I'm getting ready to move and my 2002 XKR acts up. The story: my car sat for about a week. I then drove it about 10 miles. Everything was fine. I parked it for about 20 minutes. I get in and start the car and it acts like it can't get much gas. The car starts but it sputters and stalls. I try to give it gas and it stays running but sputtering. I put it in gear and I can only go about 5 mph. No codes. I'm thinking clogged fuel filter or failed fuel pumps. I have about 1/8 of a tank of gas. What do you guys think?

Mark

 

was the car sitting on an incline? my Jag has sputtered like that when I was low on gas and stuck pointing uphill on an off ramp in a traffic jam.

 

Obviously it could be a number of things. What comes to mind is that it may be a clogged fuel filter or fuel injectors. It can also be a dirty throttle body. Can't think of anything else at the moment, but then again, I am not a mechanic.

 

Sounds fuel related. White XKR has a thread on removing the relay for the primary pump to force the secondary pump to take over. Easy to try, the relays are in the trunk and your owners manual should show the position, or search for it here. Good luck.

 

My XK8 sputters if I drive with 1/8 tank. I try not to let it go below 1/4 for several reasons: It's hard on the fuel pump which uses the fuel in the tank for cooling. It's easier to stir up hard bits form the tank and clog the pre-filter. It leaves a lot of the tank open to collect condensation, and, if you've got water in the tank already, you'll stir it up easier as the gas sloshes around the nearly empty tank.

About 3 years ago I switched to Premium Non-Ethanol fuel. (It's also called Recreational Gas) If you can find it give it a try. I haven't had fuel problems since.

 

Read the OBDII codes

 

Thanks for all the suggestions guys. I had to have it towed to the Jag dealer in Jackson, MS. I'm finishing up a contract here and actually had almost all my stuff sent back home to Dallas just before this problem occurred (in true Jaguar fashion, at the worst possible time). I just talked to the dealer and the problem is, as I suspected, the fuel pumps. Fortunately, when I bought the Jag almost 2.5 years ago, I also bought an extended warranty. I believe this will be a covered repair. I'll keep you posted,


Mark


PS I can't really be too upset though as this is the first real problem I've had with it, except for a problem with one of my upgrades.

 

Regarding the fuel pump failure issue, I've become convinced that letting these cars sit for even just a couple of weeks can kill them. Since my wife took early retirement this past November 1st, she doesn't drive her XK8 every single day as she did before. But it never sits for more than a couple of days now. That should keep everything lubed up enough (I hope)....

Good luck with yours, and I hope your warranty indeed covers 100% of your fuel pump replacement....

 

Hopefully the codes will indicate where the issues lie but it it so these cars want to be driven and are better for it. I was reading the other day the E type needed similar treatment!

You should not accept rough running though and anything other than a smooth operation means you need to address an issue albeit simple.

My xkr had horrible cold starting after a weekend rest with one bank misfiring. It's a 4.2 so tensioners highly unlikely to say the least. My independent mechanic checked everything, no faults. The issue lay in using Mobil 1 oil with a non Jaguar filter. Replaced with correct filter and 'correct' oil now cold start is fine and the car runs better with better gear changes too--ridiculous I know and goes against years of experience with cars& engines.

It's all in the detail with these beasties... Drives you crazy...oh but what a drive...

 

I fully agree with you guys regarding driving these cars everyday. Like the E-type, these cars want to be driven. I generally drive almost every day except when I have to be away on business, even then, I will drive my Jag instead of flying if at all possible. Thanks for the advice,

Mark

 

I heard from the Jag dealer today and my extended warranty will cover the fuel pumps replacement. All I will pay is the $100 deductible. By the way, there were never any codes associated with this failure. You would have thought that the Jag engineers would have implemented a code indicating fuel pump failure. That way you could get a failed pump fixed before you get stranded.


Mark

 

Up through 2002, the fault detection design makes no sense...there is a code indicating fuel pump relay failures, but no code for the pump itself. The relays almost never fail, but the pump fail after few years with pretty good regularity.

 

Ok, final update. I got my car back from the Jackson, MS Jaguar dealer. The replacement of both fuel pumps took 3.5 weeks and cost just under $1800. My extended warranty paid $1300 and I paid $500. The warranty company, AA Auto Protection, will only pay $80/hr for labor (the jag dealer charges $120) and warranty company would only pay for the cheapest aftermarket parts, not the more expensive OEM parts. Regardless, $500 is a lot better than $1800.

Mark

 

If anyone us wondering what took so long, I believe the parts were shipped by boat from the UK, the HMS Beagle, and one of their passengers got sidetracked by some turtles off of Argentina.

Mark

 

It seems that the fuel pumps have been a problem with these cars from the off. Is it generally accepted that an after market pump is O.K to use? How do they compare with the O.E pumps, or are there any after market ones recommended?


Arty

 

I just replaced mine with a Denso, cost about $80.00, complete with new pickup screen. (2 day delivery Rock Auto). The Purolator fuel filter was $15.00. Labor to replace in my convert. was $500. 00.
The difference between the OEM and aftermarket pump was the electrical connector; the old connector was cut off and the new one supplied with the pump was fitted.
The original pump crapped out, so I wasn't hung up on replacing it with the same thing.

 

The labor from the Jag dealer was a little over $1000 and new OEM fuel pumps about $750. I paid $500 and my extended warranty company paid $1300.

Mark