The same thing happened on my 95XJ6 on the way to work this morning. All the lights on the instrument panel would come on for a few seconds and then go off. The car seems to be running ok. It is kind of scary when it first happens. I am also looking for some advice on how to fix. I will check out and if I find out anything I will let you know.

 

My mechanic was going to check out the problem this weekend. We suspected one of the ignition coils. On Thursday on the way to work it was really missing and the dash lights were flashing off and on almost continually. When I left for home Thursday afternoon the car was running smooth and normal. I have put about 150 miles on it since then and it is running better now than it has since I bought it. It can't be fixed if it isn't broke and right now it isn't broke. I am sure the problem will come back, I just don't know when. I guess we will play the waiting game and enjoy the ride while it is riding so good.

 

I'm having the same issue. Strange ignition issues coupled with erratic dashboard activity and flickering lights. I checked my coils today and there was a lot of buildup on one of the spark plugs. I cleaned all the connections up but don't have access to any kind of electrical testing equipment. Any ideas as to what this could be?

 

Just for kicks, try this. It must be done at night so that you can turn the surrounding lights off once the car is running.

1. Raise the hood.

2. Remove the coil cover, that's the plastic part that says Jaguar.

3. Turn off all the lights and see if there is a visible flash at the top end of any of your coils. THERE SHOULD NOT BE.

If you see a flash it is a discharge that is causing your ignition system to die out. Whichever coil/coils is/are flashing need to be replaced.

What is the name on your coils? Do they say Lucas/Made in Japan, or something else?

 

Thanks a bunch for the info, but I had already taked the car into the local shop. They found two bad coils which have been replaced. Big bummer is that the transmission light is still blinking - they are looking into that right now.

 

Since yours is a 95 check and see if the recall on the transmission computer has been taken care of. The easy way to do this is look up under the passenger side dash and check the date on the module.

 

Awesome tip Jack, thank you so much for that. Me and my gimpy leg are gonna hobble on out there right now and check it out.

 

I checked out the computer (square thing with metal cover I am assuming) and lo and behold it says '95 on it. Is there anything I should know before contacting the nearest Jaguar dealership?

 

Well, it will depend upon when in 1995 that computer was made. My 1995 XJ6 had a computer mf in 1994 so it definitely fell under the TSB. If yours was made after the TSB, then that may not be the problem.

Attached please find a copy of the TSB about the TCM.

 

I called Jaguar and they told me that what I was referring to was only a TSB and not a recall. They quoted me over $1,500 for a new computer (I can find one used for about $100), but I am going to take it in to have the TCM reset. The guys where I live didn't have the equipment to reset the TCM when they changed out my coils so I have to wait until I make it into town here.

 

Recall/TSB, hmmm. Yes I am aware of what they call it, but the language of their TSB reads thusly:

ACTION:
If a customer complains of either condition on a 1995 MY vehicle equipped with a
ZF automatic transmission, a revised Transmission Control Module is available as
installed in production from VIN 745841.
1. If the car exhibits condition 1, install the revised TCM.
2. If the car exhibits condition 2, read out the OBD II DTC(s) using the PDU. If
DTC P1777 is found in the Engine Control Module, and the PDU cannot
communicate with the TCM, install the revised TCM.

This is from Jaguar's offices, their "TSB" number is 08.1-01 . Perhaps the TSB has a shelf life and has expired. Maybe someone else can comment on that aspect of this issue. But as you can see from the .pdf it quite obviously states that the cure is to install a new TCM.

Look for one on ebay. You might go ahead and try resetting the codes. I'm surprised that your mechanic did not have the OBDII to reset it. That's all my cheap OBDII can read, the transmission and the engine faults. It will also read the BCU, but only when it throws a code. Your coil problem may have caused the TCM to throw the transmission code and it may not be from the TCM being bad.

Is your VIN number 745841 and after or before?

Before you allow Jaguar to take you for a ride on a TCM from 10-14 years ago you should make sure they don't still have the responsibility to replace it as the TSB suggests.

ALSO, it is really easy to remove/reinstall and is plug and play. Just make sure the negative lead to the battery is disconnected when doing so.

 

Cool, thanks for the info. Basically Jaguar is saying they won't pay for it - bottom line. I'm gonna go in next week to have them reset the TCU as the standard OBDII machines don't have the capability to do that (what my local mechanic said). I'll post back the results. Btw my car does fall within the VIN range stated in the TSB.

 

Thats a shame about Jaguar.

Pull the cables from the battery for about a half hour and that's supposed to be a manual reset of the codes. It may remove the Trans light.

Good luck with it.

 

Bah, this is the exact same problem with my 97 VDP. I thought I shorted something out in bad rain, but I guess not. Funny thing, I ended up changing two bad coils earlier last year - I'd love to try that night time test on mine to see if another coil or two went bad! Please keep this thread going, this problem is really annoying.

 

Jack, you are the man!!! I spotted a faulty coil, replaced it - and everything works fine now. Thank you for saving me who knows how many hundreds of dollars. The coil cost $50 from rockauto.

 

Solarus, thanks go to Grant Francis and xjrguy too, there were several guys that helped me to figure this out.

One small problem with the fix you applied.... It was $50 coils that caused my problem to begin with.

I put the old lucas coils from 1995 back into the car with the new rubber boots from my cheaper coils and the car runs like new. The cheap coils were discharging both ways.

Just a caveat.

 

Jack,
This is my first time on this forum and I'm glad to find it. My entire instrument panel has gone dead. I have a 95 XJ6. Love the car! The lights work on the instrument panel but none of the gauges do. I'm learning a lot along the way having check all the fuses in the car and I thought I had found all the relays and checked them to. Finally I got my hands on a manual and went to the electrical portion to find oh so many more relays I never new I had. And also discovered the Instrument Pack Module. I see there is one under the driver and the passenger. First of all do you think the IPM is the problem? If so, which side?
Thanks in advance for your time and expertise.
Marc

 

Jack,
This is my first time on this forum and I'm glad to find it. My entire instrument panel has gone dead. I have a 95 XJ6. Love the car! The lights work on the instrument panel but none of the gauges do. I'm learning a lot along the way having check all the fuses in the car and I thought I had found all the relays and checked them to. Finally I got my hands on a manual and went to the electrical portion to find oh so many more relays I never new I had. And also discovered the Instrument Pack Module. I see there is one under the driver and the passenger. First of all do you think the IPM is the problem? If so, which side?
Thanks in advance for your time and expertise.
Marc
1995 XJ6 pearl white
1998 VP royal blue

 

The distinct possibility exists that it is the IPM. It could also be that the connections in your Binnacle have dried up and failed.

Have you removed the binnacle to inspect the connections?