Nikasil What is it and How to Identify it! FAQ
 

Nikasil what is it and why is it a problem. Let me first start by saying that not all Nikasil engines have a problem. You may ask why and you will get several answers, the best I can give you is good maintenance and low sulpher fuels and the lack of short trips will extend the life of Nikasil.
Now that I confused you let me give you a link to the definition of Nikasil http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikasil and it will also inform you that this is not a problem with one car manufacture although I am doing this to inform Jaguar followers.
Now to be honest with you I am a victim of the Nikasil issue and I can tell you I was not pleased. When I purchased the car I was informed that it was well maintained by a Jaguar Dealership and I continued to do the same. However my engine failed me on starting several times and that is when I found this information on Nilasil http://www.jag-lovers.org/cjw/#0504x . You may be required to get a logon for the web page, do it, it’s worth it. I also got this information that only confirms the Nikasl concerns http://www.racinggreencars.com/moder...J-V8Engine.pdf.

When we purchased the car I wanted to be an informed consumer. What I did find was that the tentioners fail and the water pump and the engine temperature was a concern. Very little on Nikasil .

Now you may have heard of the BlowBy test on Nikasil. . Most of us have heard of it but I must tell you that it is the best kept secret. I checked around and no one had a clue what it looked like and I was unable to find it on the internet. In fact the process was a little vague to many so I elected to try to get that information and have it available for others. I found that the BlowBy test is a real test and in fact Jaguar had the BlowBy tester manufactured. I got my hands on a video that explains the BlowBy procedure and I will make every effort to explain the process to you so you can understand. The video I received is copywrited and I am unable to post it on this page, however I will provide the resources and you can contact them and get your own copy if you wish. I asked for permission but have not received anything yet.

The BlowBy tester was developed to identify excessive bore wear. To do this the secondary breather hose is disconnected and plugged on both ends, the primary hose is then disconnected and the BlowBy tester is installed between the car and the hose. The meter will have a static reading (engine not running), then the car is started with the A/C and all other non essential turned off and it is run for 1 minute and then an additional minute. The results are calculated (I think by subtracting the static from the results) and you get the BlowBy results. Now according to the comments on the tape < 40ppm is OK! And < 30ppm is reason for concern!

FYI:

These facts apply to ALL AJ-V8’s produced between 1996 and 2001, regardless of size or application, (XK 4.0, XJ 4.0 and 3.2, S-type 4.0)
In August 2000 Jaguar replaced the Nikasil-linings with steel linings
The Nikasil cut-off date (18/08/00) is often confused with the date when low-sulphur petrol was introduced into the UK (01/01/00)
To the best of my ability the U.S. Diesel Low-sulphur date was 2006 and gasoline fuel was around 2007 (I did not want to spent a great deal of time on the sulphur issue but 1 hour later this is what I got. Not real good on the searching thing). http://www.accessmylibrary.com/artic...end-ultra.html
The risk of Nikosil failure was substantially reduced after the 01/01/00 in the UK when low-sulphur petrol was introduced, especially in new and low mileage engines.
Jaguar replaced many Nikasil engines under warranty, so a car built before the cut-off date below may possibly have steel-lined bores (check the engine number).
Nikasil - Cut-off date/number
The first steel-lined AJ-V8 came off the production line In the year 2000 on August 18th at 10.43am hence the engine number will read:
00 08 18 1043 or more precisely:
0008181043
With this piece of information it is simple to discern between a Nikasil and a steel-lined engine as all the numbers refer to the date of manufacture and any engine built before August 18th 2000 WILL have Nikasil bores!
The only way to tell if you have a Nikasil lined engine is to check the engine number, as stated in my document.

CHECK THE ENGINE NUMBER - IT IS THE ONLY SURE WAY OF KNOWING.

Engine number on V8 is under the black plastic cover, stamped on the top of the block to the right hand side of the front of the engine, near the lifting bracket.

Whether or not there is a fine line between the readings given by a compression tester and blowby tester, cannot say, but at least now you know more about the topic.

Thanks to:
http://en.wikipedia.org , http://www.jag-lovers.org , http://www.racinggreencars.com , http://www.xclusively-jaguar.co.uk , http://www.jec.org.uk/jec-new/index.php , http://www.accessmylibrary.com

Important: All information is believed correct, and it is given in good faith, but I cannot be held responsible if it is not correct.

