Hello fellow Jaguar Forum members! I joined this forum last week to see if I could get assistance with troubleshooting problems I’m experiencing with my 2003 Jaguar XJ8 (see picture). I’ll attempt posting a long, detailed description of my “Jaguar Experience” to see if there’s any advice out there. Thanks.

 

I'm a retired Mechanical Engineer whose dream retirement car has been the XJ type from the first time I saw one. I still think they're one of the classiest car on the road and my plan is to keep mine on the road for as long as I can (or go broke trying!). I purchased mine used in 2013 with

 

Welcome to the forum

 

Is there a text/character limit for posts? I've got a ~3.8K character intro/story I'd like to post but it keeps getting truncated???

 

Hello, Robert,
Many of us would agree with you; the Xjs are Jaguar's greatest achievement.
Welcome to the forums from ElinorB.
(';')

 

Welcome.

Not sure on limit you ask, but when the time zones align better, the powers that do know will sort it for you.

 

Welcome aboard Bob.

 

welcome to the forum - enjoy!!

I don't believe there are any limitations to the size of a post but will double check and advise

 

Welcome to Jaguar Forums Bob,

Good to have you with us.
Enjoy the forum.

If you haven't done so already you should add your car details to your signature to help others to help you.
If you need help with getting around and using the forum follow this link for some help Forum Help

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by roberthornsey

Is there a text/character limit for posts? I've got a ~3.8K character intro/story I'd like to post but it keeps getting truncated???

Welcome to the forum Bob,

Good to have you with us at Jaguar forums.

I can see you've already found your way to the X308 forum so there's no need for a link to it from me. The 'HOW TO' thread at the top is a good place to start for information on regular issues.

Please remember to add vehicle details to your Signature to help others to give relevant advice. Go to the User CP button on the left of the top menu bar, then Settings & Options under Your Control Panel. Select Edit Signature and enter the details.

There is no limit on the length of text you can post but there is a limit on the size of attachments. I think the problem has been 'timing out' because of the time taken to compose your lengthy post. When I do long and detailed posts, I write them offline and then Copy & Paste into the required thread.

Enjoy the forums.

Graham

 

Thanks Grahm. Here goes...

I'm a retired Mechanical Engineer whose dream retirement car has been the XJ type from the first time I saw one. I still think they're one of the classiest cars on the road and my plan is to keep mine on the road for as long as I can (or go broke trying!). I purchased mine used in 2013 with ~67K miles (3rd owner) and I immediately loved the look and feel of the car despite a few minor electro/mechanical and cosmetic nuisances (broken passenger side front fog light, missing interior light cover, broken automatic trunk opener, loose moonlight liner cloth, and passenger side exterior rear-view mirror driving into the lower stops whenever I use the key-ring fob to unlock the doors) that I intend to (or have already) repair myself.
My frustrations began last summer, while on my first extended road-trip in the Jag with my wife, antique-ing and wine-ing our way through central and coastal Oregon. On the second evening, while returning to our hotel from dinner, the “Restricted Performance” warning message along with the “Check Engine” icon and amber priority indicator illuminated. My mechanic had once advised I try reseating the gas cap to clear the “Check Engine” warning and it had actually worked on the occasional previous occurrences. It also worked this time, after several attempts/test drives over the evening and following morning before we hit the road again. At the next gas stop I asked the attendant to check the oil level (Oregon is one of the last states that don’t allow self-service) and was told by the 20-something female attendant that it was all good. That was probably my first (next?) mistake. On the next-to-last day of our road 5 day road trip we noticed an odd knocking sound coming from the engine, I checked the oil level at the first available service station (back in good old self-serve Washington State) and discovered it took ~4 quarts to get to correct level. Good Grief! The low oil idiot light never once illuminated and I never saw smoky exhaust! I knew that was a bad sign and when the knocking progressively worsened I eventually pulled over and called for a tow. During the entire trip the engine ran smoothly (except for the knocking at the end), maintained correct temperature, and no warning lights after the first occurrence.
My mechanic determined that I’d spun a crank shaft bearing and required either a complete engine rebuild or new engine. I was crushed, but I really loved the car, and it only had 88K miles. Installing a new engine would cost double the car’s value and my mechanic wasn’t interested in the engine rebuild project. Nor did I feel qualified to do it myself. My third option was to locate an engine from a wrecking yard, which I did. Same year/model, with only 58K miles, shipped from Florida to Washington for ~$2.2K. Sweet! I got my dream drive back on the road for slightly less than complete replacement cost and with a very low mileage engine. My original engine had “blown” at 88K miles.
But…, ever since replacing the engine I’ve been plagued with intermittent warning lights. Mostly “Failsafe Engine Mode” w/amber priority, which clears after I turn the car off, but returns within 5 miles of operation. I’ve also seen the “Restricted Performance” warning and “Check Engine” icon but they also self-clear and are not a persistent. The replacement engine continues to run smoothly but I’ve notice a stronger, more astringent exhaust odor. My mechanic isn’t able to isolate the cause and advises I take it to a dealer. That’s going to be my final option, if I can’t figure this out myself (with a little help from this forum). I’m mechanically competent but not equipped for large/complex jobs. If I could find a comprehensive mechanics repair manual, with pictures and or detailed figures, I’m certain that I could resolve this myself. Sorry for the looong saga but any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Also, my previous post length problem vanished when I replaced the "less than" sign with ~ "approximately sign". The system must have interpreted that as the beginning of a link with no closure??

 

Great post, Bob. It was worth the persistence.

What an extraordinary restriction on self-service in Oregon.! I suspect our OR based members will ignore that one!

I recommend you re-post your final paragraph as a new thread in X308 forum. Members there will be able to help.


(here's a check on using the < and > symbols ..... )

Graham

 

Thanks Graham. I certainly didn't mean to imply that I wasn't able to check the oil level myself while in Oregon. Just a warning to others that relying on full-service personnel to check "vital" indicators, rather than doing it yourself, is probably a bad idea. I guess that I should have found a way to use both the < and > symbols in my post, rather than just the

 

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