Hello

First of all wanted to thank you all for creating this community - lots of helpful resources here (it's a time sink!!).

With the winter incoming, I'll be sending my XKR off for some maintenance at an independent:
- Vaccum Pump rebuild kit
- Water Pump replacement
- SC isolator/coupler
- taking the opportunity to replace manifold gaskets, throttle body gasket + hoses C2Z18658, C2Z28258, C2Z26930


Also currently I'm struggling with this noise on cold startups (goes away within 10 mins):

Wondering if the dear forum members could suggest other parts to replace while I'm at it, and perhaps it could be easier to diagnose the cold start issue with some of the pumps/SC off?

Car's at 130k miles, has no (known to me) service history, it's original owner bought it at a major dealer in NJ but they're ignoring my inquiries so far!

 

I'm not an expert, and heard two separate and distinct sounds from your engine.

The low pitch knocking worries me if it's your engine main bearings. Ask your indy mechanic if he thinks a bottom end inspection is warranted. Again, I'm not sure, but it might be from the supercharger coupler. Mine went bad on my 2013 XJ a while ago and was replaced under warranty, and my memory of the sound is fuzzy.

The higher pitch clickety noise sounds like the normal high pressure fuel pumps. Others may disagree.

I'm an shade tree mechanic and a firm believer in "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." Sure, water pumps are a known weak point (ask me how I know: mine leaked on my XJ). But I l'm pretty sure that Forum @Cee Jay still has the original water pump on his 2010 XKR with lots of miles. If you don't smell coolant or have any telltale signs of leaks, I wouldn't replace anything. Also check to make sure your duckbill (the A/C condensate drain hose) isn't clogged and water is flowing out. That's another common problem.

You listed a lot of repairs, and I understand that doing all of them will give you some peace of mind. But are all of them necessary now? It's your car, your money, and your choice.

Time, not mileage, takes its toll on rubber parts. I recommend that you ask your mechanic to inspect all the suspension bushings, ignition wires belts, hoses, and weatherstripping as your XKR is over 15 years old.

I noted that you're in Poland and your XKR is a North American model. Note that the TPMS sensors are different: North American sensors are 315MhZ and Euro sensors are 433MhZ. Keep that in mind when it's time to replace them. The batteries usually last 7-10 years and are not replaceable. Correct replacement sensors are not programmable and work automatically after a short drive.

While you're at it, use a quality leather cleaner (lots of threads here, I prefer a thin viscosity product as the leather is sealed with a polyurethane coating. Check the leather dash pad for signs of shrinkage and pulling away from the front edge by the windshield and around the speaker. Also, you can apply a rubber restorer product to all the weatherstripping. You can check all the electric switches for sticky buttons, a common issue. There's lots to keep you busy during the winter!

Good luck

Stuart

 

75,000 miles, Baybee! Still the original water pump!
I did have all the coolant lines replaced when I THOUGHT they were leaking, but it was only the oil cooler that had some drippage on the top of the torque converter cover behind the engine. I use only Evans waterless coolant now, it has zero pressure when at temp so I don't foresee any more hose leaks ever. It does run about 5 degrees hotter now though during summer.

 

Never heard of this zero pressure coolant? what pressure does the orange GM coolant get to at operation temps?

 

A start would be to use the synthetic oil for higher mileage engines, and I would bump up the numbers on the multi viscosity oil one level, at both ends. So 5W20 would become 10W30. Find the oil pressure sensor and add a tee, so you can add an oil pressure gauge. The gauge can be manual or electric.

 

Whatever your coolant reservoir is rated to take, but just under. 15 PSI or above, I do believe. Just over one Bar. Poke a hole in a hot radiator hose, it's got some gusto.

Evans costs $52 per gallon and it needs to be 99.5% pure, no water. BUT, it lasts like 500,000 miles or more, advertised as Lifetime. Sell the car, take the Evans out and use it somewhere else.

 

And the decision of higher viscosity is not so cut and dry. Best to do your own research on this matter to understand the risks.
Though, despite the recommendations for most of my vehicles, ALL lubricants are synthetic and changed much more frequently then the suggested maintenance schedule.

 

What do you think about the OP's engine noise?

 

I deserve that.

I concur, there are 3 distinct sounds to my ear. I'd rather be there with a stethoscope to confirm.
Sounds like the supercharger coupler and the HPFP,
(Along with the tapity-tap of the valves)

Coupler can be dealt with.
The HPFP... I'd live with it as it is as I have a much older diesel whose mechanical pumps are louder, if you can imagine.
The valves... Doing that job properly involves the bearings, re-machining the heads, new valves etc... it is a big $$$ solution. Personally, I'd live with it until there are other tell tales emphasizing the need to correct.
I certainly would NOT go to a higher viscosity motor oil. I would stay as spec'd, and change the oil more frequently. Perhaps a Liqui-moly flushing would help... or not. Perhaps a walnut blasting... or not. but the real fix is a rebuild and at that time deal with the chains, guides, tensioners, sprockets, etc.

But again, a stethoscope would help.

My $.02 worth.

 

Thanks for your input everyone!!

@Stuart S Those are great tips, though I'm already past most of those now. The suspension had a partial redo, so had the dash leather as it was shrinked all over (photo attached ). Will check the duckbill.


@guy Good hearing! I'll then wait for other symptoms to arise. Let's see what it sounds like after getting the coupler fixed... What worries me more about a rebuild is finding a reliable company rather than cost, should be reasonable over here (I take it labour is most of the cost)

I have ordered the parts, have to wait for the coupler which I had to order from the UK

I'll update the thread in a month or two, whenever my indy gets to work on it.