Attachment 181104

Great stuff Gus, thanks for sharing:)
FAQ'd

Sooooooo in short I need to run the BEST PRICEY gas in the 97 xk8 and get it to running temps as much as possble. Is there an additive I can putin the gas to make sure it is the best gas I can have running in the car?

I think the point is that the sulfur in gas 8-10 years ago lead to deterioration of the Nikasil plating. No fuel company adds sulfur to their product, the problem was getting it out. That issue has gone away due to US Federal regulations. The same for Europe. The ROW is another story.

The sulfur content of the fuel was compounded by early coolant pump failures and subsequent over heating. Jaguar also had a fuel management issue with the engine not reaching operating temperature and washing oil from the cylinder walls.

At least by the posts on this forum, the number of engine failures due to loss of compression has dramatically gone down.

Today we have better fuels and additives are good but not all the time. My suggestion is to not to go off the deep end but just eliminate the short trips and enjoy the car.

What is a SHORT TRIP? Grocery getter out of the question? I live in a suburb of Cincy, drive to work for wife is about 20-25 min of car running time. Drive to day care (told her to leave it running there now, not shutting off, insur will cover if stolen which aint likely) then on the HWY for about 10 min then sits for 8 hours, repeat trip home then. So I guess it is important to get it to running temps for a little bit before stopping!?
ROW????? By what I can tell my 97 was taken care of. I want to do all I can do to keep on that path. I am glad I had the water pump replaced when tensioners were done as I am prob right to say tha at 68k it was the orig pump. When they did that repair on the tensioners, the compresion was checked and was good. Any other tips to keep this lady going for a long time?

Tim,
My information on the Nikasil was to inform the uninformed and clarify a few points. I would say that if you have not experienced a starting failure then chances are you are in better shape than you think you are. Fuels have changed from the conception of Nikasil. Please do not let this information change your life style, just be informed as to the symptoms. To define a short trip it would be when you car does not reach proper /normal operating temperature before you turning it off.

what is the starting failure again?

When you are unable to start the car due to the lack of compression due to washed cylinders.

What causes the WASH DOWN?

I ask this cause when my tensioners went south my car was in a wash down state when the shop fixed it. They got it back to running with little effort and the compression then checked out fine and has been running/starting up just fine (7 months later). What OTHER things cause wash down?

The fuel in a cold engine block will wash the cylinder walls of oil resulting in no compression and no start. Remedy pull the plugs add a few drops of oil reinstall the plugs and hope it starts.

I think that is what they did with mine. The compression came right back up and issue since.
Has is the fuel getting in there? With mine it ran a tiny bit after the chain jumped a tooth and timing went south. I did try starting it one time after it died when it was cold, weeks later but it ran, just rough. Anyways they thought it was wash down and now that I remember they did the oil trick.
Any other way this could happen then what I outlined due to the tensioner going and the timing going off and my one time cold start (playign with it honestly before what I know now I should have not)

This is a good read on Nikasil!

http://www.enginebuildermag.com/Arti..._coatings.aspx

Based on the article these engines in the jag with this can be fixed if there is a malfunction.

Nikasil
 

Thanks Gus for the great work on researching the Nikasil problem. I have also done a lot of reading on this subject. The concept is great in the lab or under ideal conditions. But we don't operate under those conditions. Very unhapy with Jaguar foe not doing more testing in the real world. This always frustrates me as and old flight test egineer. You always test in the environment the item will be used in.

Like you and just about everyone else that bought one of these cars (about 56,000 of them) I have a problem. I don't like to trade cars a lot. I always plan on keeping them a long time. Kept my 240Z for 18 years. My problem is do I refine the engine by fixing all the other problems and have the Nakasil problem bite me with a huge repair cost the I am studk with or sell the car now, replace the engine with a 4.2, or just pray.

I will do a compression test soon and see how that comes out. But I think my oil consumption is high. Have only put 3,000 miles on the car since purchased last summer and it used one quart of oil on a trip. With normal driving now it seems to be using more. It starts great and runs great. Checked the air filter area and it was like new. Will check it again soon.

