Hi all.
First time Jaguar owner here. My aunt basically gave me her old 1995 XJ6 Vanden Plas.

Here is what is going on:

the SRS/Airbag light is on.

there is a loud interior chime that goes off at random and sometimes does not stop.

the turn signals work with the exception of the fronts, even after replacing all of the bulbs.

Also can not figure out how to turn on the bright headlights. fog lights do not work after replacing those bulbs either.

I have also checked all of the fuses in the 5 blocks and they are all intact with none blown out.

I am just looking for suggestions right now. Its a nice car, but I have no clue how to work on Jags, and finding a repair manual is proving impossible.

 

Hi, I am somewhat new to working on jaguars as well. I also have a 1995 vanden plas. After checking all the fuses you will probably have to start checking the relays. The xj300 repair manual is also available for download in the "X300 'how to'" thread that is stickied at the top of the forum. This should have all of the electrical diagrams that may be useful to you.

 

Hi Dave and welcome to the forum. The easiest, most direct method of addressing your airbag warning light would be to have the codes read, which will tell you fairly exactly where the problem lies. However, that one requires specialized software (the std OBDII reader won't get the airbag codes) and there may be some cost involved. So......the stickies referenced by Drossvet above also contain an airbag diagnostic procedure written by a member here, which will walk you through it methodically. If not, search this forum and it will pop up, but I'm pretty certain it is in the stickies.

Hi beams are actuated via the turn signal stalk, alternate-action, pull toward you. You can squeeze it aft from it's spring-loaded normal position for a "flash" when the main headlight switch is in the "Off" position. Otherwise, fuses, relays...then...you gotta start tracing wires, looking for damage and unplugged plugs. Fortunately, electrical guides are also posted in the stickies for download.

Edit: Corrected bad gouge about actuating the hi-beams - I was confused by recent forays out in the Excursion and the S-Types!

 

When investigating any issues with your front lights/indicators you might want to check out the connector blocks up under the front spoiler, in behind the spotlights. These connectors become gunked up and usually just disconnecting them and cleaning up the contacts can work wonders.

And welcome aboard, with the wealth of informed owners on here, you'll be up and running properly in no time.

 

Welcome to the forum. Lots of great help here. As far as the ABS light,I read somewhere here that there is a connector for the sensor behind the front bumper that sometimes has a bad contact.Disconnect your battery for awhile before messing with any of the airbag connections. You may want to add some dielectric grease in there. Your lighting issue sounds like it may just be a disconnected plug or maybe a poor ground. Also check for corrosion in the bulb socket area. Good luck. I'm sure you'll get lots of advice here.

 

Sorry,I meant to say Airbag light,not ABS light.

 

thank you all!

 

Downloading the manual is the key, and then taking the time to get to grips with the wiring diagrams. They are good, and highly logical, although I found them far from intuitive, and it always takes me a little while to tune into them.
There is a good section somewhere in the manual about tracing airbag faults, which is worth following to the letter.

 

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but the Captain Jaguar's cat house link is dead.

So far I have replaced a leaking power steering hose, front shock bushings, and front wheel bearings on both sides. there was a couple of plugs that were not even plugged in in the front bumper, so now I have left side turn signals, but the right front still needs some investigating.

 

OH, i did want to ask. HOW do you tighten the alternator belt. this design is confusing me.

 

This should set you right: https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...lt-how-102387/

 

yes! thank you for that. alternator is not squealing and the voltmeter is reading 15.5 range idling. so I found this youtube video, this is not my Jag, but the misfire you hear is exactly what mine is doing.

 

I pulled the spark plugs and checked the condition; aside from not being properly gapped, they were in good shape. Denso plugs. no charring or anything out of place coil wise. might need to change the valve cover gasket soon, but it all looked fine.

 

Misfires are often poor injector connections. Loosen the injector cable rail and give it a wiggle or firmly press down the connectors whilst running. Listen to see if your misfire clears.

 

It turned out to be 2 bad coils. I saw another thread on here that guided you through a coil test. #3 and #5 were shot. it runs like a champ now. It seems like the Parts stores treat Jags like the plague; they have all told me they can't check the codes and that I have to go to a shop. is it a standard OBDII ECM??

 

well, maybe not. it runs really smooth, but at idle, you can still tell there is something not exactly right; but its nothing like it was. Before the new coils it would rock the entire car, now its just barely noticeable unless you listen to the engine or the exhaust. the Injector connections are all tight, I did take your advice and checked those.

 

The idle on these car was never perfectly smooth from new, so as long as it's not misfiring, you're good. That being said, these cars are fussy about sparkplugs, don't use anything fancy, plain copper is best. The spec is Champion's, RC12YC.

What coils did you use? Are they the ones made by Diamond in Japan? It is the collective experience here than anything else is junk and will last anything from weeks to months before failing. SNG Barratt carries the OEM Japanese ones. Even going to a dealer isn't a guarentee of getting the right coils anymore.

 

95 was a part OBDII. It wasn't a full implementation (required for 96), but it is OBDII compliant and a standard code reader will plug in and read codes. For things like misfire the ECU is very reluctant to set a code.

 

I picked up the coils from a Jag dealer as a matter of fact. I looked over my receipt and I don't see a manufactured in ...so I'll keep a check on them. I will tell you the old coils had no gaskets, whomever worked on it prior just flat theft them off. My check engine light is on, that's why I was wanting to have the codes pulled. Advance especially doesn't want to even try to pull them.