Dear All,
I would be extremely grateful for some advice. My husband's 2017 F Pace automatic is regularly serviced etc at the Jaguar dealership etc, and had 50000 miles. Had Oil fail stopping imminent light come on while on the motorway last week so pulled over and the engine failed.
Car has been into Jag 3 times with Oil fail light on and there is no problem, there is oil! They can't seem to stop the light coming on.
Got towed, Jag saying there is oil in car but now need new engine. We are out of warrarny as of last year but I cannot understand how such an expensive car can need a new engine after 4 years, I'm gobsmacked that the garage is being so blase.
Is this normal? Surely a car, any car, that needs a new engine after 4 years has a manufacturing fault?
Please help

PS The engine has never failed before

Welcome to the forums Miriamkc,

I'm sorry to hear this.

It will help accurate replies to mention which engine is fitted - 2.0 or 3.0 litre and the fuel type. Also exactly what you mean by 'fail'. I've had three engines 'fail' with horrendous metallic noises and spectacular emissions of smoke and steam. None of them were repairable. I've also had several 'fail to proceed' as Rolls Royce so delightfully phrases a breakdown but these have all been repairable faults.

I presume you refer to the red LOW OIL PRESSURE warning lamp. If so, this is triggered by the oil pressure and temperature sensor (which in the base of the oil filter housing on my 2.0 litre model) and there are three possible causes of this illuminating:

1. sensor or sensor harness failure
2. extremely low oil level or restricted filter
3. failed oil pump

As the vehicle has been regularly serviced and the dealer has investigated the issue three times, (1) and (2) should be unlikely. Have they given further detail on why they believe a replacement engine is required?

Graham

Hello, 2.0L. There was oil in the oil pan or sump (? is that what it is called? the place where oil goes once you have poured it into the relevant hole) despite the low oil warning but maybe none making it to the engine?, I assume the oil moves from the sump to the engine? does this sound feasible? The low oil warning is clearly a false warning but the engine stopped working and there were no other warning lights.

Could these be 2 exclusive issues? false low oil reading and engine packed in? I despair.

All I know is that the car has oil in it despite there being a low oil warning and for some reason, the car engine has stopped working.

Still awaiting more details from the garage, seems very little enthusiasm on their part to actually see what the fault is and are simply saying the engine needs replacing or rebuilding as the car won't drive/start, further it's dying as we pulled on and down the hard shoulder after the oil warning came on.

It feels like a seller's market, the garage has a minimum of 4 days to see emergency faults as they are already backed up with booked in repairs, services etc

Am now in a situation where my husband turns out used our local garage where my vehicle if serviced/MOTed when the low oil light came on previously and they found no faults so in a very sticky situation about holding Jag garage responsible for missing a fault but that still doesn't mean that a car should have an engine that dies after 4 years and 50000 miles, feel I'm being held at ransom as I know nothing about cars but we can't afford to keep hire car anymore

Any further steers re info greatly received. I have read through endless Jag service bulletins and non seem to cover my issue but not v clear what my issue is from point of view of Jag

regards,

M

I see you are in England. Unfortunately Jaguar warranty here is nowhere near as good as it is in the USA where the vehicle is effectively covered for five years. Ours only goes to three years unless an extension has been purchased.

I'm still not clear from your description whether the engine will turn over but not fire or if it is seized.

The oil sump is a reservoir for the 8 litres of oil. It is drawn from here by the oil pump which circulates it under pressure to moving surfaces to reduce friction and wear. During this circulation, it passes through the oil filter which removes contaminants and returns to the sump for the cycle to begin again. This is happening constantly whenever the engine is running.

The two basic checks:
1. LEVEL using the dipstick. If the oil level is too low, the pump may draw air as well as oil and reduce lubrication of bearings etc resulting in rapid wear or failure.
2. PRESSURE. The oil is passing though narrow passages in the engine and close fitting surfaces. it needs to be under pressure to effectively do this. The red warning was likely to be caused by reduced pressure although it could be a faulty sensor. If the LEVEL was/is up to the mark then, in the absence of a sensor fault, the oil pump could have failed.

If you have used the same dealer for all scheduled servicing then you have a reasonable expectation they would be responsible for any negligence. However, they would not be responsible for a mechanical failure (such as an oil pump or a fuel pump) which could happen at any time.

If you have used different dealers then it becomes a lot harder. One will blame the other and none will accept liability.

To begin with, you need to know what is wrong with the engine. Only then is it possible to determine whether repair or replacement is required. One thing to be very insistant about is not to let any garage start dimantling for investigation. Once they have your vehicle in pieces, they have you over a barrel because taking a part dismantled vehicle anywhere else for repair is never easy.

Unfortunately there is no quick fix in a situation like this. Dealerships are all about maximising profit and workshops do this by pushing service work through fast and efficiently. Troubleshooting at a hourly labour rate gives a poor return in comparison.

Graham