One additional question. Will a 4.2 fit in my 2000 XK8?

Thanks Gus. Without guys like you it would be very rough.

Yes, but it's a lot of work. Here's a whole thread about how to do it. It's not for the faint-hearted.

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/s...d.php?p=177881

Then you know it wasn't just jaguar who used it..it was also Porsche, Audi, BMW and Ferrari amount others and that nikasil has been around since the late 1960's.

I just checked my 01 XKR and it is made in 07/00, so I suppose it is Nikasil block. I have not checked compression, but do I need to?
Motor runs perfect and does not have any idle pulsation, or vibration, like uneven compression would produce.
Thank you!

How many miles do you have on your car? Your oil consumption may not be because of Nikasil. Most Nikasil engines which have problems have already been addressed. I have read that one of the major problem was owners using non premium fuels in the southern states in the late nineties and early 2000's, some of the non premium fuels where high in sulfur. which most sulfur has been reduced to acceptable levels. Most experts seem to think that the Nikasil engine is superior to a steel lined if they made it this long.
Doug
2001 XKR Silverstone

I have 69K on mine, so I suppose it is nothing to worry about.
I did put about 500 miles since I bought it and it seems to hold freshly changed oil at the same level.
There is some oily residue in the intake, past the bbreather, however throttle body is dry and not too dirty for any normal engine.

Car is 2000 XK8 rag top made in the early part of that year. It has 40,000 miles on it and is almost perfect with a new set of XKR wheels put on by the previous owner. Really cool.

But the oil comsumption has me concerned. When I drive it I be sure it reaches good operating temperature and run it for at least 30 minutes. Following that a check of the oil level the next morning reveals a reduction that is measureable. The oil was changed by the previous owner, Mobil 1, at 37,000 miles. I have added a quart just recently. Also the oil seems to be slightly dirty for only 3,000 miles. My present plan is to change oil now and have a sample tested. The tensioners have not been done and I am reluctant to drive it much until that is done.

Thanks for all that responded.

EZDriver 2000 XK8 1995 XJ6

Have 40,000 miles on car.

Just checled again oil consumption. I was using the dip stick and noting the change in level after rather short trips, 20 to 30 minutes. Not a good method. Have found dip stick indication can vary by 1/8 of an inch. I think this depends on where the engine stops. So......I don't believe I have an abnormal oil consumption. Will change the oil soon and this time I will remove and clean the oil pan (I think???). I don't believe the previous owner ever completely drained the oil. Then I am going to launch into changing the upper cam tensioners and start driving the car.

Thanks guys for all your input. Helps a lot.

EZDriver 2000 XK8 1995 XJ6

"Engine number on V8 is under the black plastic cover, stamped on the top of the block to the right hand side of the front of the engine, near the lifting bracket."

Is that the timing chain cover, the cam cover or the vanity cover with "Jaguar" on it? Passenger side, right?

Thanks

As quoted by EZDRIVER
If your checking your oil cold, before leaving, most oil has drain from the engine into the pan. Then checking the dipstick after the car has warmed up may indicated a slight reduction as all oil has not drained from the engine.
Doug
2001 Silverstone

EZ,

Sorry for my not getting back with you sooner but had a family emergency and was out of town for a few days. Nikasil, a good topic. If you have a Nilasil engine and the car is running well but burning oil the first thing I would do is move up in the viscosity of the oil that is assuming that you are using 5w-30w oil. If you are using 10w-30w and it is still consuming oil then I would add “Restore” oil additive and see how it goes. Nikasil is a durable product and chances are it is not the cylinder walls that you have a problem with. You could have other issues like valve guides/seals or like I said earlier the 5w-30w oil that was recommended when the car was new is not suitable for the car now..

My XJS has some oil smoke first few minutes when cold, I know it is old valve seals, however oil level stays the same for years. Since I put so little miles on it annually.

I doubt that my XKR has much of an issue, but can someone tell me what would be good compression reading for supercharged engine?

How many miles would have to be on the car before the lining started to fail? The reason I ask is because one of the cars I am looking at is a 97 with only 14K on the clock. Its been on the east coast its whole life but has only had 2K put on it since 07! Since I am asking: Whatever car I buy it will be a strictly Sunday Summer toy. Based on my past history with these toys I will put about 1K a year on the car. If I made a deal on the 97 with 14K I would have to do the water pump/thermostat/tensioners/Timing chain guide. I would do the water pump/thermostat immediately, is there any reason why the tensioners and guides could not wait a year? Its all about the budget. Thanks!

