Guys, first of all, i am new around here, this seems to be a great forum and i really need help from someone with more experience than me about jaguars


I bought this 1997 Jaguar XJ6 L, like 1 month ago, it has some dents and things that donīt work but i got it for cheap.

I started troubleshooting it a couple of weeks ago, the symptoms are these:

-Gear lever wonīt come out of park (i have to use the manual override)
-Key wont come out from the ignition switch, i have to go to the trunk and disconnect the battery to release the key
-i have no cluster or console illumination
-air conditioner controller screen shows ER and beeps for 5 seconds when i turn the ignition on
- #2 5amp fuse from the right rear heelboard fuse box keeps blowing
- turn signals and hazards flash quick and i get a blown bulb warning on the dash, but i replaced just about every light bulb in the car, so i donīt know what else to do...


Things iīve done:

I started by tracing the entire wiring harness looking for chafed wires, loose connections, etc. i found out that somebody cut a lot of wires that run to the bpm and connected them again (i donīt get the point of doing that) i repaired all of them.

Since the key locks in the ignition switch and i get no voltage to the shift interlock solenoid i tought it could be a bad bpm, replaced it and still no go ( i replaced it with a exact same part)

Dimmer works when tested, but i have no idea on how to test the dimmer module to see if thatīs why i have no lights at the cluster or dashboard area, i took the dimmer module apart looking for blown resistors, bad capacitors, and other stuff but i couldnīt find anything...

please!!! help!!!!

 

With regard to the key stuck in the ignition, it seems that the car doesn't know it's in Park (which allows the key to be removed). This and your sticking shifter might be related to the "not in park" switch, mounted beneath the centre console on the opposite side to the shift lock solenoid. It's a small micro switch with a springy tang extending from it. This tang picks up the position of the gear shifter and it can go out of alignment.

Often, a simple adjustment of the switch/tang and a cleaning will sort the problem.

The dash illumination module beneath the steering column cowl is not unknown for failing and isn't always obvious when you look at it.

Any other electrical gremlins is usually a search and elimination/trial by error procedure, but bad earths often account for many such issues. There are lots of earth points on these cars, so that would be a place to start looking. You'll find all the relevant info in the downloadable manual here on the forum.

Others will chime in and good luck with it.

 

Here you go , a good guide to the switch adjustment
GUIDE : Adjusting your inhibitor switch switch

 

Welcome.
This may help with some of your problems.
1. Disconnect the NEGATIVE battery cable.
2. Depress the brake pedal for 10 seconds.
3. Reconnect the negative battery cable.
Worked for me on the A/C and some of the lights.
Good luck....

 

Do you have illumination on the door switches?


For the a/c, there is a press'n'hold button combination that will show you all the faults. Can't recall what it is but look in the owner's manual (stickies if u don't have it) and it is detailed there.

 

Thanks a lot man!! Now that i think about it, the not in park switch might not be working like it should, i took it off and tested for continuity and it passed, but i did not adjust it, so i might be chasing something thatīs in front of my nose!!




Iīll give this a try today, thanks!!!!



I will test this procedure, but i think i found what the problem might be, thereīs no pressure in the a/c lines, i will have to look for leaks and fix them before charging freon again!

Thanks!!!



I have no illumination at the door switches, the lighter in the center console, in the cluster, radio panel, a/c panel, clock panel, nothing.

I found the button sequence and it gave me 4 codes, tried clearing them but they keep coming so it is a hard fault

 

Well, i tried adjusting the not in park switch and no go, one thing i didnīt mention is that the car starts in park, you have to use the manual override to move the gear lever but it starts in park. i disconnected the locking solenoid in the key and whenever i remove the key, it starts beeping quick, if that means something....

Iīm puzzled...

 

See post #5 and the pdf: https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...witches-53109/


Also, Motorcarman posted a TSB on illumination issues addressing the radio ground wire amongst other things to check. Look for the TSB's in the stickies, but he also attached it in a post where someone was having illumination issues and I referenced the above...just can't locate it now.


On the a/c, go up front and reach in behind the grille (I think you can get a hand in underneath) and grasp your condenser and give it a good shake. If it is loose, chances are you've lost both bottom iso-mounts some time ago...possibly the uppers, too, and you may well have rubbed a hole in the condenser. If it happened before you got the car or a long time ago, the oil may have washed away and it will be hard to find. See post #2: https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...-maybe-125216/


Wherever the refrigerant leaks out, the (PAG)oil carried 'round the system in it will condense out and leave a trail. However, if it's been awhile, it probably won't be all that visible.

 

Ground wire behind radio is snug, no chafed wires behind the radio whatsoever...

 

Please... Somebody... Chime in!

I have buyers remorse with this car.... I hate i it so much...

 

Hopefully someone will be able to give you some more advice, but I have to say that the fact someone has been cutting harness wires raises a lot of concerns in a car like this that relies on its electronics so much.

Much like my Riviera where I had to search every nook and cranny for any wires that may have been chewed by mice (crossing my fingers 18 months later, only minor non-critical wires found so far) .... I'd search throughout your XJ for any other modified/cut wiring.

Good luck!

.

 

I know... Somebody started cutting wires in what seems to be a random fashion, i have teared the entire interior looking for burned, cut, chaffed, etc wires and have fixed everything i found, but i just canīt catch a break with this...

 

For your key removal issue I think you need you need to do some structured circuit tracing. The Not in Park switch just provides a signal to the BPM. It is the BPM that controls the solenoid in the key barrel. So I would trace that circuit from start to finish.

The Electrical guides that can be accessed through the stickies are good when you get used to them. Check out the Gearshift Interlock page. You will find the pin status (voltage) for each state (active/inactive) and can compare to what you see at the BPM and switches.

Note that the BPM also receives Park/Neutral input from the gearshift Rotary Switch (via the decoder module which is also in the centre console) but it's not clear to me what that input is used for but would be worth checking out while you're there.

(BTW the rapid beeping is the signal that the car normally produces when you turn off the ignition but the car is not in Park).

 

I got the park/key lock thing figured out!


It turns out that there was a cable from the park position switch that was broken and really far from reach, i started wiggling the wire harness from the bpm and BAM! there it was, i replaced the wire and now works like a charm!!

As far as the A/C issue goes, i donīt give a hoot about it now!!

 

Hi pal, feel your pain, have same trouble with my newly acquired xj6 at a silly silly price of Ģ355 couldn’t see her go so bid on her and hey presto she’s mine, like you having starting, parking and key problems, just wanted to say “ don’t give up , it will be worth it just keep goin and goin good luck