Good Evening,

I currently own a 2000 XJ8 Jaguar that I love dearly. I have own it since 2006 and I am now faced with a dilemma. I am a backyard mechanic that has performed all maintenance on the vehicle up to this point. The vehicle is currently at 150,000 and I found myself adding oil to the vehicle at least once a month with no oil leaks. The vehicle ran fine until most recently. I had a very heavy coolant leak and noticed I needed to replace the thermostat. After I replaced the thermostat and the thermostat housing, the car would not start after many attempts. It would turn over put wouldn’t start. The defect was similar to having a faulty fuel pump. I had recently replaced the fuel pump, so I thought it was just another pump failure.

I didn’t want to bother with replacing the pump again ( very time consuming) so I had it towed to a local repair shop. They performed a fuel pressure test came back @ 43.5. They Performed a compression test which came back with no compression on cylinders 5/6/7/8. They stated I needed a new engine and quoted one for $13,000! With that clearly not being a smart option, I was wondering if an expert can lead me in the right direction to the most efficient course of action.

I have already switched out the spark plugs, and the ignition coils. Any advice would be greatly appreciated??

 

Sounds like a blown head gasket and/or warped head. Hey, if its broke, tear it down and find the problem. Seems to me your local mechanic knows he knows nothing about Jags, so he wants to chase you away with that charge. Compression testers are rather cheap, you can get them at Harbor Freight if your stateside.

Here's site you may want to check on about chasing parts...Car-Part.com--Used Auto Parts Market

 

I forgot to mention, if your chasing parts, go to The Marketplace in the top task bar. Many folks offering parts or parting out Jags.

I'd also like to say welcome to the forums, we have have a great collection of enthusiasts who will help share their knowledge with you and we welcome yours. We would also appreciate it if you would introduce yourself and your Jag here (site requirement), it only takes a couple minutes....https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/n...-intro-must-5/

 

No compression on one whole bank of cylinders sounds like one of the tensioners let go, chain slipped and bent valves. If that's the case, you'll need to remove that head and have a machine shop replace those valves, then reassemble, carefully setting up the valve timing again. Had you previously replaced the secondary tensioners with the upgraded aluminum design? If not, that's almost certainly the case as its a well-documented defect.

 

This is what I am thinking too. If it is the worst case scenario then I want to mention that a member here had his engine rebuilt for under $5,000.

 

Copy all. I have not replaced the secondary tensioner up to this point. Will definitely look into replacing it.

 

If you don't mind me asking, exactly where did he get it done? Was it stateside?

 

Follow the link I have pasted below and go to post #8.
He bought a rebuilt engine from a California company and replaced his. Pretty reasonable for the engine.

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...engine-219796/