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A wise member of this forum recently wrote,"You know this is a Jaguar you are talking about, right?"
I'm only on day 8 of ownership, so I'm sure I will have more reminders, but here is my latest: My radio takes about ten minutes to warm up.
The first six days showed no radio oddness. Yesterday and today the radio responded to no controls, on the dash or steering wheel, for the first several minutes of driving. After a bit, all was normal, and all controls worked.
Anyone else experience this?
Having read some recent threads about problems solved simply by undoing and redoing electrical connections, and being aware of the general English reputation for automotive electrical achievement, I can't say that this type of glitch is a shock. I have learned to plan ahead and set my radio station and volume level to something tolerable for my next trip.
Mostly I think this just strengthens my resolve to replace the radio with something that gives me hands-free phone use so I stay out of trouble with the Austin cops.
I have not heard of a radio in a modern car doing this, and the XK8s are not known for wiring problems, except where the wires flex, because of fatigue and age. The electrical issues pertaining to English cars, have all been taken care of, in the modern age, of which the XK8 is apart of. The electrics are very Ford like, because of the influence Ford had on Jaguar, when our cars were made. They have more fuse boxes and relays, than the space shuttle now. Many of the electrical problems now are due to them getting up in years. Your radio sounds like it may have a loose solder joint, or resistance at a plug somewhere. There are plenty of replacement radios out there in yards, ebay, craigslist, or just the internet in general. I think most of the factory radios are able to give you hands free phone use, at least mine is. Be careful with what type of radio you put in, if you want to go aftermarket, because I have heard that there is a separate amp, like most luxury cars now, even though I do not know for sure. Good luck, and welcome to the club.....Be cool......Mike
I don't believe Bluetooth was introduced until 2003 or 2004, so that sounds a bit odd....
Mine doesn't have a plug for an I-Pod, but it will let you talk on the phone. To me, that is bluetooth, but I am old, so maybe I don't know what I'm talking about. It lets you hang up the phone on the left side of the steering wheel. My wife's 2014 Jeep Cherokee dials people by saying their names. Maybe that is what you call bluetooth.....be cool.....Mike
I was reminded of this thread, since I will have my new radio installed on Saturday.
Originally Posted by mrplow58
The electrical issues pertaining to English cars, have all been taken care of, in the modern age, of which the XK8 is apart of.
I am going to respectfully disagree on Jaguar having electrics sorted with the XK8. In researching various aspects of my car, I have turned up discussions on electrical related problems like:
My crazy radio is not unique
Broken solder joints in ABS modules
Random issues that can be fixed by replacing a seemingly full-powered battery with a new battery.
Warning messages fixed by riveting a homemade ground wire to the taillight assembly
At one point I got traction control failure messages if I went over a bump in a full lock turn at less than 5 mph
Bottom line: I think there was still plenty of quirk left with the XK8.
I am going to respectfully disagree on Jaguar having electrics sorted with the XK8.
Bottom line: I think there was still plenty of quirk left with the XK8.
Tom
Your last comment is the most true. Still lots of Jag-ness involved. However, nowhere near the issues of the pre-1990's Jags. Or most British cars from the 60's thru the 80's for that matter.
Your last comment is the most true. Still lots of Jag-ness involved. However, nowhere near the issues of the pre-1990's Jags. Or most British cars from the 60's thru the 80's for that matter.
[insert all the old Lucas jokes here]
I have the burns to prove how bad the old English cars' electrics are on one arm and one leg.
If I had a time machine (preferably made by Denso or Bosch versus Lucas), I'd go back in time and murder Lucas.
In my '99 I thought my radio was dead, nothing all of a sudden. Took it to a shop and they said I needed another one so I told them to order it. I played with the radio and "discovered" that I had pressed the memory or such a button. I pressed it and the radio started working again. Press all the buttons and see.
In my '99 I thought my radio was dead, nothing all of a sudden. Took it to a shop and they said I needed another one so I told them to order it. I played with the radio and "discovered" that I had pressed the memory or such a button. I pressed it and the radio started working again. Press all the buttons and see.
It is not an off vs. on issue. It is a matter of not responding to any controls at some points in time, whether it is on or off.
When it is off, nothing wakes it up until it decides to work. When it is on and not accepting my suggestions, you can't turn it off, turn it down, change the station or change the source.
My bet is that there is a 2 micron crack in one solder joint buried in the middle of the radio. That crack is a non-issue when the temperature and humidity are within the range experienced in central Texas in late April and early May. We have not gotten reliably back to that range yet.
I am going to respectfully disagree on Jaguar having electrics sorted with the XK8.
Bottom line: I think there was still plenty of quirk left with the XK8.
No doubt true. It's just that the Jaguar quirky electrics are nowadays more in line with everyone else's quirky electrics.
In the 80s Jaguar was still using, for but one example, non-sealed connectors on circuits exposed to the elements for gawd sakes !
The blame is always put on Lucas when it belongs to Jaguar. The old school Lucas stuff used by Jag was perfectly good quality...as old school stuff goes. Specifying 1940s era 'stuff' on a 1987 car that costing $35000 ....well...you get the idea.
I am quite sure that Lucas would have been willing to provide any level of modern-ness that Jaguar was willing to pay for.
What Was Installed
Head unit: Pioneer DEH-6700BT
Steering wheel controller: CTSJG001.2
Pioneer patch cable: CTPIONEERLEAD
XJ Fascia adapter: FP-14-00
After
I got the stereo from Amazon, then looked for the connections needed to keep the steering wheel controls in play. It was easy to find information about what parts to use on '98 and later models. My strategy as to reach out to a UK source in hopes that they had more direct experience with '97s. Nexxia said they had confirmed success with these products for my car, so I dove in. No wiring harness adapter for the car, so installation meant hardwiring into the existing harness. The installer mentioned that he had to do something specific to power the antenna. It may be that the Pioneer just wasn't set up to power it.
24 hours in, I am very happy. The radio turns on and off, the stations change, the source changes, the volume goes up and down when I want. The steering wheel controls work the way they did with the original, and we did not need to do any programming to set it up. I also now have hands-free phone with speed dial buttons so I stay on the good side of the Austin phone police.
A note about installation:
I've seen my work in dashboards before, and my mother-in-law dropped some birthday money my way, so I happily outsourced the labor. I don't try to go cheap on everything, but I am also not willing to pay lots more unless it is justified. I tried a local custom car audio shop. Their estimate was up to $600 ($200 for a new custom fascia plate) before they said that they couldn't do it because their book only went back to 1998.
I ended up at a Best Buy in Austin where they have an installer that has worked on multiple Jaguars. He wanted to see all of my parts and components before scheduling the work. He spent a fair bit of time researching what I had in hand so that he had a comfort level with the task. Excellent communication on his part. Ordinarily, the radio and the steering wheel controller installation are separate charges. He only charged for the radio install, so I think I got a great deal.
I will take ability, care and excellent communication over reputation and expense every time.
The install looks great and it appears the installer left you several dollars change.
I could not be happier.
His real handiwork is all hidden. The fascia adapter came from England, and cost far less than the $200 the custom shop wanted to fabricate one, even with shipping.
The rest off the birthday money may turn into speakers.
Jag Wires
