I'm posting this from the side of the road waiting for a flatbed for only the second time in my 6 years and 35k miles of XKR ownership. First time was fuel pumps.

This time it is most definitely oil. The car is running great but it blew some sorT of seal, house, whatever when I did a fun start from a stop (no burnout but brisk) and within a block there was smoke, the oil pressure "gauge" was to nothing and the odometer message center area indicated things were awry. I went maybe fifty feet hard on the brakes to get over and shut it down.

I keep 2 gallons of oil in the trunk and kept filling until the oil was readable on the dipstick. I used most of the second gallon. I then restarted it and proceeded to move the car about 500 feet to a private street where it retained pressure and did not make a single noise of trouble. I ruined one of my favorite work dresses (before moving the car) but I went underneath the car and it appears it may be from the front area of the engine but behind the radiator. So maybe oil cooler seal, filter, idk. No bearing noise, no knock, so let's hope this is an annoying but small inconvenience. I'm cautiously optimistic.

I debated taking this car last weekend for five hundred miles to Chicago and back. Guess I made it mad that it sat that out!

To all, I recommend keeping fluids for all systems in your cars. It might help you limp home, it might let you save a little compared to service station prices, and ensures you have the right fluid. Plus you can store it all on top of the space saver spare under the trunk panel for easy but unobtrusive access!

 

If it's from th front, I'd guess somewhere along the oil cooler like you said. Does the cooler itself have any punctures?

Sorry about your dress, but sounds like it could have been much worse. Glad you're safe.

 

It was the oil cooler pipe; it actually cleaned separated the feed pipe metal part from the rubber hose portion at the crimp.

I'm just going to do the pair of inlet and outlet hoses and call it a day! It could have been a lot worse!

This was the culprit: MJA7460AC

 

To add insult to injury, I had to swap batteries from the XKR to XJR today to go to work as I apparently hadn't driven the XJR for about a month. That battery is being replaced with a new Bosch AGM battery in the XJR, and I am returning this Duracell to Sam's Club and doing the same for this car. This is going to cost $250 between the pair of batteries with the return but worth it to prevent this stupidity.

The battery leaked. I'm so pissed about it, but it ate the paint in about a 6 inch square area, and it was starting to get surface rust for parts of it. So tonight I am removing everything from the trunk, sanding everything and getting it primed. I ordered Carnival Red aerosol touch up paint and clear from automotivetouchup.com; who I used for the Burgundy Red Pearl Effect paint on my previous A8L and it was PERFECT and great quality. 12oz of BC and 12oz of CC came to $38 shipped, not bad. This will help since both cars are this color and I have a few knicks underhood on the XJ that I can use this for.

I had surgery April Fools Day (elective) and am in no mood, but shenanigans abounded today.

Sunday 1pm:
XKR blew oil cooler hose. $200 for what I bought (2 hoses, all orings)

Monday 9am:
XJR won't start; swap batteries with down waiting for parts XKR; find out it leaked; end up grabbing battery out of Audi A4 I'm rebuilding the suspension on.
XJR and XKR both need batteries... $250
XKR now needs trunk body work... $40
XJR wouldn't shift into drive; tore in to shifter, it was binding on this white plastic piece that's related to the J gate manual shift. $30 but driveable with the console disassembled.
Sister's Impala is leaking from the water pump gasket. $30

I did swap a battery and fix my shift issue in 20 minutes total, so I had that going for me. I'm salary too so I wasn't in trouble. Tonight I get to pick up the right rear XJR wheel since it got a nail in the tire and I have been driving on the full spare. Free but still. And Tomorrow my cat gets put down at 3pm.

I NEED TO WRITE A COUNTRY MUSIC SONG, I HAVE ALL THE PREREQUISITES.

 

Ugg, sorry. There are just some months like that. I've been having that month since 1975.

Not much help here, but I recommend a CTEK battery charger (MUS 4.3) and comfort leads. Helps maintain batteries on non daily drivers.

Deep breath, they are with the trouble -)

Best,
dsd

 

Mason Williams already wrote your song back in the mid-1960s. It's called "You Done Stomped On My Heart and Mashed That Sucker Flat"....

 

I know they're worth the trouble .

My Corvette was a comedy of errors sometimes too; just an old car thing.

 

Tough, but seems you skated past a potential disaster. It will come out right in the end...after all, they are Jaguars .