Yesterday I went to power up my Jaguar XK to turn the engine over. It's been parked up in my garage at home for a couple of weeks. When I tried to start it, it almost started and then I got an alarm and the the car just seemed to die. The side lights stayed on, the parking brake depressed and I am sure there was a message about a Parking Brake Error, but then the dash went blank. I couldn't lock/unlock the car with my key, I couldn't even open the boot with the release button so I had to remove the number plate and use my slave key to open the boot to get access to the battery. I had to climb into the boot due to lack of space around my car in my garage and I tried to charge the battery overnight but that doesn't seem to have worked. I am now left with my XK very tightly parked) in my garage completely dead with the parking brake still depressed (locked) and absolutely no signs of life. I am not technical or mechanical, but any suggestions will be most welcome.

 

After charging the battery overnight, can you check the voltage across the terminals with a multimeter? You need 12.6V after the float charge has dissipated. If you tried to charge your battery overnight with a good (10A, not trickle) charger and it still doesn't have enough power to turn the ignition on then it's likely the battery has had it. If you are able to remove the battery from the car, stick it on charge overnight and then take it to a battery place to get them to test it for you if you are not able to check it at home. Guessing by your use of 'number plate' you are in the UK so any branch of Halfords can do this for you.

As you will see on this forum, a good quality battery is an absolute must for these cars.

 

Welcome to the forums Barry,

Although this may seem to be a disaster, as it almost started, a new and fully charged battery will more than likely resolve the problem. Also, if you have power in the garage, a CTEK would be a wise investment to prevent reoccurrence.

Graham

 

UPDATE:- I disconnected and fully charged the battery overnight and that did the trick. I started the car and it re-instated everything. I took it for a run and the issue seems to be resolved.

 

If your battery is more than 3 years old, I recommend that you replace it now. You battery's life was compromised when it fully discharged, and cold winter temperatures further adversely affect its longevity.

Make sure your new battery is fully charged before it's installed. Many new batteries sit on retailers' shelves for months discharging before they're sold. As Graham suggested, buy a CTEK battery maintainer and keep it hooked up whenever parked in your garage. Installation is easy using the remote battery terminals in the boot.