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I recently bought a XJ6 1987 and everything worked fine for weeks. Then one morning, it wouldnt start. The guy from the local automobile club helped me to start it by hitting on the starter, I drove it to a repair shop, and after 1 hour they called me to tell me that they couldnt find any problem, they said they tested the battery and cranked the starter by directly putting some power on it and started the car 30 times without any issue.
For about a week I didnt have any problems then, but suddenly, one morning it wouldnt start. I tried it the next day again and it started without any problem. So I drove to the gas station, filled my tank up and when I wanted to leave, it wouldnt start again. Hitting the starter helped to start it. The next days it wouldnt start at all, and so I brought it to a shop.
They said its most likely the relay, bc you can hear a buzzing sound when you turn the ignition and a clicking sound.
Today they called me and told me the starter itself needs to be replaced too and all in all it would be pretty expensive. So I'm wondering if you guys have any ideas and suggestions.
Everytime I put the cable from the starter at the battery, it immidiately starts. So wouldnt the starter normally not crank at all and not doing anything if it needed to be replaced? I'm not a car expert at all and I'm really confused and wondering what I should do. Especially because one mechanic said the starter is fine. What do you guys think about it?
A friend, who is a pretty handy hobby mechanic and I are now thinking about replacing the relay and if necessary the starter by ourselves, so my question is if this is doable, how difficult it is and if you guys know any guide how to replace it?
Thank you a lot in advance, I appreciate any help. Tell me if you need any more information about the car.
When the starter responds to being clonked is definitely suggests that the starter itself as at fault. I would replace it or have it rebuilt. It isn't too hard getting it off the car. If you (or your pal) have replaced a starter on any other car you can do it on this Jag. If you decide to replace it post back for a couple of pointers.
It's also true that the starter relays on these cars give trouble with age. It is entirely plausible to have two or more faults contributing to the problem on a car of this age.
*Before buying any new parts* make sure to check/clean/tighten all relevant connections, as described here:
BTW, since you posted in the Ser III section I'm assuming you really do have a Ser III XJ6. 1987 was a transition year from Ser III XJ6 sedans to 'XJ40" type XJ6 sedans.
My pal has replaced a couple of starters, I'm just not sure if he ever worked on a Jag. How much time do you think it will approximately take to replace it?
Here is the thing, sounds a bit weird but the automobile club didnt really know where the starter is, so he was randomly softly hitting things lol. And suddenly it started. Is there any chance I can make sure that the starter itself is really causing a problem? I mean it always started perfectly when giving it direct power from the battery.
The checklist I linked will help you narrow down the culprit. Remember, though, that you have to run any tests *while the symptom is present* or the test results won't really prove anything
About 2 hours oughta do it on the starter if you have a Ser III car
That doesnt sound too bad. Thank you Doug, I will work my way through the checklist and see where I end up. Last question: Any suggestions for a new starter in case I need it? Just to check my expenses.
That doesnt sound too bad. Thank you Doug, I will work my way through the checklist and see where I end up. Last question: Any suggestions for a new starter in case I need it? Just to check my expenses.
Cheers, Daniel
Many towns have a shop specializing in starter and alternator repairing and rebuilding. That's your best bet, most likely.
Most local auto parts stores can get a starter for your Jag, though. Isn't all that rare or exotic. Prices vary greatly. Shop around.
There are many good Jag specialists out there as well. SNG Barratt, Coventry West, Welsh Jaguar, Motorcars Limited. Any of them can fix you up
mine had the same problem, very intermittent so hard to nail down, after replacing the starter all seemed fine for a few weeks then did it again, i read on here somewhere about there being a second terminal on the relay that is the same as teh one for the starter, i moved the wire to it and havent had a problem since!! going on 4 months now!!
the spare terminal is right next to the original one!
mine had the same problem, very intermittent so hard to nail down, after replacing the starter all seemed fine for a few weeks then did it again, i read on here somewhere about there being a second terminal on the relay that is the same as teh one for the starter, i moved the wire to it and havent had a problem since!! going on 4 months now!!
the spare terminal is right next to the original one!
