I drove my 1999 xk8 to my friend today. Everything worked fine. I parked on the street. When I was leaving the place the car would not start. A starter does not turn over. The battery has a proper voltage. When I turn the key on, lights do not dim. No trouble codes on a scanner.There is a relay click in the area of the shifter. Also the start relay in the ECM compartment clicks when the key is turned on. I also hear a fuel pump running. It seems that the solenoid does not get a power. I have about three days to get the car from the street. Any advice before I call a tow truck?

 

First try starting it in neutral.

If nothing changes try swapping the starter relay for one of the others. All the brown square ones are the same. Here is the relay layout for an '02:

 

I tried to start it in neutral. No difference. Relay lay out on my 1999 xk8 car looks different.

 

Disconnect the battery in the trunk, then reconnect it and see if it comes back to life.

In your other post today, you implied that you might have removed the instrument cluster.

-Are you sure you had re-seated the connectors fully? They need to be 'drawn in' as the locking bail is rotated.

-Did you , by chance, unplug or plug in the cluster with the battery still connected? Never do that, always disconnect the battery before plugging or unplugging any electronics.

 

I disconnected battery and touched the leads - hard reset. No change. Yes, I have unplugged the cluster when I was trying to replace the light indicator light (the green light with beams). After I put it back together, the normally started and we drove away. I had it connected because I needed to move the steering wheel up and down to get to some fasteners. After re-assembly it was started at least twice before the mishap.

 

As everything else appears to be working apart from the starter, check the cables and fuses in the High Power Protection Module (item 5).


(click on the image to enlarge it)

The High Power Protection Module has three 250A capacity fuses. Two fuses are connected in parallel to provide protection for the starter circuit and the third one provides protection for fusebox supply circuits.
A loose cable has previously been reported as the cause of the issue you describe.

Graham

 

Have you had the "Dead key turn" previously? Even one time previously have you turned they key with no response from the starter? If so, your starter solenoid may be the culprit. I've had three vehicles in my past do the same thing you are describing. Turn the key and nothing, zip, zero, nada. Everything worked but the starter, and every single vehicle, it was the solenoid. Remove the starter, give it a shake, I bet you hear a rattle indicating a toasted solenoid.(fried parts that burned off) Even if you don't hear a rattle, take the starter and get it checked. Pain in the butt? Of course. Probability if it being the problem? High.

 

Yeah, but the most difficult and therefore the last thing to do.

You're right, the '99 relay layout is different than the '02. Here is the '99:

 

After checking everything, I went again under the car to see what nightmare it might be to remove a starter. After i pulled off a rubber boot covering a solenoid terminal (it was very tight), I found a broken wire eyelet. A tight place to solder a new one on while laying on the back under the car - but mission accomplished...Thanks again.

 

Glad you have kitty up and running again