I have a 96 jag .four door XJ . I bought it from a known friend. He drove the car before bigot and I knew it was running fine. It stayed at his house until I paid it off. He let his brothers drive it . His kids were playing in the car when I came to pick it up . I didn't get 3 miles and it started to drag and would cut off. It would start right back up but was in crawl mode. It cut off at every stop and then going down the road. He said he would put seafood in it about once a month or two due to it acting up. Now all it does when I start it up 80s run for about 45 minutes and cut off. I'll crank it back up and it will run for about 30 minutes then cut off. The next running time would be about 20 minutes and every time after that . The car runs beautifully and is quiet as a mouse .I'm just what could be causing the cut offs. I was told it could be a sensor . If his kids put water in the tank will it cause this to happen.

 

Yes a bad tank of gas on fill up or kids will cause the engine to act up

Rain water in the gas fill well will also get into the fuel

Old fuel will do the same

You have a Crankshaft position sensor on the very front of the engine

You have a Camshaft sensor on the right side of the engine that looks like a hockey puck with a plastic window on it

The crankshaft sensor performs a couple of functions from the single signal emitting from it , see page 76 for your AJ16 engine

http://www.jagrepair.com/images/Trai...20-%202000.pdf

The RPM gauge , ignition timing , fuel injector pulse timing ,and fuel pump enable command to keep the pump on ( This last thing is a safety design feature )

this single signal can fail to the point to not being good enough for fuel pump enable but still give the RPM's and such without giving a check engine light

You can clean the face of the sensor that has grime on it different then cleaning the connector

There is no adjustment on this one sensor so it's a plug and play

 

Hello Debra Ann,

Welcome to the Jaguar Forums! It's great to have you with us!

The first thing I would recommend is that you have the car scanned for diagnostic trouble codes. The symptoms you describe may cause DTCs to be stored in the Engine Control Module (ECM) which can be very helpful in diagnosing the cause or causes of the malfunction.

The "crawl mode" you describe is probably Limp Home Mode or Restricted Performance, which limits engine rpm and locks the transmission into a single gear (typically 3rd) to help protect these components from further damage. Limp Mode can be caused by mechanical or electrical malfunctions.

I don't know where you are located, but in the U.S., many auto parts stores will scan your vehicle for free (although some have suspended this service due to the pandemic). Call the stores nearest you to see if any will run a scan for you.

If any codes are found, please post them here exactly as they appear on the scan tool (e.g. P0300) and we'll be happy to help.

Parker's suggestion of water in the gas is a very good one and a common problem on Jags with the fuel filler neck mounted with its opening horizontal. There is a drain in the gaiter around the fuel filler neck that is supposed to allow rainwater to drain, but it typically becomes clogged with seeds, leaves, etc., which allows water to pool around the fuel filler cap and seep into the fuel tank. Check and clean the drain to help prevent future problems. Adding a couple of bottles of Heet gasoline dryer may help the engine burn any water that may have found its way into your tank.

Another issue that can cause stalling when slowing to stop or make a turn is low transmission fluid, so it would be worth checking that while the transmission is hot from a 15 or 20 minute drive or more. Park on a level surface, leave the engine running, set the hand brake, depress the brake pedal and shift the gear selector through all positions (R N D 3 2), holding each position for at least 3 seconds. Shift back to park and check the transmission fluid level. It should be exactly at the HOT mark. Even one pint low (or high) can cause issues.

Please keep us informed.

Cheers,

Don

 

Wild guess, and dont know if it is even feasible on an X300, but I have encountered a similar problem on another car where a heated rear window relay found itself installed in a critical circuit. Switched itself off regular as clockwork, and reset every time the key was cycled.....
A wild guess!

 

Common that they will not read the check engine light codes unless you tell them you had the light . So you know the right answer to the question when asked

Your CEL codes are on page 121 for a 96 / 97 of the OBD PDF linked to earlier

page 111 for a 95

But the numbers are a little mixed around

code PO335 on page 126 is for the crankshaft position sensor / CKPS

code PO340 is for camshaft position sensor / CMPS

One trick to having the fuel pump running at all times is to remove the relay and jumper the forward most facing socket with the aft most facing socket with a blade type jumper wire connection . This can keep you from getting stranded or if your issue is other then the fuel pump " control " still strand you .

This will keep your pump running at all times with the keys in your pocket so plan accordingly

The auto parts store will sometimes have a tool kit behind the counter and can help build up the jumper wire

One thing that can confuse you in troubleshooting is that the fuel pump will only run for 4 seconds with key rotation , It takes the crankshaft position sensor to see engine rotation to turn the pump back on for the duration of your drive