This was weird! I was coming back to Port St Lucie FL from Savannah Friday on I-95.
I was doing about 75 and went to pass another car. I put the pedal to the floor and accelerated as I passed. Then all of a sudden all the warning lights came on along with a beeping audio alarm and I lost power. I coasted to the shoulder and stopped. The engine was dead. I turned the key off and then started it up. No problem. It ran fine the rest of the way home (another 100 miles). Anybody know what the heck happened?

 

Man, that is weird...and dangerous. if you can get the codes read soon, that will help. The techs say if the car starts fine and runs for a few 'cycles', the code for what happened to you, may be lost. Try to get them read tomorrow if you can and post up what you find.

 

I'm going to try to get into Jag today. I'll report back after I hear something.

 

The mechanic did a read on the codes and then examined the part load breather tube for obstruction. This was not the problem. He then said he thought the throttle body was bad and would have to be replaced but wanted to check with Jaguar first. They suggested a throttle body cleaning service. He did that and we're waiting to see if the problem happens again. If it does, the throttle body will be replaced. That will be big money.

 

That problem of dying when accelerating, i have never seen from a dirty throttle or part load breather. Now if you said you took your foot off the gas and it died then yes. But based upon your description and what codes, any time a car stalls it retains p1582, flight recorder data and screen shots of info when stalled. But i would lean towards either mass air flow glitch or throttle body as in throttle position sensor, which is in the throttle body and not servicable seperatly

 

When I was passing the other car, I switched in to another lane and I think let up on the gas and then went to accelerate again. It dies somewhere in that process. I should also add the same thing happened the day before in a restaurant parking lot at very low speed. That time I definitely took my foot off the gas. Same effect. All warning lights, a beeping sound and the engine was dead. I put it in park and it started up like nothing had happened.

 

then i would say yes, cleanthrottle, injecotrs and part load breather. This is the most common reason for this occurance. When you take your foot off the gas the throttle closes and shuts off all air since its dirty, and the main reason they get overly dirty is from the part load breather being plugged which then cause too much oil laden vapor from the crankcase to go through the full load breather and air intake. This is a big reason to clean part laod brathers, throttles and flush the injection system with onboard cleaner. I recommend at least very 60k with a new fuel filter.....becomes like changing batteries in a smoke detector every time change

 

I just took it in for a BG fuel induction service. It seems to be running well now. But time will tell. Do I need a new fuel filter too?

 

Just maintenance, if over 60k i would do it and i believe thats the recommended change interval anyway. Sometimes im amazed cars even run when I dump fuel filters upside down to see whats in them and all the crud they collect..i meen where do some people get gas.... Reclaimed mud pits!!!

 

Brutal,
Only have 38K so I can probably hold off on the fuel filter for now. I'll keep my fingers crossed that the BG treatment solved my problem. If not, a new throttle body is the next thing to try and that's a tad expensive. Thanks for your help.

 

BG was not the solution. Car died again day before yesterday on I-95 at about 70mph. As I pulled over to the side of the road, I noticed all warning lights flashing and beeping sound. Tach and speedometer were both reading zero. I stopped the car. Put it in park,turned the key to the off position and then started it again. It started perfectly, like nothing had happened. Other observations: periodically, after the engine is warm, if I stop for half an hour or so and restart, it seems to be running rough, though not rough enough for the check engine light. Idle smooths out after about a minute. I took it to Treasure Coast Jaguar to have them check it out. No codes were showing. I assusme this means that when I restarted back on the highway, the codes cleared. Jaguar could find no problem with the throttle body and the part load breather was clear. They did find that the transmission harness (temp sensor) was failing and told me that could have caused the problem. I'm sceptical and don't feel like a $950 fishing expedition. They also told me that the ECM seemed OK. I'm at a loss now and don't know what to try next. Anybody got an idea what to try?

 

Year and model, please. Absent of any codes and no difficulty restarting, first guess is momentary power loss to the ECM. I can't proof the trans temp sensor theory, but I think it is highly unlikely if not impossible as the cause of the stalling symptoms you describe. Is Treasure Coast Jaguar a Dealer?

 

Sorry Jagtech,
It's a2001 xk8 with 38K miles. Treasure Coast is a Dealer. I was skeptical as well of the trans temp sensor. I'm guessing that possibly that could cause going into limp mode but not shutting everything down at highway speeds, which seems a tad dangerous to me.

 

I have a car to finish, let me cypher on it tonight and I'll see if I can give you some DIY tests.

 

Go to my web page and look under Throttle Body Plugs. This refers to a TSB 303-58 and it may apply. Good Luck!

Gus
www.gusglikas.com/autorepair.htm

 

my next recommendation would be to keep a code reader with you in the car, until next time. After it shuts down...do not restart. Connect the reader and fire it up...see if that reveals a code. Im not alot of technial help, but i do like to think outside the box when troubleshooting.

 

H20,
I agree! The sad part about getting a code is that most people do not see this to be the first thing to do. I have had only one time that a code was non-existent and that was a long dragged out process.

PS Great Photo!

 

thanks gus!

 

JagTechOhio: Your mention of momentary power loss to the ECM sounds right. I would get the same reaction from the car if I turned the key off while in drive. All the gauges go to zero, all the warning lights come on and the beeping audio alarm goes on.

Gus: With A13402, my vin is within the range of the Throttle Body Plug issue you mention. Would it cause my engine to behave like the description above?

H2O Boy: As for having a code reader in the car. Where would I get one?

 

That's the point, since your engine is stalling and not just losing power, and you have no fault codes stored even though the car has been scanned with what you have told me is Dealer equipment. I'll look into it a little, just haven't had a chance yet. In my opinion, both of those scenarios eliminate throttle body and connections.