Hey Jaguarforums. Yesterday I finally bought an XK8 coupe (My first Jag) after wanting one for sometime. It's a 2000 with 73k miles on it in pristine condition. Im willing to do whatever it takes to keep it on the road for many years to come however I have no experience with British cars, I'm just curious if anyone would have any advice for me such as what preventative maintenance should be done, is there anything I should have checked out, etc. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

Welcome to the forum KayScotts,

I've moved your question from General Tech Help to XK8/XKR forum. Members here with the same model will be able to advise.

Please follow this link New Member Area - Intro a MUST - Jaguar Forums - Jaguar Enthusiasts Forum to the New Member Area - Intro a MUST forum and post some info about yourself and your vehicle for all members to see. In return you'll get a proper welcome and some useful advice about posting to the forum.

Graham

 

Oh boy, you've asked for it now.
First Congrats, I've recently succumbed to the allure also with a 2003 convertible.
Do you have maintenance records....if not the first steps will be to check the tensioners and the second is to try to eliminate the impending transmission failure. Do a search for these. You also have water pump and thermostat housing upgrades to verify. As part of doing all of that, most of your fluids will be changed. You probably should also have your brake fluid flushed.

 

Let me be the first to offer my sincere heart felt condolences.
Welcome to the Jag forum!

Dave

 

Just revived a 2000 XK8 Coupe with 95,000 miles, so you are on a similar path I just traveled.


This forum is an incredible resource I would have certainly been lost without all the great information available here.



As stated, the cam chain tensioners are number one before you drive it any further than to your garage. Imperative you install the updated tensioners (or verify they have been updated) or you risk almost certain catastrophic damage.


Look up the Nikasil issue, but basically if you have good and near equal compression in all cylinders and good leakdown test results. then congratulations you have a survivor and need not worry about that any longer. Mine has very good compression, and starts instantly hot or cold, my understanding is that a first clue (to Nikasil bore wear) is difficult cold starting although certainly there could be other causes for a cold start problem.


I recommend that you replace all the coolant hoses, and first check the two Norma quick change connectors for signs of weeping coolant to see how long you might let that go. Also replace all the plastic fittings, including the crossover pipe. The thermostat housing riser assembly should be replaced with the aluminum version.


With good ignition coils, properly operating O2 sensors, and clean and balanced injectors these are very smooth running engines. At idle mine is so smooth you can not see any engine motion at all.


Have you run a scan to look for codes or "incomplete" monitors ?


Ignition coil failure is very common. Two of mine had been replaced at less than 70,000 miles, and I had 3 more fail in rapid succession at 95,000 miles, so I replaced all of them.


Recommend ultrasonic cleaning and flow testing of the injectors. I have always had good luck with Injector Rx.


Beautiful car isn't it?

 

The more ya learn the more you will say WTF did I get into. ha ha ha
Most will say try to do any repairs on your own, that saves much money. DON'T let a Jag dealer touch it, take it to an independent European car shop or someone that knows these cars.
This is not a Honda do not let the low miles make you think you wont have stuff to fix, IT IS A JOB. I would take the car to a auto parts shop and have them load test your battery (if you know nothing of the cars maint history) as it can cause one off gremlins in the car that is solely due to a battery that cab start the car but is old non the less.
You will need to look at the WP, timing chain tensioners, radiator hoses, front end bushings suck on these, etc, other will chime in.
If it EVER gets hot and the gauge pegs out, ,SHUT IT DOWN immediately. You do NOT want to over heat these motors, it is not a Chevy Small Block that can handle that beating. Don't think, I just need to get it a half mile more, if you got a red light and the gauge is pegged you are in trouble, shut it down then which at that point is past the point of safe.
If you keep the car long enough you will see a check light sometime. Then you will come here and ask what is going on and we will ask if you have codes pulled. Soooo if you have a droid phone you can get the Torque Pro app from the app store and the ELM Blue Tooth adapter from ebay, both costing you a mere 10 bucks or so. That way you can pull the codes right off the car to your phone and come tell us what you have.
These cars LIKE top be driven, most all here will say that you should drive it, dont let it be a garage queen, the queens are the ones that tend to be the most problematic.
Basically if the car is kept up it will treat you fine but do expect frustration moments in early ownership weeks and months and years.

 

I second Injector RX, I used them when I had an issue with my fuel rail. Decided to have the whole thing gone over and fixed up for the next many miles.

 

Thanks for all the helpful info guys. I DO know the car just had a new transmission put into it, new breaks, and upper and lower control bushings before I bought it. Also let me know if im wrong but I'm pretty sure the earlier cars with the Nikasil issue can be identified by the amount of digits in the VIN number. I've heard that this was mainly only an issue in the UK for a while where/when sulfur levels were higher in gasoline?

 

Nikasil was actually more of a problem in the southern US. But if it starts and seems to have good power and doesn't burn oil, forget about it.
Is your transmission actually new, or just a used replacement? If the latter, at some point in the near future consider replacing the main pressure valve:

http://jagrepair.com/images/AutoRepa...%20ZF5HP24.pdf

 

From what have read here is that if the Nakasil motor has made it this far down the line in years/miles and the motor is not drinking oil and is running well you should not have further issues with it.

 

However, you do need to search for "cylinder wash" so you understand what it is and what you need to do if you have it.

 

Regardless of whether of not Nikasil is still still a risk, I should probably still take some of the recommended precautions for the unlikely chance it being an issue. I went out today and it wouldn't start (currently 20 degrees F) The battery isn't dead but the engine begins to crank for a split second but then won't turn. The dash says Trac Fail. After doing some research I found when this is happening is most likely due to a weak/not fully charged battery so I'm going to charge it up for a day and so what happens "fingers crossed"

 

If you have not invested in a multimeter and code reader ( very inexpensive if you have a smartphone) do so soon. Your battery should read at least 12.5V, 12.75 after charging.
Assuming the car starts take it to a auto parts store and have them load test the battery. If the engine turns over but doesn't start, refer to post #11 above.

 

Just noticed you're going to be charging the battery. Be very careful disconnecting and reconnecting the battery, there's a way of doing it that stops you from frying the (very expensive) electronics. Do a search here. My '99 XK8 seemed to forget two of its keys when I reconnected the battery.

 

I still need to get one. Is there an Iphone app for one?

 

Here is one of many. This also gives a pretty good description of the various parameters. OBD App for iPhone | OBD Auto Doctor


I am sure others will chime in with their favorites.

 

Appreciate it. I'm almost positive it's just the battery, even the widows are moving sluggish. I knew these cars drained batteries if they sit too long i'm just suprised it was only after a day and a half? The voltmeter is reading just under 10V in ACC mode. Does the engine have to be running to see the true Volt reading or does the reading in ACC tell you as well because I think it's supposed to be something like 12.5-12.75V to start

 

Kay, forget the voltage gauge it's a feel good gauge, nothing more. Check voltage at the battery with a meter. Engine off 12.6v, engine running 14.1 - 14.4v.
If your battery is down after one day then you have either a failing battery or a parasitic drain on your electrical system.
Check the flap in the ignition barrel is closing when the key is removed.
Turn off all auto functions.
Completely lock the car even in your garage, if you have one.
Above all, get a smart charger and hook it up when not in use.

Hope this helps,

 

Helps a lot thanks..about the ignition barrel where the key inserts there is no flap? Unless it's stuck like your saying ?

 

There is your problem, your car is not going to sleep because it thinks the key is still in there. You will need to get the flap moving and then lubricate it with some graphite grease. Hopefully that should solve your problem.