Model: 2000 XK8 Convertible

Hey gang, I have been unable to start my car since purchasing it with a "mechanical repairs needed" price tag 😂

I have a TRAC and ASC not available showing on dash. I had an engine coolant message but that was fixed by filling that up. Now comes the juicy part...

I noticed oil in different places around the front of the engine and recently decided to do the timing chain tensioner check. My car is a 2000, with 91k.The oil gauge shows almost no oil pressure, but the engine builds revs while trying to start so at least it isn't seized...

I have found: oil in several spark plug wells, some oil on the coil packs, damaged valve cover gasket and obvious signs of leaking. However, the plastic tensioners on my AJ27 are absolutely perfect, they look new, and I see nothing rummaging around in the cam area.

Since it wasn't running I'll just complete the engine oil change, clean spark plug wells, replace spark plugs, and the gasket.

Do you all have any other advice on why I may have crank, but no start? Oh, and the cooling fans always want to turn on which I have to leave the batter disconnected so it doesn't drain.

 

Check the fuel valve pressure on the right side of the engine near the rear of the fuel rail. It will have or should have 40 PSI, so caution (glasses and a rag near the top of it), It's just like a tie valve and needs for the tit to be pushed in see if there is pressure.
If no pressure, fuel pump is the or one of the problems.
Now, it's going to be fun, but very do able.

 

Thank you I'll give that a look!

 

I agree with Wayne - a failed fuel pump is the likely culprit....

 

No judgement, lol - all 4 of my cars came this way. Awesome! Have you EVER seen it run?

- When you have the cam covers off,,, do the flats of the cams line up? You can Google that to see an image of what that would/should look like.

- Have you done any kind of a compression test?

- finding a good ground to check for spark on these cars can be kind of tough so you could jam a wire into one of the coil boots and route it to a good ground point and check for spark.

- maybe disconnect the mass air flow sensor all together as a completely fried MAF will sometimes stop these cars from starting.

- is there a schrader valve on the fuel rail of the 2000 xk to test for pressure? Just depress it and see if you get gas in the eyes, lol

 

Any check engine light at all? Do you have a reader? One can be had pretty cheaply and it's a must have - even the most basic type - for these things ..

These cars HATE fouled plugs. If they were misfiring due to all that oil being in the wells some, tooo many, may just need to be cleaned up...

There is also a crank position sensor on the underside of the car. At the bell/flywheel housing on the engine side. I don't know what a good reading would be for this sensor but someone here might be able to provide those figures. Still, it would throw a light on the dash...

 

The cams are not aligned. They seem to be phased 90deg apart.

 

They look OK, or pretty close.
You need to put a breaker bar on the crankshaft bolt and rotate the crank clockwise until the two flats on the cams:


are uppermost and horizontal. Put a straight edge across them to confirm. Do this on both heads. All four flats should be horizontal at the same time.

You do have the old-style plastic tensioners, I'm afraid.

 

What is a "flat"? I see cam lobes and separation angles...

 

Take a look at this post from Dnjaa & expand the picture
https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...74/#post968233

 

Ok gotcha...

If they look OK, is it enough to replace the gaskets and get the car running long enough to get to a service shop to do my tensioners? It's not something I feel like doing on my own because I just don't have the tools or experience.

 

Mmm. the $64,000 question.

As one member put it "You presently own a grenade with the pin pulled"

You may get away with it, but I would advise against doing something that has the potential to put you in a world of pain. At least, pull the other cam cover and check before you make any decision.

 

If the plastic bodies of the tensioners do not have obvious cracks you are probably okay to test run, but should probably consider having it towed to the shop.

 

Also, for now,,, with the hood in the service position (or not) you should be able to reach down to the front of each fan and PULL DA PLUG... Either that or someone smarter than me can tell you which fuse it is. I've always struggled getting fuse info for these car. Michael has always been great at it...

And this is just me. If you use a breaker bar as Micheal suggested - either a 24 or 22mm socket on the crank pulley bolt - and rotate the engine CLOCKWISE (I'm pretty sure thats correct - direction is important) and the flats line up. And you can get the car started, or spin the engine with the starter and they remain FLAT, the flats - I personally would most likely drive it to the shop,,, unless the shop was 100 miles away. But again, that's just me.

 

I'll just be bold and throw this out there...

Youz either brave or crazy, could be both. If you are in the USA and bought a non running jaguar (of almost any type) you either have DEEP pockets,,, or get to working on it and gain the experience... The shops will kill ya. That's just me,,, nooooo deep pockets.

 

If you have already taken the cam covers off, then you should replace the secondary tensioners as you have already done most of the work. The secondary tensioners are the ones most likely to kill your engine if they fail. No special tools are needed as you zip tie the chains in place while you change the tensioners. Full details here:

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...ics-how-52653/

 

I checked the fuse already. Electrically everything is working if you can believe it. I have the full diagrams of the car it's the first stuff I went through. Only thing I haven't checked so far are the coils which I will soon.

I'm nervous about tearing into the engine and then being able to put it back together. I have a jack and jack stands but I was really hoping to leave that job to a shop who can just also go ahead and fix anything else in there. But, now you guys have me curious if I can just do the secondaries with zip tie method then I'll just order the parts as well, I mean hell they're so cheap I might as well try.

 

It's both. First project car: new/used convertible sports car 20-30k minimum. Clean body, clean chassis, unchecked engine issue XK8 for 3K? And yeah, even the convertible top works, if only slightly misaligned (which I'll happily pay to fix).

Looks like I have about 20K left to turn this into the car I want 😁

 

If you decide to have a shop perform the work - Charleston Import Automotive - 3170A Stanton Court (off of Ashley Phosphate Rd) Darryl Beech is the owner and has done work for me when pushed for time or beyond my comfort levels

https://www.charlestonimportauto.com...to/service.php

 

Thanks I was eyeing that shop originally. I think I'll do what I can to see if it runs first. If it does and she's worth saving, I'll be contacting them. Otherwise I'm going LS3 and manual swap.