www.jec.org.uk

At the 2nd year service last year with 16k miles showing I was told it needed new rear pads,last week just 1 year and 10k miles more again new rear pads,this seems excessive and costs £200 at the dealer.
Also recently it has kept showing 'cannot opreate park brake' but when switched off seems to reset for a short time,the dealer have said they can find no fault.Last time it happened I switched off and back on this time it flashed alternate 'park brake fault ' and 'then gearbox fault ' and stuck in first gear with neither sport nor manualselect operating.Again the dealer say they can find no fault but have cleaned contacts and reset.So far it has been o.k. The car is only 3years old with 29k miles and is shortly coming out of Jaguar warranty,

There were a number of software reflash editions issued to dealers as a result of electronic handbrake problems.

It might be worth asking your dealer to check that your car has the latest software revisions incorporated.

I have also heard that defective software can cause the rear brakes to bind slightly causing accelerated wear to brake pads and also the possibility of overheat damage to the wheel bearing oil seals.

On the old manual handbrake system fitted on the earlier models, 25k miles covered is not unusual for rear pad life. There is the comparison figure against the later electronic handbraked models.

I have to admit to singing the praises for indipendent Jaguar maintenance companies where trouble shooting is required. They would seem to have more time for their customers and the proprietors are usually ex Jag trained engineers who have set up there own businesses after many years of Jaguar experience. Many will have seen this type of problem on countless occasions and be in a position to know immediately just what the problem is before even putting your car on the ramp for examination.

Maybe a trip to an indipendent for advice would be worth consideration. You would then have some good information to present to your dealer before your warrenty expires.

Mike Kennedy. S-type Co-ordinator