Probably nobody cares at this point but hopefully this helps someone else.

I purchased a new cold start valve, Standard Motor CJ33 which is for a 280z I believe.

Installed it and it started up immediately after sitting for 3 days. Never came close to that before. It fits really well just needed to cut a new piece of fuel hose to it which should be done anyway to prevent leaks and fires

I'm hoping my stalling problem is fixed by my new coolant temperature sensor that will be here Wednesday.

In case anyone is listening, I'll update from there

 

Thatch, oh yeah, at least one person is listening and appreciates your posts. Where did you buy the cold start valve from? Also same question goes for the temp sensor? I'm going to roll the dice and order one of each .

 

Thanks. I got the cold start valve in Amazon actually. I think it was $99.

Coolant temperature sensor was also on Amazon. Should be here in a couple days.

When I removed the old dead cold start valve, there was still excellent fuel pressure at the rail after sitting for a few days. The CJ33 fits perfectly.

 

Thatch, thanks. I might be the only person in America that doesn't buy on Amazon. Did you purchase from a specific seller with a specific part number. I just want to make sure I buy what you bought . Thanks, Ren

 

Standard Motor Products CJ33 Cold Start Valve

Standard Motor Products TX107 Coolant Sensor

There were multiple suppliers online. Amazon was just the fastest.

 

Thanks.

 

I was against Amazon too but after two or three orders I realized eBay is a dead corpse.
Amazon has their own fleet of delivery trucks bypassing all other shippers.
Sometimes Amazon delivers on THE NEXT DAY after you order something. Unbelievable. How can they do that? I don't know.
AND their no-hassle returns? No comparison.

 

I suspect I'm only getting fuel from the driver side tank. Even though there is fuel in the passenger side.

The switch on the dash seems to work as the fuel gauge changes level when I push.

Would this be an issue with the valve in the boot?

 

They can stick and I have had this happen to me coming back off holiday with the boot stuffed to the gunnels with cases, etc. Tank was getting to empty, so I switched tanks and the car died on me. So a quick switch back got us underway, and I parked-up, took all the stuff out of the boot, took the cover off the valve, pressed the tank switch again, then tapped the valve a couple of times with a spanner, and all was well. Yes, it's a PITA !
In your case, the valve not having been operated for so long will have made the thing seize up, so you may need to put in another valve.

 

I figured I'd have to replace the valve. The switch works on the dash to show the level but I don't think it draws fuel out of the passenger tank.

Does this make sense?

 

Definite sense. The dash switch swaps over the fuel gauge level transmitter, and also the three valves, (supply in the boot, and two returns, one at the back of each wheel arch)

 

Thatch, one small suggestion, consider starting another thread for the gas line issue. You've completed the cold start valve saga and documented it. Thanks to you it's now searchable on it's own. You'll solve your new gas line issue and it would be helpful to search on that separately. Hope I haven't annoyed you. Ren

 

I have replaced the entire fuel and ignition systems in this car, except for replacing the entire distributor itself (new cap) New coolant temperature sensor

Drained tanks, checked compression and fuel pressure all look good.

The car starts and runs reliably but feels like I have misfire. I can feel it at idle and upon acceleration there is always a slight shudder and just doesn't feel like all the power is there.

Anyone have any ideas? I was thinking valve adjustment but this is not an easy job on this car

 

guesswork ideas:
1) a bad spark plug
2) a bad spark plug wire
3) if the car is older than 1986, add a ground strap from Oxygen Sensor to body of car.

 

Thanks for the reply.
The plugs and wires are new.

What is the procedure for adding the ground strap?
Does it attach directly to the body of the O2 sensor?
Please give some details. I've not heard of this before
Happy New Year!

 

Even new spark plugs fail, check each one and each wire.

I have details in my website for a O2 sensor ground strap. I resolved an intermittent misfire in my 1984 by adding a ground strap to the O2 sensor.
Jaguar added a ground wire to the sensor starting in 1986, so this may only work in pre-1986 4.2 fuel injected engines with 1-wire sensors. If your sensor has 2 wires from the sensor, you don't need this.
Otherwise check in my website:
https://jagupgrades.webstarts.com

 

Good tip from Jose. And adding the O2 sensor ground is a good idea on general principle, even if your not fighting a specific problem.

And it can be helpful even on the post-85 cars. A bit of history on the matter....

The cars thru 1986 originally came with one-wire sensors. A lot of the cars were failing emissions tests and it was traced to poor O2 sensor performance. Specifically, the sensors were not heating up fast enough. What Jaguar did was to use a heated O2 sensor. These sensors had three wires: signal to the ECU, 12v "+" to the heater, and ground to the heater.

The ground was was just for the heater circuit. The signal circuit of the sensor still used the not-always-reliable surface grounding. Therefore, even if you have the later three wire sensor, adding a sensor ground as described can be helpful.

California registered 1986 XJ6s were subject to a recall for this matter and Jaguar made a parts kit to retrofit the three wire sensors.

The heated three-wire sensors were standard issue for USA 1987 cars but since "model year" designations vary from country-to-country the easiest way to tell if your car originally had the heated sesnor is to simply look at the dashboard. The oxygen sensor warning light was used only on cars with the non-heated, one-wire sensors. The warning light was not installed on cars with the heated three-wire sensors.

Cheers
DD

 

Great tips Doug. I was not aware adding a ground strap to post 1986 sensors was also a good idea, so I will update the description in my website.

I have sold many of the straps I build, but I never hear back from any buyer, which might be a good thing !

Back in the late 1980's and early 1990's this O2 sensor ground strap was put down as "snake oil" by a number of posters at JagLovers. Remember? But since it came recommended by the Motorcars Ltd. factory-trained technician whom I'm sure you remember, I ignored them and went ahead with adding a ground strap properly made. My engine idling became stable and "reassuring". Still runs like that today.

So Happy New Year and thanks for the support.

 

One of my spark plugs was black. I replaced the fuel injector with a brand new one and now car runs perfect.

Actually has some power. It's been a long road. Now working on interior and the blower motor issues