My car is an 2004 XJ8 w/ Apline Premium Sound (non nav). The head unit powers up and has always functioned properly since I've owned the car. But... It has had no sound on multiple occasions. Once for 3 weeks. Then it came back (after no repairs). Then it quit for a week or so. Then was back for several months. Now... No sound again.

I figured it had to be the factory amp failing. So I purchased a used (tested) amp from a wrecking yard. But still... no sound.

Has anyone experienced this? Can anyone offer incite to fixing this or how to troubleshoot it?

 

I would try pulling the head unit out and disconnecting and then reseating every wiring harness and optical connector.

 

I pulled the center console (much easier than expected just scary!) and removed the head unit. Disconnected / Reconnected the optical & wiring harness. Put it back together. No change. Head unit powers up and acts like it's working properly but nothing coming through the speakers.

 

I had this EXACT same problem in my 04 XJR, i took it to jaguar and they cleared the trouble code in the amp (located in the trunk next to the DVD/CD/Navigation devices under the side carpet. Once they cleared the codes it worked flawlessly. If you dont want to take it in try to remove power from the amp itself for a while to reset it.

 

That's interesting... Maybe leaving the battery disconnected overnight would do the same thing?? How long has yours been working since clearing codes?

 

I've only had the car a few days, bought it without the radio working, so its only been working for maybe two days. But it sounds fine. Jaguar said the software could have just gotten muddied up, if it happens again there might be a problem with the amp, but so far there's been no problem. But the battery disconnect may work, i've heard that disconnecting the battery may mess up other computer parts, but im not sure about that, you'd have to ask someone that knows more than i.

 

Can anyone confirm if disconnecting the battery overnight will 1. cause problems 2. clear error codes?

 

I was pushing the Mode Button and realized it's missing the "sub level" option. I called the dealer and asked what was going on. He said the radio may need to be re-programmed for my vehicle. They want $120-240 to check the programming. Seriously?

Is there any other way to "re-program" the factory radio? It apparently doesn't recognize that there is an amp and sub ie premium sound.

 

It was $114 for me and they checked all codes not just the radio. Cleared the radio and it worked fine. Also told me exactly what was wrong with my suspension which saved me a lot of troubleshooting. i'd say suck it up and pay em unless you want to throw a new head unit in there which will be more expensive than that haha

 

I reluctantly decided the same thing and scheduled an appointment. I'll let you know what happens.

 

The Jag Tech figured out the problem. The CD Changer was not communicating properly. This system head unit, amp and cd changer are in an electrical chain. So if one part fails then nothing works (poor design). They reset everything and it's working again. The dealer said the changer can be replaced for about $320 installed. So if it acts up again then I'll proceed with that.

Some other information I learned... The amp, cd changer and radio are individually programmed to work with your specific car. If you replace one of the components then it will likely need to be "re-associated" or programmed at the main computer.

Basically, don't try to fix stuff because it won't work without the dealer's computers.

Life is good so more happy driving!

 

yeah i learned that too. I like to troubleshoot and fix things myself, but you just cant do that as often as you used to be able to haha. Glad you got it working!

 

It's actually not an "electrical" chain, but an optical one. Here's some background:

Adding Accessories (aux in, iPod/iPhone, Bluetooth) to the Jaguar X-Type, S-Type and 2004-2009 XJ

The first section, "Fiber-Optic D2B Ring" addresses this.

 

I had the same problem, the sound was going on/off from time to time with the CD changer button not doing anything.
I opened the trunk lining and checked the connections. From what I can see there is a small design flaw in the connection wiring (optical) of the cd-changer, for one the cable is a little short and forces the plug and second the mother plug is fixed on the plastic protection board and keeps an angle upwards so the plug clip can easily unclip. Also the hole assembly is curved and that puts another force on the plug.




I found the plug uncliped very hard to spot, the plug is still sending data but throwing errors from time to time.
I put a piece of paper under the fathers plug to lift it a bit and hopefully it will stay clipped.