Really, Jaguar? Were you guys serious for not placing the XKR battery in a sealed pan, or at least in one with a drain-hose to the outside?

As I was checking my battery today I found the tell-tale white powdery deposits near the battery, extending onto the trunk floor mat. The battery must have boiled some of the water/acid into the overflow and it had nowhere to go but into the trunk. Besides the floor panel, I found it on and around the spare tire accessories. Needless to say that sulfuric acid is not doing any favors to anything it touches. In my case the worst appear to be that it had eaten away the chrome finish on those strips on the floorboard, near the battery.

So, if you still have the conventional Jaguar battery, it does not hurt to pull the trunk covers to see if there is any signs of leakage. I still can't believe Jaguar would put an acidic battery inside the car with no catch or drain-pan... Likely an other reason to go with an AGM battery.

 

Thanks AXR6.....Another item to keep my eye on.

 

about every 2 weeks I try and put the charger on the batteries and recharge...will def keep a better eye on this. I have never seen a car with the battery inside.... has anyone else?!?!

 

My understanding is that the OEM battery DID have a drain tube.... Pretty sure it is a legal requirement? Battery fumes are not healthy in any way!

Hummm.... Just looked at the service manual, and no mention of the tube..... but it is listed on the parts breakdown as there...

 

There should be a battery vent to the outside that should offer protection unless the case cracks.

If the battery was replaced, some mechanics and most chain auto parts stores do not have a clue about the purpose of a battery vent.

 

The battery-vent only supposed to vent the gasses but, not any overflow of the liquid. The vent is up high, near the top of the battery.

 

I guess it depends on how good the seal is on a particular battery. I have definitely seen liquid in the tube on some of my cars and no residue on the battery.

 

Add another reason to get AGM battery.

 

I'll take my rant back, at least partially.

I did search the parts and the shop manuals and the shop manual gave me a clue as to an attached vent tube to an orifice at the top-left-side of the battery. I dug around and did find the vent tube hidden under other tubes and equipment. As it appears, who ever changed the battery the last time neglected to re-attach this vent tube.

One more question; the battery has an identical vent orifice on the right side, as well. As far as I can tell that is open to vent and no vent-tube is shown to attach to it in the shop manual. Any idea if there should be a vent tube attached to this right-side vent hole, as well?

 

A small plastic plug is supposed to go on the other side.

 

Ok, that is missing, as well. Likely a dealer installed battery as it has the Jaguar logo on it and was installed during the warranty period. This is exactly why I always preferred to maintain my own cars; I can only blame myself if I left something undone...

 

Interesting question, and I could find nothig to help.... So I will let common sense take over. Take a piece of tubing ( or use the vent tube if it is easy to pull out and re-install) and gently blow into it, feeling for air escaping the other hole. If it does, then both vents share a common air chamber, and one hole should be caped off while the other reattached to the vent. If no air passes through, then they are separate chambers, and I would connect a "Y" fitting and tube to both sides...

BOL
Vince

 

Thanks for trying to help.

Per "WhiteXKR's" post it needs to be capped. So, I made a cap out of an electrical ring-connector that was a tight fit into the orifice and blocked the through hole in the connector with epoxy. Vent should now be sealed for the rest of the battery's life.

 

I took a look at the battery and all is fine. I charge the battery constantly and was concerned with the above post. I didn't look for any vent tubes, but was aware and now confirmed that the battery was replaced by Jaguar in May of 2011 with a Jaguar battery. I did notice what looked like a small plastic cap on the upper right side of the battery. Hopefully it is vented as it should be. Thanks for the info.

 

Did you find a black 1/4" (or so) flex vent tube attached to the left side, into the same orifice as on the right? It is this vent tube that will prevent the spill that occurred in my car.

 

Yes, It is there. It comes out the left upper side of the battery and drapes down and through the driver's side rear quarter panel. Where is it supposed to go to? The outside of the car?

 

+1


Good service is a hard find! No one seems to take pride it their work.

 

Mine is inside the passenger compartment, where the left rear seat bottom would have been...

 

My first Alfa Romeo (62 Giulietta Spider) had it in the trunk and my 70 MGB had it behind the seats.

 

And the 1992 Series III XJ (V12) had the battery in the trunk - vented, of course, as the XK battery is...and the modern XJ also has the battery in the trunk. This is quite normal practice in modern cars.