Hello everybody. I'm only 25 years old, helping my dad fix up the XJS.. He usually just brings it to the workshop to replace parts or cleaning...

Here's the problem.. it was fine a week or two ago, yesterday I gave the Jag a usual car wash but my Dad told me to open up the front to clean the surface of the engine cus there was cat poop on it... After that, we closed it and continued washing the rest of the parts of the car. 2 hours later when it was all dry and shiny my dad took in to the petrol station to get more gas. on the way there and on the way back it died about easily 10 times. he stopped by our nearby regular mechanic and asked to diagnose the problem.. The mechanic said it must be water that got into some part on the car while we were washing.. My dad wasnt clear at that part... but i remembered he said "water getting in somewhere". He has left for London and wont be back for a full month. I wanna fix the Jag up without needing him to worry I'll make it worse. Any ideas where I should start checking or cleaning? I'll try to do it myself first than to bring it to the mechanic.

PS: the car cant throttle much.. after hitting the paddle for about 2 seconds.. the car shivers violently and then the engine dies off. I have to crawl if I were to bring it to the out. and dies if I leave it to run after 1-5 minutes.

 

Btw, The engine burnt out and got replace with a Toyota Supra engine about 5 years ago.

 

Toyota, thats different.

No matter, there is water in somewhere it should NOT be, as you already know.

I would now take some serious loving time with that car, and unplug, ONE AT A TIME, all the connectors, dry them out (both sides, as in the male and female section), spray some WD40, or similar, and replug. Do not stop when you find ONE with moisture, keep going until its ALL done.

Not sure which engine you fitted, but the spark plugs on most Toyotas are "down inside" and water in there would reek havoc.

DO NOT drive it until it is sorted, or damage WILL HAPPEN, fact.

 

How the hell do you get cat poop on the engine?
Was the cat demonstrating it's displeasure at the car having been lumped?

 

Alright. I'll do that. I'll start by checking the spark plugs first then. Thanks.

 

Haha.. We left it open for a few days after changing the oil filter.

 

So what my usual mechanic said was right then? Water's the problem here?

 

Yep.

 

Water getting into places that it shouldn't causes all kinds of problems. Electrical shorts being the least among them. Find the water and you find your problem.

All of the connectors are watertight and the engine is sealed when new (except for the exhaust, but you get it) so theoretically you could spray it down, but it isn't something I would ever do. Over time stuff wears out and water can get into places it wouldn't normally go. I clean my engine by hand for this very reason.

Best of luck, and a few pictures would be nice! It would be neat to see an xjs with a supra motor in it.

 

Something bad is happening. I saw smoke coming out from the bottom of the engine. What's hahappening? Car can't throttle more that 15rpm.turned on the car to warm up while I was replying this forumand I saw white smoke . Dang

 

As I think I said, DONT run that engine until you have done ALL the connectors, AND the spark plug wells etc etc.

That smoke could be unburnt fuel, or anything, and once the thing is back on 6 cylinders and running as designed it should "clear itself".

Continually running the engine will NOT make it fix itself, FACT, they simply are not that clever, and could/will damage stuff you reallly dont want to go to.

My advice has NOTHING to do with Jaguar or Toyota, just an old mans common sense suggestion. Bite the bullet, spend the hours, probably many, and dry the system out FIRST.

 

Oh thanks for the advice. Done that. Wasn't the problem tho. Brought it to a new mechanic. He said it's the either the engine or the turbo that'd giving me problems. That's why my car can't throttle more than 15rpm and sometimes just stalls in the middle of the road. Any ideas?

 

Oh, a turbo! that adds a complication. The turbo has an oil supply. a seal failure and no boost can be oil in the exhaust. usually blue, but interpretation here.


Or water in the turbo, the "smoke" is steam.


Dry that car out. hopefully, it is not too late.


A leaf blower can help a lot. Or a shop vac. They can suck out the moisture or if reversed, blow it out.


And/or the proper use for WD 40. a dessicant to eliminate moisture.


Carl