hi 12-4-04 i was reading the discussion about the 98XJ8 camshaft tensioner problems and this morning called Bergen Jaguar of NJ who i use and asked about this the service advisor told me if it is not making any noise, there won't be anything to worry about. Except that after reading some of the posts here it sounds like this is something that needs to be replaced. any thoughts on this thank you J. Vespa

Submitted by saadi7@msn.com on Tue, 12/07/2004 - 14:07

Joseph,

It is true that you do not have to change the tensioners before you hear the sound, but if you wait for the sound it will be too late and you will damage your engine. I guess for mechanics, they do not mind if you ruin your engine since they will have sell you another. Speaking from experience, go ahead and make the wise investment by replacing the tensioners before it's too late. I did, and it was the best thing I ever did. I replaced mine as a precaution, I wasn't hearing any noises, but I had a gut feeling that I needed to have this addressed. When the mechanic removed the tensioners, they already had hairline fractures. If I waited, they would have ruined my engine. All '97-'99 XK8s and all '98-'99 XJ8s are affected! Some will experience this before others, and some latter. So the choice is yours!

Daniel Saadi