I think I have replied already but here it is again. I have 40000 miles and it runs perfect and starts perfect. I am concerned about oil comsumption though. My plan is to replace the upper tensioners right away and at that time with the cam covers off I will boroscope the cylinders and check compression. If I can rig it I will use my aircraft compression tester which is a blow-by method. I'll let everyone know what the results are. If every thing looks good and summer driving shows good results I will go back in and do the rest of the chain work plus the water pump and thermostat housing plus the belt and maybe the convertible top oil. But all that will wait until after the season.

Thanks guys for all the hep.

EZDriver 2000 XK8 1995 XJ6

143k miles on my engine... no puffs of oil smoke.

As quoted by LORWOOD
The failure of the lining would depend on so many variables exposure to sulfur, maintenance, etc.. Most people believe that the Nikasil is superior to steel. More than likely if it's made this far you will probably be OK
Doug
2001 XKR Silverstone

Fyi
 

My XK8 is a January 2000 manufacture date w/origional Nikasil engine and has 113,000 miles on it. Burns a quart and a half of oil every 3,000 miles, no smoking at any time, and runs great.

My XKR has 80,000 miles with a manu. date 07/00 and uses about a half quart every 4,000 miles, the amount I put on in a year. Then I change the oil every year. I don't consider a half a quart per 4,000 much oil consumption.
Doug
2001 XKR Silverstone

I concur with what RCSign said. Nikasil is is incredibly hard and durable, that's why it has been used for cylinder liners since the early 1970s. Porsche still uses it for the 911. The main problem was with high-sulfur fuel. Today's fuel has very low sulfur. If the car is running fine today, I doubt Nikasil will ever be an issue unless you happen to drive the car to a third world country. In fact, Nikasil is probably an advantage.

I have a lot of information on my page relating to Nikasil and this is a link to help better understand the issue that seem to come up in conversation http://www.gusglikas.com/AutoRepairNikasilSulfur.htm I hope this helps!

Sounds like a GREAT car but sitting around all that time I would be concerned about the timing tensioners and chains stuff that go south on that year specially. Sure the miles are low but its been around so much the plastic in the KEY components could be weak, dry, brittle. You start driving it alittle and you could have problems. Mine had 70k when they went south. Lucky for me I knew when the clattle at startup happened the timing chain was loose, a tensioner had broke, i'd better not start it up after that. If it goes when the car is at speed you may lose the motor, you don't want that.

exactly what I was thinking. I passed on the car. Bought a 03 XK8 with 37K on the clock today. Paid just a little more but who needs the headaches?

Nickosil motor
 

I have a 1997 Coupe Xk8.....I change the oil every year and drive it less than 500 miles per year as I have five cars. I use a high detergent fuel such as SHELL 93 octane only. I use SYNTHETIC oil ONLY. My car uses NO oil in betweeen changes. I wish I could use it more but with five cars, I use it in a revolving effort. I did the TOP tensioners only as I did the valve cover gaskets at the same time. There was LESS than a quarter inch of slack in the right side but the other chains were very tight. I have a book written by Nigel Thorley that stated the top tensioners were mostly the culprit in engine damage. It would not be a problem to do just the TOP. I will take my chances I guess. I have 80,000 miles on the car. Comments welcome! I have some mechanics giving me SCARE tactics because they want my 2500 bucks. Car runs a bit rough when cold but clears right up when warm. I have had no problems THANK GOD!!!! These cars can put you in the poor house in short order if something major breaks Im sure. "Paintxpert"

What exactly are you concerned with? I have a 1999 xk8 with 120,000mi on it and we drive every day. I tell my wife to tell me when things do not seem right and now she is better than me on the little noises it makes. As for the engine hesitation add a can of BG 44K add it to the fuel and drive the car. You may need to clean the TB.

You listed this in the Nikasil post, what are you concerned with?

That's because you don't drive it. Every vehicle with an engine that uses oil burns a little of it up. That's unavoidable.