So much for my plan to wait a week between posts...

Tonight, we get in the car to go to dinner and the car would not start. The steering column was locked, complete with amber message center light and "STEERING COLUMN LOCKED" displayed on the message board. The column lock solenoid is not making a sound when I insert the key. There is also a flashing red LED on the top center of the dashboard (the alarm status light) and the radio will not power up.

Obviously, the car thinks an alarm has been tripped, but it hasn't. Now here's the rub: I don't have an alarm fob for this car (it didn't come with one), and I'm awaiting delivery of a new one but I'm still 100 miles away from a dealer.

The only thing I could think to try was to disconnect the battery, which I did (and let it sit disconnected for 15 minutes) but that didn't fix a thing.

There is nothing in the online handbooks that I could find to help me. I'm still awaiting delivery of the service manual CD. A google search was fruitless, and a search of old posts on this forum turned up just one thread.

How do I fix this?

Jess

 

Hi, happened a couple of times on my Jaguar S Type 4.2 V8 2004, I just took the ignition key out, re-insert it and gently rock the steering wheel from left to right, lock came off car fired up!
Regards Steve

 

Steve, thanks for responding...I wish I could say I hadn't tried that already, but I have. It's still locked up.

There are a couple of things going on that make me think it's a worse problem. The first thing is the little black bulge on top of the dash -- the alarm LED -- starts flashing rapidly when I try to start the car, as if the alarm has been set off. But the alarm has not been set off.

The other thing is that I no longer hear the electronic steering wheel lock disengage. I don't know if the automatic cars do this, but on my manual trans car, as soon as I put the key in, I would hear a servo activate, which released the steering wheel. That servo no longer releases, and I'm guessing it's tied into the alarm system somehow.

Jess

 

Just an update on this...

Disconnected battery this afternoon and, on advice of BRUTAL, touched the negative cable to the positive post of the battery to force a computer reset. Buttoned it back up and no dice. Car still dead, steering column is still electronically locked.

While in the back, I found a new problem -- trunk leaks. I had about 1.5 inches of standing water in the spare tire well. Spent the rest of the day caulking and water testing and I've got that fixed, finally. This is turning into a bit more of a project than I was anticipating, but oh well...

Jess

 

Update from 8/21...

Jim Burke Jaguar in Birmingham now has the car. Ever tried to tow a car with the front wheels locked at a 10-degree angle and the electronic parking brake engaged? My tow truck driver LOVED me this morning. Literally had to drag it up onto the flatbed. We're pretty sure I'm going to need at least a front-end alignment, but the car wasn't moving otherwise. I shudder to think how they got it off the truck in Birmingham (I didn't go with the car, as it was towed 100 miles away).

Helpful service guy says when they were handed the ignition key we'd been using for the car, it was missing the transponder chip. He said he'd never seen that one before. So now I'm looking for a needle in a haystack around my house and, unbelievably, we find what we think is the transponder on the dining room table tonight. Don't know how it got there, and right now, I don't care. It's going to save me $265 is all I know, if in fact we've found the transponder.

By the way, does anyone know what the transponder chip actually looks like? What we found is a little plastic sleeve with a small plastic pellet inside that is shaped like a piece of Kellogg's Oat Bran cereal, sort of a little torpedo.

And if this is what was the problem all along ... ... ... me = schmuck.

Jess

 

Hi Jess, did you manage to fix this? I've exactly the same probs
Thanks
Dave

 

Hi Dave
If you have the early s type then you can pull the 10 amp blue fuse. No. 19 in the fuse box near driver's feet. This will prevent the steering column lock from working and the car will start reliably. Pulling out fuse 19 won't effect any other electrics (other than the steering tilt mechanism). My problem was intermittent so I did this when the steering column was not locking. So I don't know if it will work when in the "steering column locked" mode But worth the effort to find out.

Although this is only an interim repair it is better than the intermittent non start issue, and for me it is a permanent answer until someone comes up with a definitive answer to the problem.

Good luck and post back if you find a complete solution.
Paul

 

Tonight, we get in the car to go to dinner and the car would not start. The steering column was locked, complete with amber message center light and "STEERING COLUMN LOCKED" displayed on the message board. The column lock solenoid is not making a sound when I insert the key. There is also a flashing red LED on the top center of the dashboard (the alarm status light) and the radio will not power up.

Obviously, the car thinks an alarm has been tripped, but it hasn't. Now here's the rub: I don't have an alarm fob for this car (it didn't come with one), and I'm awaiting delivery of a new one but I'm still 100 miles away from a dealer.

The only thing I could think to try was to disconnect the battery, which I did (and let it sit disconnected for 15 minutes) but that didn't fix a thing.

There is nothing in the online handbooks that I could find to help me. I'm still awaiting delivery of the service manual CD. A google search was fruitless, and a search of old posts on this forum turned up just one thread.

How do I fix this?
dave.

 

I would think I would look for a transponder chip that looks like a piece of Kellogs oat bran cereal on the kitchen table.

It fixed this one.