Need help.

First the good news. New headliner and all the trim pieces are now installed in the car. Looks good. For some reason the trim rail back connector on the drivers side won't stay in the fitment hole but that not a major issue. Mirror, lights, and sun visors all installed correctly. Passenger seat re-installed. Windows and door locks all work correctly. Body side moldings reattached with new pop rivets. Hood and front fenders have been re-painted. Hood had some damage to the clear coat from birds and sun that would not buff out.

This is in addition to the new Magnecor Electra Sport 8mm plug wires; the gas tanks, fuel pump, sending unit, filter, and fuel line refurbishment last winter; new battery; new hoses on the fuel rail; and all plugs cleaned and re-gapped.

Now the bad. First, battery kept going dead. I think it might be the trunk light switch not fully depressing. I got a plastic spacer off an '89 in a local junkyard and will see if that takes care of the issue.

Second and serious. Started car and was running fine. Very smooth now after finding the one plug had "0" gap on the electrode causing a misfire and replacing the OEM 7mm plug wires that had numerous "blue dancing gremlins." No electrical arcing now. No ticking sounds, no surging searching for constant idle, immediate response to throttle. All gauges working and normal. Temp is about two needle widths below the N. Volt meter reads right in the middle at 13. Oil pressure comes right up on throttle advancement. Gas is reading a bit below 1/2 tank with about 13 gallons.

As I said everything was running fine. And then it just quit. Got it restarted this time with a quick shot of ether and it ran fine for 5-10 minutes .... and then quit. Did this one more time and then decided to see if a little test drive would help. Car ran great around the building. Strong immediate throttle response. Drove down the street about 300 yds fast. Turned around and accelerated hard and then it just quit again. Decided that was enough for the day. Pushed it back into garage for the night.

Comments, suggestions, recommendations desired.

 

If it takes ether to get it started it sounds like you have a fuel issue of some sort. Not sure if it's fuel supply or fuel control. The 'could be' list might get a little long with several possible jumping-off points.

An easy place to begin the investigation would be the fuel pump. I'd ground the orange wire at the pump relay and turn the key 'on'. The pump should run. If it does, drive the car and see what happens.

If the pump doesn't run then you have a power supply problem to the pump or a faulty pump.

Or...the pump might run but sound suspiciously loud which might suggest impending doom

While you're back there pull the fuel filter and empty the contents into a clean jar. What you see will determine your next steps.

Cheers
DD

 

Will do.

Which one is the fuel pump relay?

Replaced the fuel pump last fall. Forgot to include that on the list above. New pump does not hum for several seconds at start up like the original.

 

Another thought is the fuel sump tank and filtering screen residing therein. The tank and screen often become gunk ridden. You might or might not have to 'go there' to solve the particular issue you are experiencing at the moment. But it's a fair bet that you'll have to go there eventually. It's just one of the XJS things that has to be tended to.

Cheers
DD

 

I took both tanks out of the car last winter and cleaned the insides with Muratic acid and then replaced the filters including the one in the sump tank. I installed a new sending unit and fuel pump at that time as well.

 

It's in the boot near the ECU. It has orange, brown, brown/slate, and pink/black wires.

Also, if you suspect the relay to be faulty....which is possible....use a small jumper in the connector to join the brown and brown/slate wires together. This, together with the grounded orange wire, will bypass relay


With the key 'on' the pump should run for 3 seconds to prime the system. Is this what you are referring to?

Cheers
DD

 

Ok, good. But do pull the filter again, on principles, just to confirm that there is no blockage or contamination

Cheers
DD

 

With the key 'on' the pump should run for 3 seconds to prime the system. Is this what you are referring to?

Yes. I was under the impression that the new pumps did not hum for several seconds like the originals so not hearing the pressure build up was no cause for concern.

 

The new pump might be too quiet to easily hear, compared to the old pump...but it *should* operate for 3 seconds as mentioned. The timer for this 3-second prime is in the ECU, not the pump.

Cheers
DD

 

Bad luck Brad. As Doug said, hotwire the pump and see if the problem goes. If it does, then as Grant said recently to another similar failure:

• check the two pump loom wires are properly connected to the connectors attached to the battery leads
• If it is the fuel pump cutting out, the causes will likely be one of: relay failing, ECU signal failing, earth (ground problem), or pump loom/connection to the pump failing.
• Just possible your new pump is problematic too.

Greg

 

OK, the not so good news.