Cheers!

 

I'll post a more detailed update later, for the curious ones I'll just say it turned out the front SC bearings are loose and it was sent away to a specialized shop. The rotor coating has minor damage so I'm also awaiting their assessment.

Besides the serpentine belt and pulleys were worn.

Getting bit annoyed by it at the moment but hope we can get the SC fixed soon.

 

Kubaa you may be interested in this posting. Attention is on one of the injection pumps...

Originally Posted by Paul_59
My guess is that's what your mechanic (tech) is doing, guessing .

I would be surprised if it's tappet noise,
AJ133 / AJ126 engine seems to be a little noisy, if supercharger has been replaced with new or good quality refurbished then I would suggest taking to a tech who has experience / training on this engine.

My wild guess would be check for direct injection pump as it makes noise that can be similar to tappet noise.

There's a technical bulletin (TSB) regarding noisy injection pump.
Will attach when I find it
Got the TSB from this forum
If by direct injection pump, you mean the mechanical fuel pump on either side of the engine, then I replaced that on the side of the engine that is making the noise, at the same time as I did the SC, just in case (it was only a couple of hundred bucks, so worth a try)... I read about that as well....

SC is brand new and is no longer making the 'Thock' noise that was contributing to the melee!

I mean maybe it is me being super picky, but the noise is noticeable as far as I am concerned.....

__________________

 

Sony2000, Thank you however I'll need to leave it at SC rebuild at the moment. I am already pushing my luck with the indie (booked them for 3 days), they're not a Jag shop but so far done an excellent job

Other threads mention restricted performance/unsteady RPM with faulty HPFP (I assume that's the one?) so I'm leaving it as is.

BTW. Does anyone know how much oil should drop when removing vacuum pump? We had 1 liter drop and the indie thinks the engine was overfilled.

 

Okay, so the car is back with me (just made a short trip back home from the workshop)!

I will post the worklog as I think there are things I haven't seen mentioned often online.

Worklog:

• Replaced SC Snout - $550 (parts)
  • I have initially purchased just the coupler from Powerhouse, however had to buy the full part from Eurospare due to loose snout (bearing repair kit not available in country)
  • We still used the Powerhouse coupler as it seemed to be of better quality
• Replaced water pump (leak confirmed) - $190/OEM part
• Modified water pump hoses to the updated revision - $100/OEM parts
• Replaced bearing on two pulleys ($30 for bearings)
  • initially ordered a new pulley and the tensioner, interestingly enough the new pulleys were plastic and my car had metal ones so just the bearings were swapped on them
• Replaced accessory belt - $15/Dayco part
  • Both pulleys and belt were in a very rough shape
• Replaced SC gaskets (the big one and the two under) + throttle body gasket - $200/OEM parts
• Replaced Y-Pipe O-rings (AFAIR this is specific to the 2010 MY, newer ones have a full plastic parts that needs no o-rings) - 3x$7/OEM o-ring
• Re-built Vacuum Pump - $30/repair kit
  • Apparently the vacuum pump's body was deformed and some silicon seal was used to prevent leaks...

Total in parts: $1130. Some could perhaps be shaved by rebuilding SC snout instead and using non-OEM parts but didn't want to risk it esp. with cooling components.

Result: Car sounds very smooth on cold start. Also gear kickdown shifts feel smoother. The only outstanding sound seems to be the timing chain, which isn't quiet IMO.
Video:

 

Very good Kubaa..

 

Off-topic question to Kubaa: In the picture in post #10, those are nice looking pedal covers. Where did you get them?

 

Hey, those came with the car. A quick Google lens search reveals those may be available at AliExpress. Hope that helps!

 

I have them on my 2013 XJ:



My 2009 XKR Portfolio Convertible came from the factory with pedal covers. I added the custom //R logo footrest.

 

Aaand I'm back.

Car threw a P0175 (bank 2 too rich) CEL after 30 miles driven, during a warm start. Cleared and made 10 miles today but pretty sure it'll pop up again.

LTFTs: On cold idle, B1 -7, B2 -12, then warmer idle after 15 mins (traffic...) B1 -6, B2 -10, then again a traffic drive where you can see the the trims getting decent in idle and far worse when driving.
I also drove highway but Torque app screwed me and crashed, but IIRC B2 went as low as -8 there.


(screenshot starts with a warm idle and then a city traffic drive)

O2 Sensors are looking good, fluctuating between 0.2 and 0.8v mostly, O2 short term fuel trim oscilating between -1,5 and +1,5.
MAF airflow is ~7.15 g/s which I've seen is OK from other posts here.

I am inclined to think bank 2 was running a bit richer than bank 1 before the repair here which could've caused both banks to run richer somehow, so I don't think it's something bank2-specific.

The workshop that's done the work is keen to work on this but they do not have Jag experience and suggested stuff like coil packs etc. but in my mind this is related to that work.

Hence my ask, is there anything that stands out here that could be an easy win?

Thanks for all your help

 

Little update

Sadly I cleared the DTC previously and haven't been able to reproduce it since (although LTFTs are still bad...). Weather doesn't help here!!

Wanted to run an idle test in SDD however it crashed the program for me and re-reading the codes yielded the above, shown as "Temporary DTC". Maybe a red herring but an O2 sensor issue would check out with the LTFTs, having so many at once I suspect an electrical issue.