Postby J44EAG » Wed Apr 01, 2015 2:11 pm
From the first pre-facelift car, MY 2002.5 , the bonnet I am fairly certain then became aluminium. Come the MY2004 facelift cars with the more upright and reshaped grill, they are definitely ali. This was carried out to achieve improved and more ideal 50/50 weight distribution and handling.
MY 2002.5 cars with the inverted ball joint suspension also gained the front one piece ali subframe proper rather than the previous two part, one ali and one steel cross members.
Ali has always been used for suspension components but curiously only in 2002 did Jaguar make great play of the fact which previously was not well publised.
Ali has also always been used for the internal cross member bumper bars fitted behind the plastic bumper covers. I believe also that the across car instrument dash mounting frame was also modified from steel to magnesium in 2002.5> cars.
STR models also had a solid steel bulkhead fitted behind the rear seats to help stiffen rear structure which was needed when the R model with its huge grunt was introduced.
I am not aware that the boot was ever made in ali. The 2002.5> cars also included 10% more spot welds, additional steel chassis/body shell reinforcement and a stiffer modified rear steel subframe with a lower roll centre together with modified geometry, spring and damper rate improvements.
Thats as I understand the modifications which were carried out to make the car less nose heavy and together with revised suspension components helped towards combating some criticism of early car slightly wayward handling. The last cars off the production run are a very different driving experience due generally to a stiffer body shell, geometry and suspension component changes and a large number of detail changes which lead to a product that had truly grown in age, statue and ability. Development at its best.
Mike
X350 Co-ordinator
2004 XJR
