When it rains, it pours! My PC crashed last week, and I had to reinstall everything! Now, about my Jaguar (2000 S-Type, 3.0):

I bought a new battery several weeks ago, because I thought that is what the problem was. My old battery kept going dead.

But it turns out that I must have a problem in my electrical system, and something is draining the battery. Maybe a short? For the time being I have recharged the battery and am disconnecting one of the terminals every time I leave it for an extended period.

I've done a little research and have found that this can be an expensive problem to diagnose. Considering that I have about $1,000 of repairs on the back burner and cannot afford large repair bills right now, what is the simplest, least-expensive way to find out what is draining my battery?

Thanks!

 

Start by trying to find out if any interior lights are staying on. The boot can be done by folding down the back seat so you can see! A bit of light leaks out of the door gap from the door lights, so just site in the car in the dark and look. The glove compartment would really need you to remove the bulb and see if the issue stops.

After that I would check the alarm is working by setting it when someone is in the car and seeing if it works by going off when they move.

Then, even though your battery is new, it may still be a dud, so have that checked as well.

Beyond that I cannot think of a free way to check anything else.

 

Since I bought the car about three years ago, I have been plagued with the engine warning light. I have taken it to be checked out several times, but my mechanic says that there are hundreds of reasons why it comes on, and it's not worth trying to find the problem. Shortly after he turns it off, it will come back on again.

But when I first noticed the problem with the battery about a month ago, the warning light went out and has stayed out. I wonder if it is a short in that circuit.

In the meantime, I will follow your suggestion and check out all lights when it is dark. Thanks!

 

If that's what your mechanic says, change mechanics. He's stuck in about 1980 but your car is a high-tech one! He should NOT be clearing the light without fixing the cause first. You may have a serious issue doing damage to engine, cats, etc.

 

I have taken it to a Jaguar dealer, and I am not going to do it again. I don't trust them for one thing, and they are too expensive. The guy who I take it to in San Diego has a good reputation; he works exclusively on foreign cars.

I have had four window registers break over three years at a cost of about $350.00 each. I have two windows clamped shut at the moment, because I'm considering whether or not I want to throw good money after bad. What's the point of getting them fixed if they are going to break in a couple of months?

The light has been on since I bought the car three years ago. Everything checks out, so what can be done? It's the electrical system.

I also take it occasionally to a foreign car mechanic in Ensenada where I live. His comment is, "Mickey-Mouse".

 

OK, believe what you like.

 

You do know that Lincoln LS window regulators fit on the front windows and are less than $100?? The motor rarely goes out so I hope you have not been shafted by replacing that too?? Also the regulators have been redesigned so you must be still buying the old style?

PS: Your mechanic is an idiot and knows nothing about electronic controls. The light means you have one or more codes, not that everything checks out. If everything checked out you would not have the light!! Your car will NOT have hundreds of codes. Again that is a statement from somebody who does NOT understand what he is talking about.
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Where are you located in California? I know of a REALLY good jaguar shop and they are the only ones I trust (People may laugh at your statement about the jag dealerships being pricey but they don't understand "california pricey" like getting quoted almost $2000 to replace a window regulator!)

But if your mechanic says that, he is not a mechanic!

Find out what the codes are atleast.

As far as the drain goes, you can easily do a drain test if you have a simple mulitmeter.

 

I just noticed you are in ensenada. Its a pretty far way to rancho cucamonga but that is the only place I have found to be honest technicians that know their way around jaguars.

 

The engine light has been off for a month or so now, so why did it go of by itself? My point is that what is the book value of a 2000 S-Type, 3.0? Less than $5,000, I think. So what's the point of pouring money into it? If I could do the work myself, that would be great, then I would only have to buy parts, but labor in California is close to $100.00 an hour, and I am not mechanically inclined. The only redeeming feature is that it is one beautiful car that still turns heads wherever I go!

 

The car has several stages of going into 'sleep mode'. It takes a full 40 minutes to get to 21 to 31 milliamps (normal drain on a 2000 to 2002 S Type) Close all latches and push the boot lid switch in and trap it so it will stay in. You can leave the boot lid and doors open but the car has to see the latches CLOSED. You will notice that the battery drain starts out at about 6 amps, then 4, then 1.7 then 800ma etc. until the modules shut down one-by-one. After 40 mins it should be about 31ma nominal drain. You could have a faulty module not shutting down or a latch switch issue, a stuck relay etc. A full scan of the SCP network would tell you alot but you would need a Jaguar or Ford computer to read the network modules. A simple scanner will only read the PTEC ('PowerTrain Electronic Control' for engine and Ford 5R55N gearbox) You can lie to some scanners and tell it that the car is a Lincoln LS to read the SCP network.

bob gauff

 

Thanks for your thoughtful reply!

I just went outside; it's dark, and I reattached the battery cable and noticed right away that the radio was playing. I have been under the impression that it shuts off with the engine. Could the problem be in the ignition?