It is contamination but not from bad gas. The culprit appears to be the EastWood product gas tank sealer I used last winter when I pulled the tanks, cleaned them with Muratic acid, and then applied the gas tank sealer from Eastwood.

All the electric's checked as out to be running as designed. No pump or relay issues.

Pulled the main filter and poured the contents thru a strainer. The fuel looked perfectly fine but the strainer picked up little bits of the rubberized like sealer coating.

Next steps.
1. Find a supplier and order a replacement tank. Not cheap.
2. Drain tanks and discard fuel.
3. Pull both tanks. Toss main tank. Clean sump tank or replace.
4. Install new filters.
5. Install new tanks.
6. Raise hell with Eastwood Products. I followed the instructions to the letter. I even let the product cure for 3 1/2 months before putting new gas in. In less than 6 weeks the product failed with gas in the tank.

Oh by the way the car looks gorgeous with new hood paint, new headliner, new Magnecor 8mm plug wires (blue with red end caps) all cleaned and washed. I was sooo close. Damn. If I could figure out how to transfer pictures from my phone to the computer I'd post a few.

 

Brad
My sympathy. Sadly, you ought to get the injectors cleaned, too, and all the lines blown out. With any luck the pump might survive, but that too could be damaged, as the vanes are very sensitive to contaminents.
We have all been there, for example I stupidly fitted lower wishbone bushes that went home in 3000 miles...
It sounds as though you will have a terrific vehicle in the end though.

 

Pulled both tanks. Tank sealant came off in patches from the filler neck. Was able to see areas of the tank interior where it was peeling away. Obviously pretty upset at the Eastwood sealant Kit. Did everything exactly by the numbers and even let it cure for3 1/2 months before I put gas into the tank.

First attempt on a replacement tank fell through. Moved on and ordered one from Welsh Jag today. Ugh....expensive. Got a sump tank from the junk yard yesterday. Replacing filters and pump as well. Will blow out fuel line from "A" bank back to fuel filter as well.

Strongly doubt that anything made it past the filter to the fuel rail given how it just cut off completely with no rough running. Acted just like complete fuel starvation. Keeping my fingers crossed. Other than that the car is absolutely gorgeous

 

That's the true XJS spirit Brad! Just the Jaguar Gods testing you before blessing you with a superb reliable car.
Apart from hard work and general grief, you are not much further out of pocket than you would have been if you had gone for the new tank straight away. I have read various stories of disaster with tank sealants over the years. Even the professionally done ones ("renu" I have an idea?) often flake like yours.
Good luck with the new one
Greg

 

Greg,
Thanks. You're right, I would have been better off either just using my tank as is after giving it a cleaning last winter or getting a new one then. I was going for perfection when good enough would have been fine. I am hopeful that nothing made it to the injectors. I will be blowing out the lines to get rid of as much gas in the system as possible before putting it all back together. New tank might arrive as early as today.

 

New tank delivery is postponed until tomorrow.

Bad product review sent to customer relations at Eastwood Products. No response and I really don't expect one. In the strongest possible terms discourage anyone from using a tank sealer kit in the future.

Has anyone found a supplier for the sump tank fuel pickup pipe filter? I cleaned the one from my car and pulled one from a junk yard car that was in very good condition but would like to go the extra step and install a new one.

What is the material made of for that filter? Its almost plastic like.

Last item to tackle once the tank is back in will be the A/C.

 

All the usual suppliers have them Brad: definitely Manners, SNGB; Coventry West I expect. Even Jaguar. best to put in a new one, that is for sure. In my experience the nylon mesh seems to expand in diameter over time (or get micro particles sticking to it) leaving smaller holes in the mesh for the fuel to pass through. Cleaning the filter does not seem to have much effect, even if it looks better.
Greg

 

New tank and junk yard sump tank installed with new filters today. Cleaned sump tank with laquer thinner and a magnet to remove all rust residue. Not perfect but pretty good ...and no epoxy sealer to worry about. Thought about re-using the pump but decided against it. Pain in the butt getting all the connections put back together. Still have to install the filler neck correctly. Blew out the lines from the engine to the trunk. Will take my chances that the injectors are OK until proven otherwise. I am 98% certain the issue was fuel starvation due to clogged pump and or filter not able to get enough fuel to the rail.

 

Good work.

On the XJS is the fuel filter before or after the pump? I can't remember.

A pre-pump filter is generally a good idea, IMHO.

Cheers
DD

 

Any issues with a Bosch or Quantum OEM replacement fuel pump I should be aware of? Trying to keep the expenses in the reasonable range, especially after the cost of the new tank. Thanks.