I was out of town for a few days and went to start my 98 xk8 and it won't start.

It says "engine failsafe" , "gearbox fault" , and "stability control"

It has plenty of battery power but will not crank over, tried it a dozen times.

I did have low coolant level before I went out of town and did buy some distilled water which I was going to put in tonight to top it off until I take it in for a full service etc. , not sure if the low coolant would cause all of this or not tho.

I cannot put it into any gear, it will only stay in park if that matters.

Pleae help ;( I need to move this car asap as it is blocking my other cars in ;/

Thanks!

 

I have been reading for hours on here on what to try, will be going to my car here in a bit a few things I will try first....

add some distilled water to the coolant
disconnect the battery and reconnect
pull all the fuses and reconnect them

any other suggestions to try?

Thanks!

 

First symptions sound like a bad battery, as when you try to start there isn't enough battery power support all systems.

Coolant level has nothing to do with this.

Not being able to move it into a gear, could indicate a bad brake switch.

I would first try to load the battery, or connect another one.

 

Even tho it seemed like the battery had plenty of power and should have been able to start the car with no problems?

If I have to jump it any special ways to do it other then normal jumping?

If I have to get this towed because of not being able to get it into gear is that even possible?

Any other suggestions, thanks!

 

Not sure how you tested the battery to know that it has enough power left, but having all these systems fail with no start is just a very strong hint to a battery.

Getting another battery attached should be an easy check first, before any other activity...

Just make sure that the leads connect well for good current flow. You could check (before you actually try a start) if the systems come up and that the brake switch works.

 

Ok thanks will try that very soon, I just figured since it let me try to start it a dozen or so times that the battery would have enough juice in it to start it.

Will also try disconnecting the battery and reconnecting it - if this doesn't work

also will try to check all fuses in the trunk, top off the collant

make sure the cruise control is off - If I can figure out what button that is

Any other suggestions? Thanks!

 

First you mentioned "It has plenty of battery power but will not crank over", which gave me the impression it wouldn't turn.

So the problem is that when you start it the engine cranks (so turns) but doesn't come to life right?

It may well be low on power now, but an important questions then assuming the above is correct. Did you get all the errors "engine failsafe", "gearbox fault", and "stability control" from the first time you tried to start? As then the battery would be ok if you were able to repeat a dozen starts afterwards, and obviously not the main cause.

Don’t know what it can be, but if the battery is ok, then it could be related to the CAN bus somehow (maybe gearlever problem, the CAN bus passes thru the gearlever unit), that maybe also ties in into the gearlever not moving.

 

Prior to going out of town did you take a short trip with the car or just move the car where the engine did not reach full operation temperature?

 

Hey I am here now - It was moved around 4-5 times 50 feet or so and now this then this. It was find until yesterday when I tried to start it up, then all of these error messages. I checked all the fuses, in the trunk, the engine, and next to the steering wheel, all fine. I tried jumping it twice, disconnected the battery and re-connected. Now along with the others it says &incorrect part& what gives ;/ any other ideas? If i decide to get it towed, will that even be possible as it won&t go into any gear when the key is turned? Can anyone in the chicago area help me that knows these cars? thanks for the help so dar, really, really appreciate it - thannks!trunkapped

 

Check your PM

 

This is how you can check your fuel pressure Jaguar fuel pressure testing

 

Thanks for the great help Gus!