Anyway, I turned off the radio and looked for light leaks from the trunk/glove campartment. I didn't see anything.

I wonder if it's the radio, but I haven't had this problem before; it started a couple of months ago - or so I think. My neighbor who restores old cars said that it seems as if it would be a slow drain because I bought a new battery in March. Fortunately, he has a battery charger.

I'll play around with it as much as I can, and then take it to a dealer if I can't figure it out. Thanks again.

 

The radio will come on when the battery is reconnected.

The problem could be anywhere. You need to do a battery drain test. Before telling you the steps involved, I need to know if you have a multimeter or not.

 

The light is controlled as the OBD laws require. If it's been on then you have fault(s) stored. If it goes off the faults are still stored but have recently cleared just enough for the light to be turned off. To know more do some reading about OBD, but the point is you have faults and as you say you've had them for years.

 

Let me check for a multimeter at our Auto Zone in Ensenada tomorrow. Also, maybe my neighbor has one, so I'll get back to you tomorrow one way or another. I see that they are not expensive. The car is running well; I drove it into town earlier. I'll do some research into OBD, too. Thanks to you all!

 

Steerforth, you need to make at least one test to see what's going on with your battery. With everything off (to your knowlege) you need to measure the basic drain current going out of the battery. This is done by any multimeter (a cheap digital one will do). Just unhook one connexion as you are doing and check the current that works the security systems. I don't know the spec. offhand, but if it's more than abt. 100 milliamps or .1 of an amp, there IS something draining the battery. Leaving the meter connected, you can then check various circuits in turn by un plugging, or lifting fuses to get closer to the excess current drain.
If your first test reveals a very modest current drain with all switched off, then it's a case for checking the charge put out by the alternator. as the battery COULD be improperly charged. Charge checking is easy. Just run the engine and test for 14.4volt across the battery terminals with your digital voltmeter. If this checks ok, and there's no excessive basic drain, you need to check all the heavy wiring from battery to starter, to alternator output, engine ground strap, battery ground (-ve) lead. If this all checks out, as one contributor says, you've another dud battery. In UK this is known as "Sod's law".
Leedsman.
p.s. After switching off at ignition etc., it may take a few minutes for devices various to switch themselves off. Another dodge is to look around everywhere in pitch darkness to see if there's any light or subtle glows.

 

I too had problems with warning lights and the car even going into limp home mode. It turned out to be a faulty battery. Since replacing the battery I too have had not warning light problems. The way it was explained to me was that the engine management system is now getting a full and regular supply of electricity and so no longer thinks there are faults due to low amps.

Reading the whole of this post now and you do need to concentrate on the battery. Solve that and I am very hopeful your problems will end, just as mine have.

 

Caution: the current drain will be AMPS initially. It should drop in jumps over the next 45 mins, finally to around 50-100mA, but ONLY if all the door and trunk latches are closed. For the trunk closure: either run wires out or jam the switch so it looks closed (or lie in the trunk with it closed lol).

 

I don't think it's the battery, but I'll reserve my judgement until I can check everything out. When I reconnect the terminal now when I start, the charge is very strong.

Also, I mentioned that the warning light had gone out about a month ago. Another odd thing is that ever since I bought the car three years ago, the inside button on the dash to open the trunk would not work. Now it does.

I haven't gotten my hands on a multimeter yet but plan to soon.

 

Steerforth, nowadays cars are a nightmare of electronics, microprocessors and downright computers. This nonsense has penetrated everywhere. To fix cars these days you need both a mechanic AND an electronics engineer. I speak as an ex-electronics engineer from the tv and security industry (45 years). The BIG trouble with the electronics is that the systems don't always work well in the real world of freezing temperatures, rain, water ingress, vibration, neglect, high-voltage sparks, and dodgy sensors. The aircraft industry is scared to death of computer-based control systems that may, at some future date, without any rhryme or reason suddenly decide to go haywire and make an aircraft fall out of the sky. The british government has been embarrassed by HUGELY expensive computing systems that just were not fit for purpose. You mentioned switching on the radio. How can you be sure that you really ARE switching on the radio? It's quite likely you are sending a request to switch on the radio to a computer and THAT computer decides whether of not you can have the sweet music! It's the same when you switch on the lights. I think it was BMW that started the bus-control system for the lights where you merely send a request to a computer, and IT switched on the light for you.
Candidly, this computing malarky is all very fine until something mal-functions, and then you're in a devil of a pickle -- this is what you're experiencing right now. It's aggravating, annoying, and to add insult to injury, horribly expensive to get sorted.
People on this website are the kind of people who like a bit of quality, BUT are, shall we say, not wondering what to do with their money all day. We like the quality, it improves a humdrum life a little, but we DON'T like being ripped-off for parts and procedures when an unreliable computing system can so easily be blamed.
Leedsman.