Hey everyone, Happy Mothers Day....

This is a double post.....but I figured that here I could find more answers.

I have a 1986 XJ6 with a little over a 118k miles. The other day I went to work and the car was running fine, up until themoment when I had to go homethat’s when she gave me trouble starting. She would start for a second and immediatelyshut off. When the towing service came, the driver touched the big relay under the hood located in the center portion of the firewall (underneath the upper strut tower bars) and the car fired up right away, but when he move his hand away the car died.

I checked the spark plugs, gas in the tank - even if the engine got flooded, and everything seems to be fine.

The engine is turning, but doesn't start....could it be that the relayis the cause of all this?

Thanks in advance

doca

P.S.
Is there any mechanic in Los Angeles that can help us?

 

it could be any component causing the problem, but it sounds like the tow truck driver found the problem, he's/she's worth a million!

Has anyone wiggled the wires leading to the double Relay while someone tries to start the engine? I have two Jags, a 1965 S type and a 1984 XJ-6. In both cars, all theRelays can be pried-open and their contacts or 'points' cleaned with very fine emery paper, or in an emergency, with a woman's nail file, the thin, cardboard ones, sometimes thecontacts corrode from wear and tear and they become confused or intermittent. -age and mileage- but overall, the Series 3 XJ-6 (1980-1987) is one reliable car overall. Jaguars were designed to be maintained by their owners, though maybe not after 1988.

Also could be something as simple as a clogged Fuel filter, or a loose Air Intake Bellows Hose, or a bit more complicated like the Fuel Regulator, they are known to act up like that after high mileage. Regardless, don't despair, parts are not expensive, so shop around for best price, there's lots of parts suppliers.

My advice is to find an Independent Jaguar shop in L.A., I'm sure there's many,
just check the Yellow Pages, orsearch online. Let someone with experience fix it if you can't. A Jaguar Dealer will just tell you: "my technicians are younger than your car!"

For your reference, clickon the picture below and look all the different components that would need to be checked or that could cause problems.

the diagram assumes you are standing on the passenger side of the engine compartment. You can copy it and enlarge it for more clarity. Good luck and let us know what you found out.

[IMG]local://upfiles/1235/8D69469B074E427DA102640D1CCD5F31.jpg[/IMG]

 

I checked the coil and the car is getting spark sometimes and sometimes not....
I'll do as you said .... to clean the realays from the inside.

I tried putting new batery, and thecar starts for a second and dies soon after.

 

I just tried with cleaning the relays.....and no luck.

The only thing I can think of is fuel injectors...... I can smell gasoline around engine block, how difficult is to change them?

 

I doubt it's the Fuel Injectors,and I would notmess withthem!If you're smelling gasoline,it is obviously being pumped to the engine, so leave the fuel delivery components alone! Not to mention that to service the fuel Injection system you must de-pressurize the system before disconnecting anything, and that's an entire Chapter by itself.

But at this point you can check the Inertia Fuel Cutoff Switch located in the passenger-side,at the corner of, and belowthe Dash, mountedby the "knee panel", a black-box with a grey wiring plug leading to it underneath it, and a black-push-button on top. There's a black-plastic, snap-on cover over it, you just pull the cover off to reveal the IFCS. Make sure it isn't 'tripped" by pressing down on the button. If it feels "springy" it's probably tripped. To un-tripp it, remove the wiring Plug carefully, then push the button down, and reconnect the plug.

The Coil can be checked by substituting with a good one as the Service Manual says to do, but coils rarely go bad.I still have one dated 3/64in my '65 S type. But the whole thing sounds "Electrical" to me, so check that all connections are secure everywhere, you'd be amazed! Check ALL Fuses too. one by one.

If the Relay is doing its job now,the nextcheck is the Ignition Module, lucky for us it's a GM part/circuit inside, which can be found at NAPA.
The Ignition Module is known to fail after years of service. It's another black-box about 3X3 located near the ignition itself, under the front of the intake manifold, two wires coming out of it, one is a white wire. You'll have to remove it, open it carefully, and get it Tested. or get a used oneat a salvage yard. Check all the Ignition Wires going to the Ignition Cap, the Coil wire, etc.
Check the Cap and Rotor. Again, you can get those at any auto parts like Autozone. You'll need a super-long Phillips screwdriver to remove the two screws for the ignition cap.

Don't ignore the obvious, a clogged Fuel Filter will cause identical sysmptoms.
Make sure there's gasoline in both tanks! (you'd be amazed). FUSES!

Last, if you're going to service the car yourself, spend the $25. and get a Service and Parts Manual CD at the Jaguar dealer. Worth it and handy to have.