Now online here.

Rob

I think that the black buttons you can get from FireFox31 look much better than the stock grey ones, especially for a less obviously not-stock installation:



I mention it since you talked about moving away from the lighted buttons to a more stock appearance.

Black buttons.... you *need* black buttons!

That install looks amazing! I hope you are coming to the meet, I'd love to hear it!

If you somehow don't have a set, just send me your address.

A brilliant stealth install in the most beautiful car on the road!! Did they have to fabricate the panel around the empeg or was that stock that you cut into? Is it possible/easy to replace the stock system?

And, perhaps a sore question, but was the 1997 XK8 still made by Jaguar and not Ford? I've assumed all XK8's were.

The fascia surround was fabricated, but it was pretty easy. You can get away with not fabricating anything but the head unit would sit further back into the dash - with hindsight I think that might have been a good thing as it would have reduced glare on the screen. I may move it back by 5 or 10mm.

This install does replace the stock system. It's not hard - the factory head unit is DIN behind its oversized front panel (as is the case with most factory units now). I'm told it was quite tight running cables front to rear.

The XK8 was Jaguar's first new model under Ford ownership. It was designed entirely by Jaguar but unquestionably benefits from Ford QA and manufacturing processes. It is one of the most reliable Jags ever made, despite a bit of an issue with Nikasil linings and timing chain tensioners on early models. The build quality is excellent. Contrary to popular rumour, the V8 engine was designed by Jaguar from scratch and is not a Ford unit (although Ford now use it in some of their models).

I'm visiting the XK production line in May which should be interesting!

Rob

I've just returned from a week in the UK on business, but in a few weeks I'll be there for a longer stay.
A day out to the Jaguar assembly plant or the Morgan factory would be an entertaining diversion. Any more details, guys?

Nice car and empeg work, by the way!

When will you be there, and in what area? At least Morgan is pretty open to visits during the week (office hours). The heritage centre in Gaydon is worth visiting, too.

A visit to the XK plant sounds like fun before/after the 06 meet. Do they have an official museum in the UK also? Can't find one online.

Apparently the USA branch of the Jaguar Museum is at Jaguar's North American headquarters in Mahwah, N.J. Geez, so many major corporations based in ol' NJ.

The timing of the next trip is still not certain, but it's safe to say 'end of April, begining of May' (probably both).
I'll be out amidst the sheep about an hour north of Manchester, in a small town called Earby.
I don't mind a drive on the weekend to get somewhere of particular interest. Duxford wasn't too far away, for example.

Where did you find such a perfectly matching cell phone cradle? I'm looking for one to match the Benz. Everything I've found is too generic or too unfinished (ProClip, ProKit).

The XK went back to Cambs Car Audio yesterday for snag fixing, and they sorted most of it out. Now the only remaining noise is a very low level of alternator whine on the player (audible only in silent or very quiet passages of music, or in pause) and rather louder whine on the tuner.

Has anyone had to deal with alternator whine in tuner mode? Suggestions? The antenna is not amplified (afaik) and the power supply to the module is now supressed.

Rob

I have whine (not unbearable, just a little annoying) in tuner mode and absolutely none in player mode. I have an antenna amplifier though in my M3. My antenna is in the rear window and the amplifier is in the C pillar nearby. There was definitly no whine with the factory radio either.

So far, I haven't found a solution for a few reasons (don't listen to the radio and I'm currently on a forced 6 month hiatus from driving ).

I know it goes against all sorts of electronic reasoning, but I was initially going to try disconnecting the ground between the antenna and the tuner to break the ground loop. For some reason I think it might help.

So nice. Blends right in!