Smell of burnt antifreeze.
 

Ever since I bought the 2010 XKR with ~3k miles, she has always given off a smell of hot/burned antifreeze after driving. Strongest at the passenger-side hood louver after some spirited driving. But even after casual driving, the smell is there. Only a couple passengers have brought it up, but if I ask them if they smell anything and they sniff around they get it right away. To me it is a strong smell, impossible not to notice, sometimes even from inside the car (with the window open).

Mentioned it to the SA when I took it in for its first and only service. He said he'd have them check it out. Picked it up, he said they checked for leaks, etc., and couldn't find a problem, nor smell the odor. He said the level was right where it was supposed to be and that I'm not loosing coolant or anything.

So what gives? I thought maybe some antifreeze got spilled somewhere during production and that it would burn off after a few thousand miles, but it persists at ~8k miles.

Any advice? The dealer is pretty far and inconvenient, so running the car hard to have him smell it is a rough option. Like many SA's, I'm guessing he'll be blaze about the smell, no big deal, write it up, and I'll get the car back same as before:icon_no:.

If anyone has any insight, it'd be great to go in with some ammo and possible problems/solutions to point him to.

Or is this an isolated incident and not a problem anyone has seen before?

Big thanks,

Skeeter

Skeeter,

I'd be very carefully monitoring the coolant level to see if there is a small leak. Probably best done each morning before starting so you know that you have an accurate base level. If you are getting a smell, it has to be coming from somewhere, and if it was just a spill, it should gradually diminish. If it keeps coming back, somethin' ain't right.

Cheers,

Languid

^^^

+1

Maybe take it for a long run, pop the hood immediately and have a sniff.

Same here!
 

Our 2010 has coolant odor not really burnt just a gassy coolant smell. Level never changes but when parked in our 24 foot square garage it is noticeable after every return home.
We only have a service only dealership about 200 miles away. They replaced two leaking hoses and the smell is still there after one year. Coolant in engine valleys is no longer a reasonable excuse.
I am concerned about a future head gasket failure, as one of one bad scenario.
Thanks for sharing.
Harold

This is not good news for someone who wants an XKR.

This is not a situation unique to XKRs or Jags. Coolant can move between the overflow tank and the circulating system. Sometimes it can get a bit of smell out via that process. I do have that smell myself after hard driving for my XKR. My wife's Toyota Sienna used to do that too. And I've caught it a couple of times coming from her Juke too. Mind you, I've never smelled it from my Ram or my Z... so... YMMV.

<shrugs> I'm not convinced that you (or I, as I have the same issue) should worry too much about this one.

I know this is not going to be much help but, in the past I had a car that smelled coolant after pulling into my garage, all the time. Funny, I can not even remember which car it was, just that I always smelled it and the coolant levels never showed any loss of coolant. Finally I just ignored it and eventually traded it in perfect working condition.

Albert

It sounds to me as though there is a 'venting' occuring that is bleeding back via the vents to the cabin. If the coolant level isn't dropping, it would seem to me that this is the only likely alternative cause. The answer might be to extend any venting tubes to where they would effectively bypass any fresh air intakes for the cabin.

Having said that, I did have a similar problem with my Range Rover, which eventually showed up when the heating tube to the throttle body started elaking enough to drop the coolant level sufficiently for me to notice. What caused the little plate to warp enough for the gasket to start leaking is beyond me, but it was bloody hard to find until it developed enough to show a trail. It definitely doesn't take much of a leak to create the smell.

Cheers,

Languid

I saw this thread yesterday before I left for the day to go home. I checked for the smell when I got home, making it a point to be a little heavy on the gas a couple of times.

I smelled around the coolant reservoir and did catch the coolant smell, but it was not very strong and did not smell burnt. I think I am in agreement with the previous post in that this is just hot coolant moving from the reservoir to the main coolant flow in the engine or vice versa. There is (obviously) a small vent in the reservoir and there may be a small amount of coolant in gaseous form escaping.

However, I have never smelled it in the cabin. If I did then it would be a bigger issue. The coolant level looked normal, and the coolant itself did not appear to be boiling or overheated. Of course there is pressure in the coolant system and consequently in the reservoir so a small amount of coolant in gaseous form escaping is not something that needs to be "fixed".

Lastly, I would imagine these 5L engines, especially the SC's, get pretty hot; I don't know how much hotter they run because of the SC's. Obviously the coolant extends the heat range from freezing to boiling.

I suppose I should clarify here -- I've never smelt it inside the car, just in the garage after getting in... ;D

They say he who smelt it dealt it; but that may have been referring to some other context...

The cooling system on the 2010 XK is a closed system, right? I am guessing as i apprears pressureized.
I have had it to a larger shop, non Jaguar shop that had large bays and they could not smell it.
We have not had a long road trip with this car since its purchase and the car curently has 6850 miles. It is driven every day, just not very far. Time will tell regarding the coolant smell!
Did you get your action notice regarding battery monitoring sofeware up grade?
There have been times when the car sits when we have traveled and when the Jag is started it throws some code, usually something that goes away in a day and I believed it to be battery related. With the action notice it confirmed my guess.

First step is to replace the "radiator cap", for some reason that Ford designed expansion tank cap only lasts a couple of years before it begins to degrade and leak enough to smell. Went through it with every Ford Truck I have owned. Had the same situation with my 2010 XKR and after replacing the cap I no longer have the smell.

Hope that helps,

Dave

The distinctive aroma of coolant was the warning sign that my XJ 5.0L SC had a leaking water pump at 30K miles. I immediately took it to my dealer, who found dried coolant trails and replaced that defective water pump under warranty.

The 5.0L water pump is a known defect. It can fail without much warning and result in catastrophic engine damage. Waste no time and get it checked to make sure it's not leaking. There are many threads on all the forums that have 5.0L cars.

It appears to me the best way to inspect the WP is from under the car. You need to remove the plastic belly shield and check it for water/AF stains then look up to inspect the weep hole in the WP.

My XFR had (might still have) that smell.

turns out the engine was producing so much heat that it was causing the plastic on the expansion tank to crack and leak. had to replace the tank.

although the car still smells after spirited driving