Rust

[jeff1954]

Reading the F Type pages of this months mag I was very dis heartened to see the pictures of the rust on the sub frames. It beggars belief that a car of this ilk can have rust problems at such an early stage. I love the Jaguar marque and always have, but I wonder if a BMW or Merk would have this problem at such an early stage. Jaguar get your act together!

Jeff

[Bobharrington]

This is my first post! So here goes:-
I have been hearings stories and rumours of rust/corrosion problems on the underbody of the F type. And I have just read a very alarming article in the December Jaguar Enthusiasts Club magazine, with pictures showing severe corrosion. I think my best plan of action is, to first ask my local garage to carry out an inspection, and if there is a problem on my car (2014/15 mdl) I will then arrange for an independent engineer to inspect and report. (Maybe the AA?) Then armed with this report I will go to my Jaguar Dealer and see how I get on with the satisfactory rectification of the faults. My factory guarantee runs out in March '18, so I think it best to get it sorted before then. But fingers crossed there won't be a problem on my car.
I would welcome any information and advise.

[mike020150]

Some cars appear to have been affected more than others so the chances are that how the car is used plays a role in this issue. If you live by the sea and regularly scrape the underside on speed bumps or similar, your car is probably at greater risk! Whilst it's difficult for many to get under their cars to check matters, the steel subframes and stiffeners are not too difficult to view from the side with a mirror and a torch. A quick check could either put your mind at rest or spur you on to take your car to a main dealer well before the warranty expires.

Thus far (3.5 years), my XKR which uses largely the same underbody components is unaffected. At around the same age, I treated my previous XK by brushing on some black Hammerite as a precaution and I will probably get around to doing the same to my current XKR during the next year. Mike.

[ianoliver57]

Mike, I thought, from articles on this in the mag, that the problem only affected the earlier models of the F Type? Is it a problem across the age range?
Seems crazy that after paying best part of £60K that an owner then has to apply rust treatment themselves! ? Mine is only 6 months old, but, I’ll be keeping a very close eye on the underside from now on!

Regards

Ian.

[Bobharrington]

Over the last 20 years I have owned BMW, Merc, Audi & Porsche, and never had the slightest problem with underbody rust/corrosion, and I thought this was a thing of the past, so I was appalled to discover that my £60,000+ f type may well have these problems, to a greater or lesser degree. I sincerely hope that Jaguar are going to do the decent thing and fully sort it out. It must be bad publicity for them. Has anyone out there had a problem, contacted their Jaguar dealer, and what was their response?

[ianoliver57]

Some comment in the Nov and Dec mags re JLR in some, but not all, cases replacing parts. I had the same problem with a 2010 XF. Rust on the front engine bearer. Jag dealers didn’t want to know and said that underbody rust did not come within the rust warranty given on the bodywork! I traded that one in so no idea if it was ever fixed. I don’t think it is a good idea to treat it ourselves which may simply mask the problem. Rather it was fixed correctly at there expense.
As I said, I’ll be keeping a close, regular eye on the underside.

Regards

Ian.

[mike020150]

As an ex fleet operator, my experience was that all the major vehicle producers operate to pretty much the same standards for the finish/protection on out of sight areas, i.e. negligible interest as long as the vehicle is capable of making it through the warranty period without perforating the part in question and causing a structural weakness/safety issue. Whether a Jaguar steel supplier has passed on a batch of low grade steel or a batch with inadequate surface coating, only Jaguar is likely to know or be capable of finding out. As owners, the best thing we can do is to check our cars and let main dealers know if we find problems. Outside the warranty period in particular, we need the support of dealers to make progress on an issue like this one. Their service departments see practically every car for the first few years of their lives and are best placed to see emerging failure patterns. The US market is highly litigious and manufacturers are very conscious of the financial penalties levied there so it's always useful to search for US recalls/service actions. However, I'm not aware of any recalls or service information bulletins about rust affecting the US or any other F-Type markets. Hence, I suspect the rust issue is unlikely to be serious and widespread, even if it is unsightly on those cars affected by it. Mike.

[jeff1954]

Any rust has the potential to be serious Mike.

Jeff

[len7]

I would like to thank Val Rossiter for his initiative and leadership on this subject ( JEC mag March 2018 and previous)
I hope that all F type owners will seize the opportunity and support Val by checking their cars and reporting to the club.
In my opinion this is of interest to all owners of recent jags as we all want to feel that Jaguar will 'do the right thing'.
Indeed anyone thinking of updating their model or checking the forum with a view to purchase will also be seeking information and assurance.

May I suggest that the club contact, as example, 'Honest John' and perhaps get a brief mention in the Daily Telegraph with a view to increasing the number of feedback reports ? The total number of reports are likely to have a bearing on Jaguars response.
This would be good advertising for the club in its drive for new members and show that JEC is active in supporting its members.

My 2015 XF has some surface corrosion on the sub-frame which I am keeping an eye on, so I will certainly be following this with interest!

[SteveB]

Following Val's request for information in the most recent JEC magazine, I have sent him my details and here are just a couple of pictures after only 2-1/2 years on the road and 8,400 miles.

There is quite a thread on this on the F-TypeEC forum..

Steve

[Nikos]

I have one of the very first F-Types produced, bought from a prestigious Mayfair dealer in Central London 11 months ago. 2013, Excellent condition - top price paid as expected. 33,000 miles. Five months ago I checked the subframe. It is absolutely horrendous. I have bought it to the attention of the top men at Jaguar and am still waiting for a decision from the Jaguar Warranty department. My case is the worst I've seen. Two years Jaguar warranty. One year to go.. If I could work out how to post pictures on here you could see for yourself......

[davidr]

Posting pictures isn't hard really. Go to the "attachments" tab below and click "add files". Search for the photo on your own computer or cloud drive and save it.
You can then either place the photo in your text (using the "place inline" function beside the file upload details) or they will appear at the bottom of your post.
Easy as that!

[steveh]

Hello
Just looking at 2nd hand F types and was reminded of this rust issue. Has there been any progress with JLR?

[SteveB]

Hi Steve

This subject has generated 2 forum discussions - there is more detail in the "Rear Subframe Corrosion" thread under "General".

My dealer is currently waiting for the parts (on back-order since March!!) to get this fixed on my car....

Best Regards

Steve