Sunday I went to pickup my '01 XKR from winter storage and to my dismay the car did not start. It had sat in winter storage for 3 months and has always started on a regular basis. The car turned over very strong, as I had a trickle charger on the battery the whole time it was in storage. After several attempts of starting the car, I changed my mind and decided to move from storage my '66 XKE - 2+2 Coupe. It of course started immediately and I drove it home.

I have researched what I think is my problem, bad fuel pumps and will attempt the following to see if I can get the car started:

1. Listen to see if I can hear the pump working.
2. Check both relays, pull one and start the car, then replace and pull the 2nd relay and see if the car will start.
3. Put a fuel pump gauge on the shrader valve and check the PSI for a reading of 42 PSI.
4. Remove the metal panel in front of the gas tank and bang on the tank with a rubber mallet, try and start the car.
5. Remove panel on drivers side and press the reset inertia button, if available on my car.

If the above does not work, I will call a tow truck to my indy for them to diagnose the car further. I got a labor quote of $325 to replace both pumps.
The car has 113,000 miles now and in 2008 the fuel pumps were replaced by the previous owner with 72,000 miles. This seems strange to me that these fuel pumps would only last 40-50k miles.
In addition to replacing the two fuel pumps, I will replace the fuel filter. On the repair invoice on the last fuel pump replacement, Jaguar replaced the Sealing Ring #NNA6020AA. I am unfamiliar with the part and is it necessary to replace this part at the same time I am replacing the fuel pumps. Can I use the original sealing ring again? Do I re-use the mounting hardware when installig the replacement pumps?
If anyone has any comments on my problem, I would appreciate hearing back from you. I know that Paul had a similar problem with his pumps while in storage.
Thanks for the help.

 

I would find the tap on the fuel rail, which should be on the front of the fuel rail, Bank 2, you should see a cap that looks similar to that of a valve stem cap on the tires. Take this cap off, turn the ignition on, and press the stem down, if you get fuel spraying out, you have fuel pressure, if not, then most likely the pumps. If you do have fuel pressure, then we'll have to look elsewhere for the issue. When you stored it, did you start for a very short period of time, say about 1 minute or 2, then shut if off? If you did, the engine may be flooded. Try checking the fuel port on the rail like I described, and see what happens.

 

Fuel pump failure during long winter storage is a well-known issue with these cars. Unfortunately, you're probably looking at a new fuel pump. Reason No. 347 to drive these cars regularly. They stay healthier longer as a result....

 

I drove the car from the house to the storage hanger on the island and shut it off immediately. I don't think the car is flooded. The car did show slight signs of taking longer to start when cold before I put it away for storage.
I agree these cars are meant to be driven, just not in ice or snow. In the past I have had no problem starting the car after 3-4 months of storage. Would start up immediately just like I had driven it regularly.
I guess it is just another "Cat Bite Award".

Thank you for your comments. I will let you know the outcome.

 

We drive ours in the winter some. Sure not in snow but if there was no salt on the road I would or if there was some salt and did, I would take it to the car wash and spray off the bottom as good as I could.

 

If you can't hear the pump come on, then most likely it'll be that. You can take the trim down in the trunk and the metal plate out of the way and try banging on the tank with your hand to see if that helps. Even though mine is a XJ40, similar set up, tank in trunk with pump inside, when mine started to fail, I would give the tank a few taps with my hand and start right up. Like I said, if you're able to check for fuel pressure, that would be a dead giveaway.

 

John I was surprised how low the labor quote is. No one commented on it though, maybe that's the going rate? Not too much seems to cost below $500 around here. Well good for you if that's a killer deal, I hope you get it all straighten out fast.

 

I changed both of my Fuel pumps 2001 XKR coupe at about 60K. The second one had gone. The way I tested them was to pull the relays out turn the ignition on and bridge the relay. On the XKR the second relay in the T is the 1st fuel pump and the one outside the T is the second. Bridge the two terminals that are the same direction. Volt meter will read 12V on the +ive side when ignition is off.

You will hear the pump running when u bridge them. Very unusual for both to go at the same time. Usually its the second one (replay outside the T) that comes on for a few seconds on start up and then only under heavy load that dies first as it is not used much. If both pumps are good it is either a relay or fuses. Also some people have had a blocked fuel filter and hence low fuel pressure. But I assume you have changed the fuel filter in the last 50K miles.

