My wife did not check fluid levels before a road trip, and our 2006 XJ8 ran out of oil and froze up. We had just gotten it out of the body shop, where they did some repairs on the undercarriage and bumper.
The body and interior are in very good shape, so we are not going to junk it.
Two options, unless y'all have some suggestions: 1.) Sell the car for its body, 2.) find a replacement motor.

Interesting to note that the temperature gauge never went up, although the temperature manifestly was rising. The whole episode happened fairly quickly.

I will post pictures shortly.

 

I wonder how the engine oil managed to get that low. Anyways, with the used car prices being what they are now, you could opt to order a used engine out of eBay, and perhaps have a reputable car shop install it. Before you do that, get some estimate as to the installation.

 

The temp gauge is only reading coolant. I would suspect the heat generated from running low on oil gets dissipated pretty quick through the entire cooling system.

But that is a question only you can answer. A replacement motor will probably outpace the cost of the car. But if you like the car and cost isn't really a factor then go for it. Book time for an engine swap for an XJR is upwards of 27 hours. Depending on what parts need to be transferred. The NA is probably a bit less I would imagine.

 

Isn't there an idiot lite for too little oil on our cars?????????????????????
I'll have to look

 

If you still like the cat and as you said the whole body and interior is in good condition, you could just try to find an engine. There are a lot of options. Check out for estimates.

But... I'm just curious, the car had a known issue with a leak or something?

J.A.G.

 

Cost is definitely a factor; I'm retiring soon. We were quoted $11,000 for a used engine, which is twice what we paid for the car.

 

That is part of the mystery. From the moment the oil light came on until the engine froze was only a matter of about three minutes. The temperature gauge never moved, and the shop said there was some oil still in it.
A complication is that there is no one within 500 miles that works on Jags. I've had to do a lot of work myself, but I'm getting old.

 

Do love the cars, but very much dislike the lack of information, that the gauges provide..

 

So how long was it since the oil and filter was changed ? Oil level should not go down to a damaging level before the next oil service. How much coolant was in the engine at the time of seizure ?

 

ANY car should be shut off immediately if the oil light comes on! Coolant temperature is irrelevant; the oil light means low oil pressure, which means critical lubrication is not happening. There is absolutely no leeway for running an oil-starved engine, and oil starvation has absolutely nothing to do with overheating!!

 

You know, if I had to hazard a guess, I would say that the head gaskets may have ruptured for one reason or another. Then again, that would be unlikely for a Jaguar XJ8 under normal conditions.

 

Well yes shut off the engine when the oil light comes on. However this engine carries about 7.5L of engine oil, which besides lubricating also carries away a not insignificant amount of heat from the engine. Engine oil temperature in this engine would have risen to very high levels BEFORE lubrication stopped happening. The engine coolant temperature may not have reached high levels.
If you intend not to check your engine oil level you need have an engine oil temperature gauge to watch.

 

The oil light that has a can with a drip coming out of it is the low pressure light. You could still have 7.5 quarts of oil but have low pressure. Pressure is driven usually by a pump on the crankshaft. If that pump seizes or fails then you lose all oil pressure. This is not to be confused with low oil level. However, low oil level can cause low oil pressure as if there is no oil there is no pressure.

From what it sounds like the car was driven with low/zero oil pressure for three minutes which detonated the engine. All of those metal parts now have zero lubricant and are creating an immense amount of heat and then expand and sometimes in real bad cases fuse together.

 

[QUOTE=
Two options, unless y'all have some suggestions: 1.) Sell the car for its body, 2.) find a replacement motor. /QUOTE]
since you are in Texas, there is an excellent source in Irving Tx. I've used him for parts, and he seems to run an honest business, his primary business is X350 X358.

American Auto Parts

2334 Penn St, Irving, TX 75061

972-579-7529

 

Bummer that the motor got trashed😱. Longing for the good old days when we had service stations that checked the cars oil level for you!
That is a lot of money and/or effort to get a replacement motor of likely unknown maintenance history. May be look at a cosmetically poor runner so you can check the engine out before replacement. Then sell the poor one along as a parts car.
I would consider selling your cosmetically nice car along to someone who wants to do the labor themselves , then find another nice running car. There are a few in recent market place ads here in the forum.

 

Yes two different problems? It's common to over heat the engine an destroy it but it's rare for anyone to report a lack of oil as the cause of engine failure. So no the temperature gauge is not going to move if the engine is run out of oil. It destroys the engine so fast that there is no time for the coolant to get over heated.

Sorry to hear about your problems.
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Hundred years ago, cars had actual volt, oil, & temperature gauges, that worked.
They kept you informed, with what's going on with your motor.
W T F happened ?

 

I mean technically your car has a voltage light to show the battery is not being charged enough to sustain the vehicle
The oil pressure light comes on when low oil pressure is detected
Some cars have low oil level lights or warnings
And cars still have a temp gauge or worst case an over temp light.

They really just changed from a gauge style to warning lights.

 

Yes, the driver was informed of the oil pressure problem, but elected to keep going. It's hard to say anything other than too-bad-so-sad, but ignoring the warning is simply not brilliant.

I am reminded of a time some years ago when I lent my sister my car, as hers was in the shop and I didn't want to be an ***. She called one evening and said the power steering was out, but she was able to muscle the car to work and back home, like I'm supposed to be proud of her. Of course the belt was gone, meaning no water pump drive... I should have retained my normal being-an-***-to-my-sister mode!

 

Trouble light tells you about an issue, while, or after it's happening.
While a gauge can give you an idea, that you could have a problem BEFORE it happens.