The behavior seems to me to be that of a bad sensor. The most likley suspect is the TPS in the throttle body. You could try cleaning the connectors. This is a common problem in the cars and the reboot nature of it tells me it's electronic.

 

After riding the donkeys down into the canyon, I checked the entire intake assembly for leaks, holes, or anything that looked odd. It all seems to be good. Then I tried to start the car. It's been sitting on almost level ground for nearly 24 hours. I expected it to be hard to start if it was an issue with water in the gas. It took quite a bit of cranking to get it started, which is unusual. Normally it starts right up, although sometimes I have to crank it for a few seconds first. After it started it ran very rough for 30 seconds or so, then it smoothed out. I gave it a little gas to rev up the engine to 2K rpms or so. At 2K it was making a sound that was kinda hard to describe. It was like a little poof at odd intervals. Sometimes it happened several times per second, then it might not do it at all for several seconds. I ran it like that for several minutes and eventually the "poofing" stopped. If the problem was water in the gas I'm assuming that was the sound of water getting sucked into the engine. Since the car has been sitting any water in the fuel should have settled to the bottom. Maybe I sucked the majority of water through yesterday, and today I sucked through the remaining stuff that was at the bottom of the tank. I guess I'll find out tomorrow, we have a several hundred mile drive through the desolate wasteland between here and Moab, Utah.

Here's something else I didn't mention yesterday; It was 111 degrees for a big portion of our drive. Maybe the heat had something to do with it. Hopefully it was just a fuel issue. I guess I'll find out over the next couple of days.

 

If one has to be stuck somewhere, the North Rim is about as fine a place as one could wish for.

Going to Bryce and/or Zion NP's? Both not to be missed!

 

FINAL VERDICT!

After the sputtering in the parking lot at the north rim, I drove it up to the North Rim service station, just to see if they had a bottle of that stuff that you pour into a gas tank to dissipate water. They actually did!!! It's called Heet. It's really nothing more then methyl alcohol. Water will mix with alcohol but not with gasoline. Alcohol will mix with gasoline and water. When you put the alcohol in the tank it takes up the water and allows it to pass through the engine gradually as the fuel is used up rather than in big globs.

Anyway, I poured in two bottles of Heet then my wife and I went on a 50 mile drive over to Cape Royal, which has the most spectacular views of the Grand Canyon. It was incredible. We didn't have a single problem. Then today we drove about 400 miles through some of the most spectacular scenery in the world without a problem. The Jag made it though a 9500 foot pass on 10% grades, so I'm pretty sure the Heet fixed the problem. It happened three times within 100 miles on Saturday, and it hasn't happened once since I added the Heet.

I want to thank everyone for their help! I was almost certain my fuel pump was going bad. I was ready to shell out hundreds of bucks for a pump and the labor to install it. I didn't even think of water in the fuel. My mind immediately went to that worst-case scenario. I was thinking the vacation was essentially over. The internet is awesome!

 

Somehow I picture you saying this from a pulpit:

"But I do know, here today, that the XK will emerge victorious once again. Can I get an amen?"

Bob

 

Sam,

I'm glad to hear that you didn't let it ruin your trip, and that it was the original fuel related issue! I hope you are going to explore the Utah canyons. I have a great remainder of your trip and keep up the pics... they been awesome.

 

So.. is there a prize for the first correct diagnosis?? lol

Glad to hear you are running strong again!! Might have to take that trip sometime.

Enjoy Enjoy Enjoy

 

It doesn't hurt a thing in the world to put a can of Heet into your gas tank every now and then. We all have a bit of water that has condensed, or been included in some questionable gas we bought somewhere/sometime. Heet clears out any H2O. I've used it for years in many cars - ever since we got fuel injectors! DaleD

 

I am glad, your problem was simple as that .Enjoy rest of trip w/o any drama and have fun

 

A second amen! Glad you had a simple solution to the problem! Enjoy the rest of your journey Sam...

 

Good to know that you are not stranded on the road! I hope you are correct with the water business. When my car went dead I was in traffic for about ½ hr but it would not start. After three attempts I moved the TB plugs and it started and I continued the trip. I will soon see how it goes on the way home. I hope the rest of your trip is uneventful.

 

If the engine dies again, I'm just going to smear dielectric grease all over everything and see what happens!

 

Economy hitting everyone hard, perhaps mom & pop gas station added a little agua to stretch the fuel reserves and make a little $$

now, no more worrying and keep driving... but where's some recent pics?

 

Go look at the Hittin the Road thread!

 

saw it after posting this ...hoping you wouldn't notice my demands here

 

Sam I did not use the grease I used the spray http://www.crcindustries.com/auto/co...x?PN=05105&S=N . When I used it I removed and installed the plug several times to ensure a good contact. Good Luck and make it home safe!

 

I'm just getting to this post, but as soon as I read your first post it reminded me of my motorcycle trip to Mexico. Two of the guy on the trip were putting premium in the tanks. Both had engine stalling problems down the road from the stations, they did this more than once. My friend and I were running regular. While we were on the side of the road replacing the tour guide's fuel filter (he carried an extra one with him) just after he had bought gas and the bike died, I asked him "how may Mexican's do you think buy premium gas?" None he said. I rest my case.
Middle of no where gas station, those people out there aren't know for driving high performance vehicles.

Good luck on your trip. I'll be leaving Aug 27th to do the same.

 

Yeah, I thought about that. I've filled up twice since then and both times I've been wondering if the high-octane gas has been sitting in their tank for two years, However, my bad gas fill-up was in Nevada just off of interstate 15. I'd think that many people traveling between Vegas and Salt Lake City would be using the high-octane stuff.

 

I read of a simular case with water in the fuel, somewhere in a southeast state rural gas station. As a precaution I purchased a filtering funnel that can seperate water, mine was intended for aircraft use. Very small and fits in a cranny around the spare.
I couldn't find my original order but a Google search returns many hits.
http://www.mrfunnel.com/Mr._Funnel/Home.html

 

From my understanding running regular won't cause any harm on more modern vehicles. It will just prevent your car from reaching peak performance. I run my Z28 on regular for the most part even though it calls for premium. So if you ever question the source of the gas, go with what other people at the pumps are buying or stick to name brands (Exxon, Marathon, BP, etc) and you can't go too wrong, at least in the short term.