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Hello everyone,
I'm a new member Andy58 just bought my third Jag after a few years of not having a cat about the house. It's a beautiful Topaz XJ6 from 2005, with 60,000 miles on the clock.
Think this is going to be a wild cat as it's already causing headaches. In less than 1000 miles it's already showing Air suspension fault, and on the way back home from a trip into Wales UK, I thought it would be a good idea to engage cruise control whilst navigating the dreaded average speed camera systems that are popping up all over the UK. Bad move. Rev counter went crazy then ABS fault, then a stability control fault. Yet the car drove perfectly. So today, it's out with the Icarsoft LR v3.0 reader recently acquired so hoping that will shed a bit of light. If anyone has any suggestions as to what the cause might be please drop me a reply.
.... I thought it would be a good idea to engage cruise control whilst navigating the dreaded average speed camera systems that are popping up all over the UK. Bad move. Rev counter went crazy then ABS fault, then a stability control fault. Yet the car drove perfectly. So today, it's out with the Icarsoft LR v3.0 reader recently acquired so hoping that will shed a bit of light. If anyone has any suggestions as to what the cause might be please drop me a reply.
Got that tee shirt, first long interstate cruise, 2005 XJ8-L.
Two things that symptom might indicate:
- Grotty switch contacts from disuse and the odd coffee spew or tobacco tars getting into them over the many long years before you acquired it. 409 detergent, fine bristle brush at edges, then CRC electrical contact cleaner purge put mine right, but I still avoid use of the "Cancel" button.
It was the one as had the bad habit of going overly literal at "American Cooperation" known to the English as "Malicious Obedience", thereby shutting down the V8 outright, not just disengaging "cruise"!
No fear. I don't miss it. I simply tap the brake instead, catch a lower speed manually, if at all, ELSE hit "Resume".
- There have been issues with the "clock spring harness" (this and other cars, MOPAR vans included) that links the controls in the steering wheel back to the "mothership" brains. Replacement is DIY-able, if a PITA.
I have both i930 and V3 iCarsoft, but - AFAIK? - neither of these faults is the sort a scanner can easily detect - surely not when sitting idle.
"The good news is.." that the Jaguar's cruise control can function down to rather low speeds. So you can start with a wash and brush-up, test it somewhere less 'dramatic' than on crowded motorways across the West Country - or Black Mountains if running North.
Last edited by Thermite; Apr 20, 2024 at 08:48 AM.
Welcome to the Jaguar Forums! It's great to have you with us!
Knowing the diagnostic trouble codes that are stored will definitely help narrow down the diagnosis. I believe I have heard that the iCarsoft LR v3.0 can read the Chassis (C-prefix), Body (B-prefix) and Network (U-prefix) codes as well as the common Powertrain (P-prefix) codes, and you will almost certainly find some C- and possibly U- codes.
Probably the most common cause of your Cruise, ABS and Stability Control malfunction is an ABS wheel speed sensor. We'll look forward to your next update.
Thanks for the quick replies, most helpful. The car came with a new Halfords badged battery about 5 weeks old, yet when I did a voltage test after the car was sat overnight the battery was only showing 11.6 volts. So out with the Halfords, not-so-cheap junk battery, in went a Yuasa hi-powered unit. Cleared all the fault codes and found two unrelated and probably genuine faults, namely the door mirrors being out of range and a fault on the audio system, the radio works but not yet tried any CD 's in the player. The only stubborn issue is the Rev counter/ Tacho this sits beyond 8000 rpm with the engine off, and when running the needle points from the five o'clock position towards the 7 o'clock. I can't find any fault codes or any indication as to how to correct this issue, so if anyone can help further that would be great. I take the reported point from Thermite about dirty contacts. the car is in almost showroom condition and previous owners haven't been smokers, I'm pretty confident from the condition of the car nobody has had any coffee issues, but clearly, the car has been stored, so dusty contacts could well be an issue. 2005 XJ6 in Topaz
Many thanks for all your replies.
regards
Andy 58
dirty contacts. the car is in almost showroom condition and previous owners haven't been smokers, I'm pretty confident from the condition of the car nobody has had any coffee issues, but clearly, the car has been stored, so dusty contacts could well be an issue.
Not just dust.. time passes.. atmospherics carry moisture and corrosives, some dust is pollen, skin particles and oils, etc. or otherwise becomes "food' for a host of biological critters that - quite literally "**** in the works" as they live and die. Plastics and elastomers change characteristics over time as well.
Symptom fits a lot more than just JLR motorcars. Cleaning is cheap, fast, and easy compared to OTHER contributors you may still have to chase. Or maybe not?
Interesting short Sci Fi story of many years ago, some "advanced alien" (with blitz-quick "cat like" physique, even) landed his high-tech spacecraft, set about doing as he pleased to Earth. Poor Divil came back, found Earth's plants, molds, mildews, bacteria, insects, rodents, and such had invaded and put his spacecraft beyond use.
Go figure that "advanced alien" technology was no more immune to the onslaught of "life" rot, and ruin, that our residences, watercraft, aircraft, or motorcars of present day and time gone by?
A(ny) living organism suffers an injury? Healing process kicks into gear at once. Many of our cells are but a few weeks old, if-even... and all the way into "Old Age".
Motorcars have to await external saviours.
Best they can hope for is to "grow" more appreciation than annoyance in the minds of their minders.. or black holes in bank accounts.
Don't stop at the battery, either.
Aluminium chassis vehicles (and not-only) require periodic attention to ground points, too.
And then - as often out-of-sight as not - there is rodent, water, insect, and other damage to wiring harnesses, moisture or atmospheric intrusion that wants contacts opened, cleaned, re-seated, and in MANY places, given a cold war era guided missile had far less wiring and electronic logic.
And those.. .were meant to function.. exactly ONCE. Not make an unaided run at "forever".
Welcome to the Jaguar minder's culture. Enter with money, skill, dedication, or all of the above.
To the good? I don't doubt that the odd "STD" has been onpassed IN a Jaguar, (The motorcar. Not the feline) ...but my bet is that a scan tool would find the vehicle had only been the instigator, never the source.
Small comfort? I'll take it!
Last edited by Thermite; Apr 20, 2024 at 10:13 AM.
Welcomme to the company, Andy58!
Nice looking jag! From your posts it sounds like this is not your first rodeo with cats! All the best (of luck?) on your engagement!
The gauges in this vehicle are driven by small all plastic electric motors
New ones cost $4 so you can imagine the quality although the fault you
describe is very rare especilly considering your low mileage.
I am just guessing that it is a mechanical fault in the motor.
Too old and decrepit to still envy you that bit of kit, 'personally'.
Not so old as to have forgotten that my TR3 had always aspired to become a 3000 Mk2 Healey --- ever it had been permitted to survive to adulthood.
Closest it ever got was failing an exhaust pipe hangar ...so it could throw a few sparks off the roadway and PRETEND to have a Healey's underslung plumbing.
Last edited by Thermite; Apr 22, 2024 at 09:09 PM.
New Member
In less than 1000 miles it's already showing Air suspension fault, and on the way back home from a trip into Wales UK, I thought it would be a good idea to engage cruise control whilst navigating the dreaded average speed camera systems that are popping up all over the UK. Bad move. Rev counter went crazy then ABS fault, then a stability control fault. Yet the car drove perfectly. So today, it's out with the Icarsoft LR v3.0 reader recently acquired so hoping that will shed a bit of light. If anyone has any suggestions as to what the cause might be please drop me a reply. 
but clearly, the car has been stored, so dusty contacts could well be an issue.