I replaced with Bosch fuel pumps they are about $70 each. With the coupe you can change them by removing the Sub-woof (back parcel shelf) and pulling the tank back a couple of inches after releasing the straps. I reused the wires and rubber seal at the top of the tank. That way you dont have to disconnect the two fuel lines under the diff which is a real pain!!. Takes 3-4 hours

Hope that helps

 

I had a mechanic test the two relays and low and behold one of the relays was bad. The mechanic told me that he swapped a relay from one of the seats and the car fired right up. I was amazed that it was the relay switch. I learned about swapping the relay switches from this forum, fantastic!
I have ordered a replacement relay and will replace the missing switch in the seat.
I've attached a few pictures of the defective relay switch and the fuse box in the boot. Are both relays in place or just one?
Thank you simonnallen for your response on accessing the fuel pump on the coupe. I will keep that in mind if the pumps have to be changed.
One question I have is if the car ran fine when it went into storage, why did the relay switch suddenly go bad? Did the trickle charger have any effect on the relay switch.
I am planning on driving the car to York, PA on May 28 for the Susquehanna valley Jaguar Club Annual Concours d'Elegance and will need the car reliable for the long trip.
Thank you everyone for your helpful comments.

 

Well the car has sat for another month and a half as I was in the hospital recovering from surgery. Last Sunday I tried to start the car and the same thing happened again, it would not fire. I used the new relay switch and replaced it with the relay switch on the "T", no luck. Then I moved the new relay and switched the 2nd relay outside the "T" no luck again. Could both relays suddenly gone bad. The car turns over strongly but will not fire. Any suggestions electrically before I look at having to replace the two pumps. I have never heard the pumps ticking, like I do in the E-Type. Thanks for any help on this matter.

 

The pumps can become intermittent when the sit unused...they do not necessarily fail hard.

The relays very rarely fail, the pumps are known to very frequently cause problems after they sit for a length of time, especially when they are over ~10 years old.

If I were you, I would replace the pumps.

 

Thank you WhiteXKR, what pumps do you recommend? I am making arrangements to have the pumps replaced.

 

Several years ago I replaced both of my pumps with the super common airtex pump:

More Information for AIRTEX E2471

They run $50 each now, but used to be cheaper. This was 4 or 5 years ago, and they're both still great.

I replaced both in tank pump leads. That's actually what went bad was one link lead wire and the other pump. So I just replaced both pumps, with new on pump strainers, and new wires and I was in it about $230 to 250 in parts total. I also put a new $8 fuel filter on the car because why not.

 

Hi, What came out of your pump replacement?

 

The car is still in the garage waiting for the visit to the garage. I am leaving on vacation for a week and will address the problem when I return. I spoke with the mechanic and told him what to look for. I am hopeful he can resolve this issue. I told him to make sure to check the wiring harness and fuel pressure during his examination. Mean while, my XKE is running perfectly this summer, go figure. I'll let you know the outcome from the visit to the mechanic.

 

Do not ever say things are perfect with an old English car. You're just tempting fate.

 

Redline marker is the whole work.


All signals points to bad fuel pumps. I've got a picture for you of the dreaded 2 fuel line removal. They are marked with the red line. I didn't see the actual picture of them when my time came for the job

 

The car is now back from the garage with two new fuel pumps. Total repair cost was $675. The garage accessed the fuel pumps via the rear speaker with another person helping with the fuel tank. Between the two they were able to remove the pumps without removing the tank. That was something I learned on the forum and was very helpful.
Car runs great, and just in time for the last JCNA Concours in MI next Saturday. Attached is the picture of the car leaving for the garage. I hope this will resolve the fuel pump issue.
Oh the earlier comment I made about the E-Type running perfectly turned out not to be true. I am in the process of replacing the Otter Switch that went bad. I was able to jump the two leads to the switch and turned on the ignition and the radiator fan turned on. That is how I found out the fan was not working due to the Otter switch.
I am planning on driving the car to the St. Louis JCNA Concours in Oct and will be counting on the fuel pumps working properly

 

Sorry for reviving this old thread - but I'm a bit puzzled now. What happened?

My 2001 XKR slept for a couple of months in my garage (new battery + Ctek) when I took it for a 15 miles ride last Friday. Ran like a charm, parked it near my office but wouldn't start a couple of ours later. It cranked and ran for maybe one or two seconds but died almost immediately. I also tried the full-throttle trick but no luck. No error codes, btw. Car was towed to my home.
Worked thru this great forum for almost the entire weekend, learned a lot of new things (I wasn't aware that the 4.0 XKR actually has two fuel pumps) and came to the conclusion that both fuel pumps are defunct because as far as I have understood it the secondary pump should kick in (after a while) if the primary pump fails. Today I made a final attempt and tried to find the Shrader valve (without success) and also pulled the fuel pump 1 relay (just out of curiosity). Car started immediately. Umh...
So, obviously with FP1 relay in place it seems to be impossible for FP2 to take over. Does this point to a defunct relay or a kaput fuel pump? To be honest I was a bit reluctant to go any further since the car was running again. Would it be possible to try a different relay? Like pulling FP2 relay and put it in the FP1 relay slot?

Thanks!

 

These relays, yes you can swap them. John