The position of the roof makes no difference when filling the tank fill it to the top line. As for the type of fluid if your car is a 1999 or newer you need not be concerned.

This topic of filling the tank open or closed has been covered before.

 

Sonny,

Follow the Jaguar spec. This is a snippet from Jaguar TSB 501-33 ...
.
51. Close convertible top
52. Turn ignition off
53. Remove reservoir fill plug. Check fluid level and if necessary top up to low level mark.
.
You'll note that they instruct you to fill to the lower mark with the top raised.

It's been suggested this is some sort of documentation error. It is not. The same appears in other Jaguar docs. Also, it's common in the industry to specify target(s) on the reservoir for the top-up and/or top-down condition. The upper mark is your target with the top down.


And please be sure you know what type of fluid is there now before adding. What is the color?

 

Not again Dennis! We have proven that was not correct this system is a push push.

 

Proven what? Not really interested in rolling around in this, but if you feel you have some proof of something showing the Jaguar fill instructions (and by extension those of the other makers using similar systems) to be wrong, by all means share it.

(That the system is push-push, or more accurately bi-directional, is surely a given by now.)

 

The proof is to look at the lines and the fluid level with the roof open and closed.

 

The reservoir fluid level is lower with the top up, as it must be, because the rams hold more fluid in that case than when the top is down.

All the marques, Jaguar included, seem to set fill levels with the top in a specified position: up or down. This makes perfect sense if the intent is to keep the level between some upper and lower bound.

My advice to Sonny is to fill it per the Jaguar spec, absent some convincing reason to do otherwise. That's all I want to say.

 

Dennis the value between the top up and the top down is so insignificant.

 

FYI

Link.https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/xk8-xkr-17/top-fluid-level-discussion-77944/page3

 

Yes, well, your criteria for announcing you've "proven" something have always been pretty loose. So if your point is that the fluid level change does not match the distance between the hash marks on the reservoir, and is therefore unimportant, I would not try to convince you otherwise.

You really should contact Jaguar and ask them to fix all their documentation "errors". This has gone on too long.

 

Dennis,

I think it is best that you and I not discuss things.

 

Yes, I think that's clearly so.

To avoid trouble, it will be helpful for us to keep in mind that expressing a different opinion or understanding about something is not the same thing as an invitation to debate.

 

On my 1997 XK8 conv the top stopped moving. I don't remember where I found the information, but the fluid used in those cars turned to the consistency of toothpaste. The fluid needs to be replaced by a later fluid. The process of flushing the system is fairly complicated but I did it myself and the top worked fine from then on. Hope this helps.

 

In the early XK8/R MY cars Jaguar recommended that the fluid be replaced with Pentosin CHF 11S because the first fluid installed would gel and clog the orifices in the system. I have heard of people using non approved fluid but to date I have not heard of the CHF 11S filled system gelling but this could be the first.