I had my errant gas gauge fixed, $450 for the job involving the float in the tank. Since mine is a 2002 the simple access and fix on earlier models was not an option. I avoided this repair since I bough the car 20 months ago as i figured driving by odometer would keep me safe, but the 4th time I got stranded and quickly rescued by others I figured I had to get it fixed. (Prior owner did not disclose the problem, and initial estimates by indie Jag mechanics were for $850)

So, its been three weeks on the same tank of gas and lots of little city trips. The gauge is finally consistent although gas usage doesn't seem very linear in cold weather on short trips, alas.

Now that the gauge is getting a proper signal, and has demonstrated it works, is there a low gas light that will turn on when I get down to the last gallon or two?

I plan to do some mountain touring in late spring and I don't want to run out of gas with passenger, who would rightfully want to have me beaten...

 

Your information screens will give mpg, miles to 0, range, etc. so you should be okay. One way to test the light is not fill up and bring a spare gas can along in case you run out. There is some talk on this forum about fuel pumps wearing out faster if the tank is low, don't know if that's true or not. My light comes on at about 30mi left in the tank. (1.5 gal)

 

Yes - at approximately 2.6 US gallons:



Graham

 

My wife was notorious for running her vehicles beyond the low fuel light illuminating and still not stopping for fuel, expecting me to go gas up for her when she finally arrived home. The more I would chastise her, the more she would ignore me. So I warned her about burning up her XK8 fuel pump by driving around with a nearly-empty tank and then getting herself stranded, perhaps in a rough section of town that she sometimes passes through. That cured her. Now she fills up at a quarter-tank remaining. So the ongoing story in our house is that you run the risk of burning up your pump by driving around on empty, and I'm sticking to it....

 

Well, you didn't lie.

In tank electric pumps depend on a gas bath for cooling and lubrication. When the tank is run low, no cooling or lubrication. In addition, picking up a big load of sediment is a possiblity.

On the earlier XK and XJ, the pumps are mounted vertically ... so below about a quarter tank more and more of the pump gets exposed as the fuel level drops.

 

Your car has the in tank float and I am not sure if you can access the plug/lead to it but if you can you can test it by using the procedure that I used on my 99 xk8. It involves using a series of resisters to produce different levels on your fuel gauge and I will provide a link to it. It seems to me if you put a 1k resister in it should give you an empty indication and your low level indicator light should come on. I unfortunately did not check for that when I did my test. It is worth a try..

Link JagRepair.com - Jaguar Repair Information Resource

Let me know if it works for you.

 

My daughter has the habit of letting her gas tank in her Hyundai get near empty before putting in a few bucks worth. I've replaced the fuel pump twice – so far. Fortunately, it only requires pulling up the rear seat cushion to access it.

 

I hope you're charging her for each new fuel pump and your labor to replace it. That was the only way I could ever convince my daughter to keep her car maintained after she moved away....