A Jaguar Story From Santo Domingo

One of the joys I've experienced in sharing this blog is that my experiences have actually helped other Jaguar owners diagnose and solve a few of their vehicle's problems from time to time.  As it turns out, becoming my own Jaguar mechanic was the key to creating a second popular blog.

I was in touch with one reader earlier this week who contacted me about one of the sensors in his Jag.  I offered him a bit of advice on how to clean it and he was kind enough to send me this very entertaining response.  I asked, and he said he wouldn't mind if I shared it here.  As far as I'm concerned, stuff like this is what makes this site worth it.  Not only is it cool to talk to someone who is as passionate about their vehicle as I am, but it reminds me that I've learnt quite a bit from working on my vehicle too.  Here's what he wrote:

Hi Luke:        

I promised I'd get back to you. 1000000000000x Thanks for your economic fix!  Got the MAF off, brushed it for about 5 minutes with a very soft toothbrush, and nothing other than that.  Put it Back, deleted codes and we are ronroneando (ronronear = Spanish = to purr and that's what cats and Jags usually do when content) again. What also increased the ronronear was putting Mobile One 5W40 as the manual says. 

On your page you were so friendly to tell the story of how you got your XJ8, so here comes mine. I do live in Santo Domingo and totalled my 96 Lincoln town car on a bad, bad road and needed a "new car". Dominicans ask ludicrous prices for their (literally) pieces of junk (10000 USD upward for an SUV) and I was looking and looking and I found an ad for a 2000 XJ8L Vanden Plas. 

I called the guy and looked at the car, drove it and loved it and told the owner: Listen, today (August 15th) I don't have the money (320.000.- Dominican Pesos = +- 8 grant US), but if you still have the car by the end of the month I'll buy it.  By August 26th I called him.  Answer: I'm sorry, I've sold it.  Tears, crying, depression, etc. came over me (kidding). 

I went back to Switzerland (my home country) to spend two weeks on a house boat in Burgundy France with my dad and flew back to Santo Domingo by early October. The Lincoln was still under repair (for the fifth month since the crash) and my current car (Alfa Romo 95 = utter piece of shit) was no solution at all.  I had to rent a car, and got a Nissan Sentra.  It was a nice reliable car and I started to investigate about Sentras which trade in the DR (2006 Model) from 320k to 400k $RD which I wanted to get financing in the DR around that price. 

On a Saturday I got invited to a friends house in Boca Chica and upon arrival his two females (girlfriend and daughter) were only wearing towels. Females and Dominicans in particular, can become very "particular" about such things and I turned round for a spin in the Sentra and drove down the main street.  What does my eye see: a snow white XJ8 in front of a beauty parlor.  

I pulled ower and looked at the Jag a bit closer and it was the Jag I wanted to buy 45 days earlier.  I entered the saloon and asked whose Jag?  It's my husbands.  Tell me darling has your husband bought that car roughly two months ago from a certain "Omar"? No, no he bought it much longer ago. (Dominicans have a serious problem when it comes to time frames, not to mention time management. Forward and Backward unfortunately).  Anyway, if your husband wants to sell it, here's my number. It didn't take two hours and I got a call of an Austrian Pilot.  Five days later the RonRon was mine at 350.000.- $RD which is about 10k US. 

What I really like about the car's history is that it got sold in the DR.  First to a furniture-factory-owner, then to this Omar.  From Omar to the Austrian and now to me. Most cars, esp. Jags, Mercs etc. are 70% imported from the US or Canada. The Engine has 25k miles and the car 53k miles.  I still have a 6000 miles warranty. The resumé of this story is: If Caroline and Laura wouldn't have been wearing towels and made me leave, I'd still be driving that Sentra. 

Kind regards,
U. C. Weiermann

Pin It