Good luck
Thank you for that advise, I'll check it out and see if this improves anything. I keep you updated!
A little update: I took the car home and will work on it on the weekend.
My mechanic wrote me this in his quote: "Please note that
due to the extremely high failure rate of rebuilt starters we only install
new (Not rebuilt) gear reduction starters."
Do you guys have any experience with this? Does anyone know a good "brand" of starters I can use?
He also told me that i need a new "regulator fuel pressure" because of a leak at the hose with the yellow cap right on top of the engine. Is that a DIY job?
i am running a gear reduction starter and got it from britishstarters.com, it failed after less than a year, however has a one year warranty so it was replaced, of course labour isnt covered but i did it myself! as can you if you have ramps or jackstands! really a very simple job!
Also all the fuel hoses under the hood should be changed (if they havent already been), along with the ones in the trunk! they leak something terrible when they get old!
also, if you get the starter from bs, you will need nuts, as new starter wont have threaded holes !!! just a heads up!
Seems like it really is the starter. Used the second terminal at the relay, didnt make any difference. I failed to crank the starter by putting direct power on it too, when I hit it, it started. So I'll definitely replace it.
starter is changed and car didnt have any problems so far, fingers crossed.
we also changed the fuel pressure regulator and i can feel the difference, more and more direct power. the funny thing is, it took us 5 minutes to change it and the shop was giving me a quote for 1,5 h labor to change it.
I now want to do a tune up, so i bought new spark plugs and wires and am gonna order head cover gaskets and an air filter too. anything else i should do / change?
best, thank you all for your help, loving my jag even more now.
When the starter responds to being clonked is definitely suggests that the starter itself as at fault. I would replace it or have it rebuilt. It isn't too hard getting it off the car. If you (or your pal) have replaced a starter on any other car you can do it on this Jag. If you decide to replace it post back for a couple of pointers.
It's also true that the starter relays on these cars give trouble with age. It is entirely plausible to have two or more faults contributing to the problem on a car of this age.
*Before buying any new parts* make sure to check/clean/tighten all relevant connections, as described here:
I have been driving my jag perfectly fine at least for 2 days every week for the past 6 months. About two weeks ago I pulled into a gas station to fill her up and she would not start/ no crank.
I still can't get her started. Here is what I have done.
1) I went through the checklist on Engine Will Not Crank Checklist except for steps 3(cleaning) and 4(cleaning), so I checked the battery and went directly to troubleshooting.
2) The white/yellow cable gets 12+ V whenever the ignition key is in the start pos. The brown wire always has 12+ V. The black/green wire is grounded (I put the positive cable of the voltmeter on the battery's positive post and the negative cable to the black/ green wire and voltmeter showed 12+ v.) I used a jumper wire from the battery to the red/white cable and the starter motor cranked.
3) I took off the old starter relay cleaned it and placed it back, the car didn't start.
4) While doing 3) the base fell out of the casing, I saw some sparks and the engine was cranking on its own. After disconnecting the relay I checked the wires again and the voltages were all as they were suppose to be.
5) Then I used a regular fog lamp relay instead of the old relay and connected as shown on this diagram Jaguar Specialties , but the car still did not start.
6) I put the old relay back on.
7) Desperately I opened the covers around the ignition switch and under the steering wheel and realized that my jag is equipped with an alarm system which was disconnected. I connected the alarm then disconnected, started the car and SHE STARTED. I drove around the block, came back, turned it off, restarted and it STARTED again. I tried again and FAILED.
8) Ordered a new starter relay, installed it today, still no crank -just click.
Please help!!!
Here is a photo of how cables looked on the old relay before I took it apart. (note that there are 2 white/yellow wires, one blue/white wire, and a 2 black ground wires between between the relay casing and the body, tightened by the the right side nut)
Last edited by 85xj6iii; 03-30-2015 at 03:57 PM.
Reason: adding a photo
Strong clue that the neutral/start switch on the side of the BW 66 is out of adjustment. it also operates the back up lights. check that operation for a clue as well
01-12-2015, 10:02 PM
XJ6 '87 - starting problems
