Hi there friends,

Has anyone done this? Can anyone give me some idea of how long this should actually take for experienced Jaguar mechanics?

Why? My local Jaguar Landrover dealer noticed a coolant leak coming from the SC housing (apparently, it was pooling there) after an overnight pressure-test. Since then they've had the vehicle for 8 days but haven't found any leak. They're telling me the delay is that it is very difficult to remove the SC housing.

I've looked at the JTIS manual but I'm no mechanic.

 

It is not really a big deal. The supercharger is held by three bolts to the engine, two at the front and one at the back (red lines on the pic). It is not required to remove the charge coolers. Mainly, four things need to be removed before unbolting and taking out the supercharger - thermostat housing/cross pipe, supercharger cover plate and its couplings to the charge coolers, throttle body and the intake elbow.

 

The mechanics are investigating a coolant leak - would that change what needs to be removed?

 

You said that "My local Jaguar Landrover dealer noticed a coolant leak coming from the SC housing". There is no cooland inside the SC housing so the leak cannot be from there. I presume you meant that there is coolant pooling under the SC, i.e. in the vee of the engine. Usually, the leak is from the heater hoses that run under the supercharger. It is possible (but unlikely) that you have coolant leak from one of the charge coolers. In both cases, the SC has to come out.

 

I have replaced dozens of heater 'feed & return' hoses in the engine valley. It is a VERY common fault.

They need to be replaced at least once a decade.

bob

 

It is straight forward and not hard till you have to remove the bolts from the throttle body elbow to sc and then get to that rear bolt you cannot see. And yes that is a common leak. I woud personally go further on that age car and do the intake gaskets and send the injectors out to sonic clean and rebuilt or replace. You have done alot of the work to get to that point and i feel going a little further and spending a bit more to take care of other issues that can and do come up would be a prudent additional expenditure of additional funds. Also part load breather pipe, vacuum lines etc...

 

I would also replace the Knock Sensors.

 

Thanks everyone for your comments. While I certainly appreciate the fact that while I'm this deep in trying to resolve the coolant leak I should carry out other replacements, I'm not confident enough in this workshop to do any more on my vehicle.

Some background:

1. In December I wen to this local JLR service centre/dealer because I just needed my annual roadworthy certificate. They were happy for pass the vehicle but noted the coolant leak needed to be resolved. They quoted about AUD$700 to fix coolant leak (not the one I'm referring to here) so I proceeded.
2. A few weeks later I noticed it was still leaking the same amount/rate as before this work was done. Back to the workshop where they noted a separate hose (top hose from radiator) was leaking. It was replaced. No charge.
3. Again, few weeks later I noticed it was still leaking the same amount/rate as before this work was done. Back to the workshop where they said one of their mechanics had damaged the replaced hose by over-tightening the securing fixture/clamp. No charge.
4. Yet again, few weeks later I noticed it was still leaking the same amount/rate as before this work was done. Now I'm in this situation.

It seems odd that the amount leaking has never changed (I need to fill the reservoir every 2-3 weeks).

So....I'm just preparing myself for the next report where they'll tell me how terribly complicated/time consuming it is to repair this leak from [possibly] the hoses under the SC - and I want to have some knowledge on how long this should take them to do. I have no idea if it's a 1 hour task or a 10 hour task

 

I would also take this opportunity to add a smaller sc pulley to increase boost and few psi. Great upgrade.

 

It's a 18 year old car. I'm not a fan of shotgunning parts as a diagnosis technique; but I am a fan of shotgunning parts as a preventative maintenance exercise and recommend you replace all cooling system hoses. The cooling system is currently a bit like the game show The Weakest Link; but less condescending and with a better haircut. The next weakest component will fail.

The brittle hard lines with the norma connectors on them break when you look at them. Replace all of them; they're oddly reasonable at the Jaguar dealer. Replace the big old mess of intercooler hoses, the heater hoses (which the under the SC that are leaking likely are), just replace the whole deal. With the supercharger off the car, you've disconnected a lot of hoses, and really the labor for replacing the whole deal at this point is a bargain. The supercharger for me can be popped off in about 2 to 2.5 hours; and reinstalled in about the same. If it is off and the mileage is up there, I recommend replacing at least the coupler in it. I prefer the original style spring loaded couplers, but there are people who install the solid ones without issue; the spring ones are quieter though.

On both my XJR and X100 XKR, the coolant tank has failed on the hotplate weld. I recommend replacing that too. I literally got burns and scars on my right arm from it. I was lucky in that the car overheated but has had no adverse affects in the 30k miles since other than at the time it fried a coil.

 

I'd also trim back (or replace depending on condition) the vacuum lines which have probably hardened in a somewhat loose dried position, for a snugger more secure fit.

 

Hi Escaped Ape
I do not own a car with that engine
however I had a leak in the reservoir tank
and octopus hose not sure if your has the same but I had a pool of water, under the car also I filled it every 2 days it happened when hot and system under pressure otherwise there was nothing.
good luck Dutchy

 

I agree that the leak is coming from the heater hoses under the supercharger. I understand that you don’t want to do too many repairs while you’re in there, but you’ll want to replace the part load breather tube. It’s a hard brittle plastic vacuum tube running from the front of the cam cover to the throttle body, and back to the fire wall. It lays next to the heater hoses you’ll be replacing. At its current age, the plastic is extremely brittle, and it will shatter if you even breathe on it. Not terribly expensive, but much easier to replace while the SC and throttle body are out. When it cracks, you’ll have a vacuum leak and the car will run rough and throw lean codes, causing the check engine light to come on. You’ll probably crack it when you’re jostling the heater tubes.

You can read the procedure in the workshop manual. You’ll want to clean out the port where the tube connects to the cam cover using a small drill bit. Don’t use a drill, just use the bit.

 

@aquifer @M. Stojanovic @motorcarman @80sRule

The leak is definitely a coolant leak (which is what sparked the investigation).

The vehicle is currently sitting in the workshop waiting for some manifold gaskets (and a few other items) before they dismantle further.

Thanks for all the input - it helps me get a better understanding of what's going on!

 

Update!

Okay, so, after removing the manifolds in an attempt to identify the coolant leak they have told me that the water pump (previously replaced 3 years ago) had one of the hoses (that sits under the SC housing) was placed over instead of under another hose (or vice versa) which has crimped the hose and caused the leak and the water pump has a leaking seal.

Should they have been able to see that without remove the SC housing?

Hmm

 

I'm saying no if they hadn't removed the hood to do the disassembly. Because they would be doing the work from the side and if their mindset was removing the SC and not checking for other reasons for the issue as they disassembled, they could miss it.

After most of my reassembly was complete from doing tensioners and chains. You'll note the radiator fan is not installed yet and if had been, would have been in the way and my hood was off. It would have been virtually impossible to see with the hood pushing you toward the firewall to work.

 

Thanks everyone for your comments....after a three week wait I finally got my girl back. I had to source a after-market water pump for the garage (as JLR service centre they can only supply genuine parts - and there we none in the country). So, waterpump replaced a few hoses and gaskets replaced and I'm back on the road (AUD$1k later). Let's hope their fourth attempt at fixing the same leak is going to stick