Car has power to interior lights and dash lights but fails to start nor can I get it out of park. I get a click sound when turning the key and a buzz when attempting to get it our of park. I am at a loss as to what to do to even be able to push it out the the garage. Thanks in advance to any and all who offer helpful responses.

 

Remove the plastic plug on the shifter trim, then use a blunt tool to gently release the interlock solenoid. This should let you move the shifter to (N)eutral. Then try and start the car again.

Best of luck, keep us posted.

 

Thanks for the response. I have a couple dumb questions. Where is the plastic plug located? I am unable to find it. Second, the blunt tool to gently release the interlock solenoid. I assume you mean a gentle rap on it. Correct? What would you recommend I use to do this? Thanks again.

 

The plug is for the opening closest to (2) and (P). I don't think there is a need for a real tool, or any force. This is documented in the owner's manual, check the stickies. Never done this procedure myself so not sure of the exact specifics...

 

Something like a T-40 torx or a large phillips head can remove the screw in the hole to the upper left in this picture. Then the key pushed gently straight down in the hole will release the gear shift lock (make sure you are not on a hill and you have the parking brake set and it works).

 

In my limited experience, in any automatic gearbox, there’s always a manual release out of Park.

+1 to fmertz

in our X100 car, it a large plastic torque above the 2 on on the gate. Just screws out. Strangely the car key fits easily in to release out of P-Park. Put it in N -neutral and try starting the car.

Report back with what you find.

 

Not enough power in your battery or a bad connection.

 

Check the brake pedal switch? I guess that wouldn't prevent the start, but a bad/misaligned brake pedal switch can prevent shifting.

It's easy enough to see if brake lights come one when the brake is applied, whether using a helper or seeing if the lights reflect off of something through the rear view.

 

The status thus far is that I was able to remove the plug and using the key as described in the manual pushed down the interlock solenoid thru the hole and did get the shifter from park to neutral. Once there, attempted to start the car to no avail. Clicking sound heard from the direction of the engine compartment when I turn the key to the start position. Still have power enough to have the interior lights and dash/instrument lights go on. Is there a tow truck in my future or is there something else I should try? Again, thank to everyone who responded. This forum is terrific.

 

At this point, sounds like the battery needs to be checked out. It needs to read above 12V at rest. Start with a charger to see if you can bring it back to life. Replace it if more than a few years old. If the battery is on the border, see if you can pry the cell covers off and top off with distilled water (there is sulfuric acid so use precaution). This might give you a fraction of a Volt.

FWIW, a few of us have had good experience with BOSCH AGM batteries. There are online coupons to save a bit. Be sure to get a vent kit if you replace it.

 

As noted by frankc above, next stop, battery charger, do you have one? Your car is power hungry and simply leaving the lights on a bit can leave the battery without enough power to start. Make sure it's fully charged (~13 V) before you try again. You could also try jumping it across the battery in the trunk/boot.

 

What's the recent history of the car? Was it working one day and just didn't start the next day?

 

Hi all,
Well the recent history was that it worked great one day, parked it, and attempted to start it 3 days later to no avail. Today attempted to jump start it without success while it was in neutral. Then I returned it to Park and tried, again no success. And to compound the challenge, I now cannot get it back into neutral via the key in the plug hole routine. I do still have dash lights/instrument lights, but now note even a clicking sound when turning the key to start. Befuddled to say the least.

 

There are a few things I'd think of checking, ranging from the starter relay through two big fuses in the trunk through the not in park switch.

In the trunk the battery's positive wire goes through a little black box with two big fuses (as I recall), and some people have found connections in that box to get loose, or for the fuse to blow. I wouldn't be surprised if one fuse/connection powers all the electronics, while the other is a dedicated fuse/connection for the starter. I'm just saying this off the top of my head, though.

You can search these forums for more info on all of these topics.

 

Still sounds like the battery, can you check the voltage at the battery with a voltmeter (as a not very good alternative, what does the battery gauge say when you initially turn the ignition on)? The clicking sound is pretty typical, goes away as the voltage drops further.

 

I had a very similar saga. Read this https://www.jaguarforum.com/showthre...=1#post1064865 then look at the following pages. I sorted it out in the end.