Hi All,

I'm a new member here.

I just bought a Select Edition ’06 XKR with 16,000 miles on it. The car is in perfect shape and runs great. However, when I accelerate hard (foot to the floor), there is a smell that comes into the cabin. It’s a burning oil or rubber (no, it’s not the tires!) type smell. It doesn’t occur during normal driving, only under hard acceleration.

The service manager at the dealer tells me that the smell is the catalytic converter burning off sulfur and that this is normal. His explanation makes sense but I am still skeptical. I never experienced any smell with my XK8 when I drove it hard. Anyone else have this experience or have any thoughts?

Thanks,

Jon

 

Just curious I see your in Vienna Va. Was the car you just bought the Copper Black
Victory edition from Rosenthall??

 

Hello

I have the same problem with my 2004 XKR. As well, when I accelerate hard, after I let off the car fills with exhaust fumes. Smells like burnt hair or hair spray. I happens mainly with the top up and the drivers window open. The car was in the shop due to the check engine light being on and at that time I discussed it with the technician. The technician reported that I needed a new canister valve and that could be the problem but he ended up repairing two cracked hoses to the canister valve. I got the car back and still have the same problem but I think he may be on to something with possible cracks in more of the hoses or the canister valve itself. The carhas been putaway for the winter so I will need checkthis out further in the spring. I cannot believe that such a high end car could have this defect. Please keep me posted if you learn anything new or if anyone else has some insight into this problem please let me know.

dave b

 

dont know if this will be any help, but i had a similar problem on my other car (Saab 9-5). i was getting smell of burning oil in the cabin. took it over to the Saab specialist and prompted stated it was due to cracked engine breather hoses. common problem on Saab's he told me. your problem may also bethe hoses.

good luck

tariq

***still with the elite 'cos i got an XK8***

 

Hey Govatos, or anybody else, has anyone found a resolve to this issue?

brdaver

 

I get the same smell with my XKR under hard use,my dealership told me the same thing.

 

I have owned many cars, classic and modern and find it hard to believe that an expensive modern high quality automobile such as a Jaguar XKR would have this characteristic! Anyways, will keep looking for a resolve!

thanks,
brdave

 

Mine has a slight smell too after a hard, consistent acceleration. It doesn't bother me really. i've had my canister valve replaced and vent hose at the same time just 6 months ago. Still here.

 

Update: still have the problem. And it only happens under moderate to hard acceleration. Just cruising, no smell at all. I've had it into the dealer twice and they can't find anything. They have even had a regional tech rep check it out. I'm still badgering them about it. I've opened a case file with Jaguar customer service. I know it's not an easy problem to chase but it's still frustrating as hell! I'm convinced that it's coming from under the hood and there is probably some smoke involved. I'd love to put it on a chassis dyno where we could run it with the hood open. I'd bet $$$ we'd see where the smoke was coming from.

Sooo, let's all stay in touch and hope that one of us finds the cause of the problem.

 

I have on '08 XJR with 10k miles on it and it does the same thing...sometimes more, sometimes less...I doubt it's a bad cat. converter with this little miles on the car...
May be it's back draft of air ?

 

Unless the odors are clearly fuel, I don't understand why a dealership service department would have a problem with replacing valve cover gaskets. There shouldn't be any reason why the warranty claim would be rejected, and oil seepage onto the exhaust manifolds is the most likely cause of the odor..or in any event, an easy source to eliminate from the list of possible causes.

 

guys - i just did a search for 2008 xkr cabin smell and so i found all of you. i purchased a new xkr just today and when i put the pedal to metal - the cats are stinking. i know for a fact it's the cats cause there is no mistaking that rotten egg smell. what worries me is why are these fumes getting into the cabin in the first place? this is a serious health issue!

http://millenniummotorcars.com/New-I...oryId=22067349

mark brown

 

Just so there is no confusion, my comments were specifically concerning a leak that could explain a "burning" smell in the cabin. Fuel odors, or sulpher odors, are different situations entirely.

To Mr. Brown, I am an independant Jaguar technician and thus have zero exposure to cars that are still within their factory warranty period. Sorry I can be of no assistance, and best wishes with the satisfactory resolution of your problem.

 

update my hours old xkr has soot all over the tail pipes. i did some more google searches and some guys seem to think that the cat is doing its job by stinking cause it is taking care of unburnt fuel? also they say that the engine maybe running to rich? i do have soot all over my tail pipes so maybe its the gas or the cats are bad or maybe that is just what its doing its job?


http://forums.pelicanparts.com/archi...p?t-84132.html

 

My new 08 XJR - same story...exhaust smell/black exhaust tips...We can't all have bad cats..right??? May be this is how the car is supposed to run. I had an 06 E55 before this and the tips were always covered in soot as well, although there was never any smell...

 

Hi, not sure if this info will be useful but I have an 02 XK8 which had the burning smell every time I gave it a decent blast. This is what I found to be the cause when I decided to change the spark plugs.

 

First one of those I have seen, thanks for sharing the photo.

 

97 xk8 here with no issues like this at 73k miles.

 

I have had the same smell as the others with my XKR,I have had mine for seven going on eight years and when I step hard on it the car smells.When the car was under warrenty I had the dealer look at it and the tech said it was normal and all the supercharged cars smell after hard acceleration.

 

i have had the xkr for less than a week and put 1000 miles on it now. its exactly like you say moderate driving no problem. floor it and big problem. try this is the sport mode it doesn't smell near as bad. i would what this has to do with anything? it cuts the smell by 2/3 i still smell it but not near as bad. could this be cause the sport mode opens the restrictive exhaust?

also i looked all over my car and found soot on the exhaust pipes joint just under the drivers seat - where the cats connect. black soot around the clamps etc. this could mean that the slip coupling is letting gas get out? i am traveling now but when i get back home for a while its going into the shop and i am going to ask they open a case on it also.

i am a car fanatic, i know that smell - rotten eggs - its the cats! but what puzzles me is how is the smell getting into the cabin. i wonder if there is a blow off pipe which exhaust under the hood somewhere and the fumes sucked into the cabin vent.

or perhaps the a/c on recirculating is creating a low vacuum area in the cabin and the fumes are sucked back into the cabin when the accelerator is let off and the cats are doing their job smelling like that. i think like others have said the cats are working when they stink, just don't want that stink in the cabin.

mark brown