On the control panel there is the range of push buttons for the front and rear fog lamps heated seats etc.

The rear fogs work OK but the red light doesn't come on, same with heated seats.

I have done some searching and in the end it seems people get a replacement panel but it must surely be possible to fix?

Would a hard reset be worth trying as these LED seem to be controlled by the body control module.

 

That was an especially pedantic MoT tester.

I replaced my 2001 XK8 switchpack because it was only 20 UKP. However, that was sixteen years ago and I see used ones are around 100 UKP now. A hard reset alone is unlikely to be sufficient sorcery to coax the lights back to life but I'd certainly strip it down and test the switches first before buying a replacement. Jaguar switches often respond to a cleaning.

Graham

 

Thanks Graham. I may try anyway, I've only had the car a short time but I'm pretty sure the lights did work when I picked it up as I recall the Traction light being on.

 

You can solder a new mini LED in if you can get the switch panel out - the gearshift surround has to come out first.

Personally I would run a temporary wire from the fog light to the dashboard and sellotape a light somewhere visible and tell the MOT tester to go forth.

 

Great minds and all that sort of thing. I was going to do just that to buy time and then look for a permanent fix. I can't see how he can object and I've known him for nearly 20 years. He may smile.

 

Go to a different test site...

 

In principle it doesn't work that way in the UK. If the test manual says the telltale must work that's an absolute and the tester can lose his licence to test. In reality they apply a degree of discretion so this guy may well have been generous in some areas but not this one and another guy might let the telltale go but catch corrosion for example. I do have another guy I could go to but it would be a gamble.

I think wiring up a different lamp should be OK. I think I can check this via the manual.

EDIT: and I just did as the manual is on line and for the rear fog lamp it is mandatory. The front not tested. There are some exceptions but not for me!

 

I purchased the panel last year from an eBay seller, it was around $40 IIRC.

in my case the front fog light button had lost it mojo.

Z

 

I have had a look and these panels are all over £100 in the UK so I think I'll try a repair but I have 10 days to sort out something that will pass the test. If I could get one for £40 I'd do it in a flash.

All my lamps have failed but the buttons all work apart from the front fogs which I think work differently in relation to the BPM. So, my thinking is a failed earth either on or to the PCB.

 

am with Dibbit

 

Not a practical option - the defect is already recorded.

For the benefit of members NOT in the UK, our MoT (annual vehicle inspection) is centralised and administered for all of England, Scotland and Wales by DVSA (Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency). Approved testing stations around the country are all linked to DVSA server.

The first thing a tester does is login to DVSA from an internet connected terminal with his/her personal ID and identify the vehicle under test by entering the VIN. From login, there is a set maximum time allowed for completion of the test. In very unusual circumstances a test could be abandoned but normally a Pass or Fail is recorded together with any 'advisories' (items which do not fail but require attention). The information is recorded in real time and cannot be changed except for correcting errors or by appeal against the decision.

MoT's are publicly available. With a vehicle registration, anyone can check online if it has a current MoT. With the reference number on the vehicle registration certificate, the full MoT history can be obtained. Here is an example for a similar XK to mine:




A first test is required three years from the date of original registration and annually thereafter. Our major roads are monitored with ANPR (Automatic Number Plate Recognition) cameras and a vehicle without a current MoT is soon identified.

Graham

 

Although my Y2000 XK8 failed its MOT I was pretty pleased that having stood on damp gravel for a year hadn't caused too much corrosion. The previous owner had done just 78 miles in over a year and let a new battery go dead flat at least twice which killed a cell.

The two long brake pipes running front to back need replacing (and they seem to be unavailable so I'll get a garage to make them up and fit), this daft LED and the emissions were a borderline fail. So I'll try a new air filter and MAF clean as a first step. I suppose the emissions is the biggest concern as I can't easily see if I have fixed it.

MOT is a good system giving the tester some discretion and making it riskier to 'buy' an MOT. When looking at cars you can often see when someone has simply got a rogue tester to sell them a pass. You don't spend the money to clear 20 advisories and then sell the car for a couple of grand.

 

As the vehicle has been mainly standing unused for a long period, an Italian Tune-Up could resolve the emissions .... but only AFTER you've done the brake pipes.

Graham

 

And looked at the secondary chain tensioners

I've been driving like a nervous vicar since I bought as I haven't yet looked at the tensioners. Then the MOT tester runs it at 2500 rpm to get some heat into the engine for emissions.

 

Thanks Graham as I’ve wondered about this for some time. Clears things up.

 

Oh dear, it was way more fun pre computer, back in the day we all had our ''tame'' testing station. Not bent, but not OTT

 

I have now got the PCB in my hands and I can see nothing wrong with it. None of the small LED tell tale lamps light and I'm stumped so I think I'll have to wire in a replacement tell tale as suggested.

I cannot see the common line/wire on the PCB the LED share. The blue illuminating LED LED work OK - apart from one which has broken.

Bum.

 

Please post a photo of the board. I would check whether the non-working LEDs are blown or, as you suspect, there is a common line that has failed. The illumination bulbs are not LEDs, but normal filament bulbs with a coloured sleeve.

 

Oh dear it's back in the car now. I have accepted temporary defeat and I am wiring up the bodge the alternative and improved tell tale lamp.

I will find a picture and post but there is no obvious damage to anything anywhere. One illumination bulb has blown but I'm not worried about that.

 

This is what I was looking at, not my PCB but identical. What's the blue thing?



I can't see any issues with the board. I do have a friend who can test these things but he probably will take some persuading. I have a system that should now pass the test.