so it'll be interesting what the problem is there. Perhaps a bad earth (occasional posts on here) rather than mice eating the wiring.

They will test the battery, but that's also something that doesn't like standing around. These cars throw up lots of warnings if the battery is a little bit iffy.