The mechanic that changed the belt tensioner and idler pulley finished putting my car back together today.
Tells me there was no logical reason for what happened, other than the belt simply giving up. IMO, this is still a mystery, and I'll keep a watchful eye on the new belt.
Tells me no damage to engine during the overheat crisis. Oil is clean, compression is perfect. No codes or signs of anything.

Car is idling smooth with full power.

Still not sure what happened or why the belt simply snapped.

Any tricks to clean the coolant stains off the engine compartment?

 

Rent a steam cleaner or find a shop that does that.

 

You should run out and buy a lottery ticket, but maybe you just used up all your luck. The coolant will come off wiping with a wet cloth, maybe a little spray bottle in some areas, but try to avoid getting the coil covers and other electrical areas very wet. I would not suggest a hose down.

 

Not a bad idea

Question:
Are there any signs and symptoms of damage that might rear its ugly head at a later date?
What should I look out for?

 

Definitely! Looks like you dodged a bullet: glad the Jaguar gods have been kind to you.

Mike

 

holy smokes Anthony awesome news! That's amazing .. tough engine these Jaguar cars have.. :O

 

Keep a close watch on the coolant level. It's always possible there was a slight warpage of one of the heads which may result in a head gasket failure, and a hose may fail in the future. If your water pump has a plastic impeller that could have been damaged.

 

Anthony, Have you put in Steve's RealGuage yet? If not it's time to do so. Then there'll be no more wondering exactly how hot the engine is.

John

 

This is the answer I was looking for. ^^^
I guess there is a chance some damage from the other night could surface in the near future.

For starters, they only "topped" off the reservoir with water and the coolant seems rather diluted.
I had plans on changing a few hoses, thermostat and coolant flush, and this may be a good time to do it.
Water pump is metal. It was dealer-changed a few years ago.

Just took the car out for about a 4 hour ride. Highway and local. It seemed fine, with no noises, ticks, clicks or knocks. No sign of odor from the exhaust.
I checked the oil and it's clear. I did an oil change 2 weeks ago and it was crystal clear.

 

Grab two beers ( one for you and the other as a offering to the Jaguar gods) , hug your car and smile on account of a bad situation not to have gotten worse.

 

I agree.

I've been driving her every chance I had this week. She seems fine.
Purring like the kitten that she is.

 

Watch for oil leaks at valve cover, my PO had over heating issues due to lost belt due to idler pulley failure. While I am not sure if that is what caused the issue but when replacing the valve cover gasket one side looked like it was smoother against head side like it was effected by heat, maybe is was due to something else like over torque.

Close eye on crossover tube as they develop hair line cracks and can leak slowly the leak, mine was leaking not dripping on ground but could have been a large failure later. If yours is old and you are doing hoses you may want to change, I think I read something about being a scheduled replacement part. May want to check receipts, dealer may have done along with water pump.

Go do something nice for someone to help replenish your mojo, luck or whatever you want to call it.

 

Thank Tex.
I'll keep a watchful eye on these things as well.
Got the car from the original owner. He had extensive dealer serviced records including Throttle body, water pump, housings and third gen timing tensioners done.
If anything, I intended to change hoses and thermostat this week and decided to hold off until I'm 100% comfortable with the car. As I mentioned, all seems well.
I did notice that the mechanic only "topped off" the coolant and it seems thin.
I'll wait a week or so, and do all hoses, thermostat, coolant flush and pressure test again for leaks.

 

Definitely replace the crossover pipe at that time.