Hi all

managed to get back to my first real bit of work on my 1997 XJ6 Sport (3.2L AJ16) today.
Thanks to everyone in my last thread.
With your advice I managed to remove the electrical connections, and today I managed to borrow a second spanner which allowed me to disconnect the fuel rail inlet and the fuel pressure regulator.

This means I now have the rail completely disconnected from the engine, except for the injectors, one of which I'm trying to replace. If I'm not mistaken, they are just a press fit, so a decent tug should be enough to pull off the rail.
I covered all the injector connections quite liberally in WD40 and grabbed the rail by both hands, giving a firm pull along with a gentle rocking motion, but could not get the rail to come off.
Before pulling harder and risking causing any damage, I just wanted to ask here if this is the correct approach to remove the fuel rail and replace an injector. Am I doing anything wrong?

Thanks in advance and for all the help up to here

 

I forgot to mention:

After finishing up last week I reconnected the fuel pressure regulator, electrical plugs, and most of the bolts holding everything in place, put the fuel pump relay back in, and reconnected the negative battery terminal.
Then when going back today, I got absolutely nothing when turning the key in the ignition. No lights, no cranking form the starter motor, nothing. Not even central locking was working, so I couldn't even unscrew the tank cap.
Is it possible that the battery somehow ran flat while I was working last time? I had wrapped the negative terminal in a little towel to avoid any shorts, but I suppose this might have slipped. If the cable touched a metal part of the vehicle, could this have caused a short and drained the battery?

 

Suggest as a least intrusive try on the battery give it a battery charger recharge . As to the tank I would personally leave it alone for the vapor valves ( names not in mind ) may be out of sequence and re sequence after awhile . As to the stuck fuel injector there is a product called PB Blaster that has more penetrating properties that may seep into the binding O - ring bite otherwise give what you have put on there some time to soak in . There is a thing about some chemicals will swell O - rings if not compatible ( and others may input please ) . Yes Lady Penelope's were very hard to get off and the previous owner actually bent the fuel rail . Heat is not recommended for the danger of fuel , bad .

Thanks , Parker

 

The car is not currently near an electrical socket. Why do you suggest using a charger vs jump starting off another car?
On the fuel rail, I'll give it another try tomorrow when the lube should have settled in sufficiently. I used WD-40 as it is generally very good lubricant and I saw it recommended for this application somewhere, although I can't immediately find the thread.

 

Jump starting would be fine but it may take a while before it will turn over , being a low charge condition .

 

So, since I realised that I made the mistake of having already taken off the clips that connect the injector to the fuel rail, I had another try today.
Still, no amount of pulling and rocking would cause the rail-injector assembly to come off the engine, even after I gave the injectors another good spray with lubricant at the end where they are pushed in to the engine.
Is it really just a case of 'pull harder'? Will all the injectors suddenly pop out while I fall over backwards holding the whole assembly in my hands?

How sturdy is the fuel rail? I really don't want to risk damaging it.

 

Yep they can be hard to get off . I took mine off 3 times as I restore Lady P but not as hard as what you are experiencing . You might if possible open a Thread on the previous X40 model for it is the same setup but the part numbers may be different . You may get some advice from that population . Don't overlook visiting a Jaguar shop in your area and just humbly ask .Thought about using a piece of lumber to lever it off where you would have more control vs. over pull through movement and bending the rail excessively , but you would risk damaging the magnesium valve cover edge lips , bad . Obviously I would not recommend putting back together with the same O - rings and based on your pic of your injectors looks like environmental damage to the injector finish coating so I would suspect without seeing that you may have some corrosion of the O - ring " seat " area on both the engine side and rail side . They can be polished back out by hand with some fine sandpaper and some form of protective oil , but that is as you put it back together . Might respectfully have to reconsider the need to replace that one injector with whatever the determined reason .

 

The fuel rail can be difficult to shift. Especially as it's being held in place at each injector. It will come free and as suggested, a piece of wood used as a lever will help. Protect the magnesium cover with some cloth and a piece of thin board, ply or similar. Lever up at one end to start and move along, freeing each injector in turn. I did this just recently.

 

...but do it gently, as I've dented a couple rails at the wrecking yard when using the "pry with wood" method.

But once one injector pops loose, they seem to then "unzip" one by one pretty easily.

.

 

Many kind thanks to everyone!
The lever method succeeded and I finally got the fuel rail off. My efforts were not in vain either, as the injector on cylinder 3 is clearly blocked, which finally confirms my suspicions over the cause of the misfire!

 

Looks like a seal kit ( item 5 ) for 1 injector x 6 . I don't think I would trust anything other then a reputable source for fuel related seals . You can clean up the seal seat areas of the fuel rail and intake with very fine 1000 grit sandpaper if not " pitted " or scalloped beyond reason . Recommend cleaning the remaining injectors as you have them off by running some MEK ( very poisonous to the liver ) through them as they actuate off and on .

https://www.jaguarclassicparts.com/uk/part/EBC8492

 

I'd recommend sending your injectors to a cleaning & rebuild service. They usually run $15-20 per injector, which is a bargain.

Two I know of with good results:

Mr Injector - Home

Jaguar Fuel Injector Service

.

 

I'm i the UK so will need to find something local, but thanks for the advice!

 

I've just been scraping bits of rust or other debris out of the seats that hold the injectors (see image), and noticed that I can hear a distinct rattling sound that sounds like sand running up and down the rail as I tilt it back and forth.

What is this likely to be, what is likely to have caused it, and what should I do about it?




edit: if I do this with the seats pointing down, little chunks of what looks like heavily corroded metal come out. I can easily grind them into a powder with my fingertips...

 

After rocking back and forth and shaking the fuel rail a bit, all of this has come out of it...

More likely cause or consequence of blocked injector?

 

The injectors have a basket filter on the inlet side that from what I have read somewhere that can be removed by turning ( lightly ) in a stubby threaded screw and pulling out with pliers . You may have to tap out some debris to make room for the screw . This may save you some money if you try to salvage the original injectors and clean them yourself . The seal kit EBC8492 appears to include the basket filters . But I would follow the advice of the more experienced , just providing an option . As to the source of the debris , I don't have a clue ( fuel pump impeller bits bypassing the fuel filter ? ) but it must be resolved . I sanded the corrosion pits on the outside of my fuel rail and repainted it ( no high temp paint needed ) before the pits progressed to a deeper level to possibly cause a leak . The important area of the fuel rail and intake ports seats are the inside radius walls as they contact the O - rings .

Thanks , Parker