Nige005

Hi everyone, I suspect that I may be having problems with this, the indicated temperature seems to be about five degrees out and slow to change so looking for a bit of help regarding this Sensor, three things that I’m struggling with. Eventually found the Sensor behind the split grill on the DRIVERS side, not on the passenger side as t’internet had told me…………. It’s mounted on the same fixing point as the Horn. Only a five minute job to remove and test – six hours later I was losing the will to live. In the end I had to cut the mounting bolt as it was seized solid. However this was far from the end. So – Q1. How do you remove the Sensor from the bracket, it seems to slide on to the tongue of the bracket and clips on. I can’t figure out how to release the clip. Q2. Same problem with the Connector Plug, can’t see what clips hold this connector on to the body of the Sensor or how to release them. Q3. This Sensor provides the Ext Temp reading on the Climate Control Panel but does it provide information to a control module for other things such Engine Cooling Fans, Air Con etc ? If all it does is provide the Temp Reading then I’m happy that I don’t have to rush into replacement whilst lying on a gravel drive dodging thunderstorms, my old bones are getting too ancient for this lark ! Any help much appreciated, Nige.

Had a similar fault three or four years ago but cannot remember what the fault code was. I didn't have Engine Fault light or any other indications, just engine cranking but no starting, bit like a failed crank position sensor fault, which I initially thought it was. Had the sensor replaced but this didn't fix things. In my case the cure turned out to be simple, it was just the operating cable sticking slightly so not selecting all the contacts correctly. A good clean up and lube of the cable sorted out the problem. Apparently this is not unusual. Naturally I didn't find this out until I had obtained a replacement switch and had it installed to find myself no further forward.......... Hope you manage to sort things out.

When ( if ) I work up enough courage I'll look at those Vids again ! Slightly off topic but related does anyone know how easy it is to get a key cut and reprogrammed ? I've done this with other cars and found Timpsons and the key guy on the local market do an excellent job for about £30. Is it the same for an XK8 key ?

That's a good question ! You can occasionally find complete second hand Fobs complete with the electronics on E Bay for about £100, give or take a few quid. Of course that still leaves you with the problem of reprogramming the " new " Fob. I've looked at this and although I can't remember all the details I seem to recall that the whole idea frightened me. I seem to recall that a few places advertise a repair service but I have to say I wasn't convinced by what I read. Just a few years ago you could buy just the Fob case with all the buttons for about £5 but these seem to have disappeared now. These were handy as they had nice new buttons that made good contact with the PCB and swapping the old case to the new one was very, very easy. Monte, sorry as I don't think that I've helped much, if at all, but like you I would be interested if anyone has found an answer without having to re mortgage the house or suffer a mental breakdown trying to program a " new " second hand one. In my case it's for a 98 XK8 and the Fob is the square four button one. Good luck !

At least if you hang it in the garden you will be making good use of the CD if, like me, you suffer from squadrons of flying rats ! Glad you are sorted out though, a good result. I did know about the Boot Lock, I use it at least once a year and squirt a bit of lubrication in there to try and keep it going. I bought the car from a friend and he had to replace this lock as he didn't know it was there for years and when he did realize it was there it was seized and rusted beyond repair, don't want that to happen again. You can find Fobs on Ebay and some specialist Jag suppliers, think they go for about £90, but of course they then have to be programmed. Doesn't sound too difficult but I don't really know. At one time you could buy just the Fob case without any of the electronics for less than £10 so you could put your own electronics in, great idea in if the buttons on your existing one have worn out. I've been looking for a spare for years now, they seem to have disappeared, but during my searches I found many complete Fobs available. Anyway I digress. Glad that you are sorted out, now get out there and enjoy it, sod the fuel costs, vroom, vroom ! Cheers, Nige.

Interesting problem, didn’t even know that a “ Valet Mode “ existed but sounds like we should try and find out about it. I’ve found the following suggestions on the ‘net but I’ve no idea if they work, fortunately they are all very simple to try. Using the remote fob seems a very simple option to cancel the Valet Mode, just unlocking with it does the trick. Other than that, you have to get the boot open so the boot lights come on. The boot lights are the signal for the system to cancel Valet Mode, the key in the door or just turning the boot lock won't do it. Also, if the switch in the boot latch has failed so the lights won't come on, the Valet mode won't cancel either. Unlocking the driver's door with the black headed key should/might ? reset the Valet Mode. Easy enough to try anyway and at the least it may get you into the Boot so you can change the CD and release you from the purgatory of "The Best Air Guitar Classics in the History of the World (II)" ! Another idea I’ve found is that using the key to open the truck may also override/reset the Valet Mode. The key goes in a hole that is between the X and the K on the emblem on the rear of the car. As I said I have no direct advice to offer so I’m just trying to help with things I’ve found as I’d be very interested to know the solution to this. There is quite a lot more stuff out there on this subject, if you find the cure please let me know.

Yep, the pins are still in mine ! One of these days I'm hoping to have a day out to Kent to have a new one fitted but for now it'll do !

Good luck, hope you can sort something out.

Can't help too much but a few years ago the ABS Control Unit failed on mine and the local Indy had a " catalogue " from a company that repaired most Electronic Modules. Can't say if they repaired ECU's or not but suspect that they may have. The repair cost for the ABS Module cost about £120 and took about 4/5 days. If you can find a local Indy you could try them. If all else fails you could try giving the one I use a call, nothing to lose, and they are good guys and will help if they can. https://www.jaguarfuelconversions.co.uk/

Just realized that I hadn't finished this Thread off. For a temporary fix I bought four " Growler " Wheel Centre Stickers from Ding Dong Ltd for the grand total of £5.50. They are an exact fit into the Badge " Holder " and look pretty good so for now I'm pretty pleased with how it looks, I'm beginning to think ( or convince myself ) that it looks better than the " proper " badge................

Thanks Jim, I'm looking forward to that, nothing like a bit of fishing ! I had to buy a couple of small bulbs for the climate control panel a couple of weeks ago and at £9 each ( inc p & p ) I thought that was bad enough. Seems that any XK spares that begin with the letter " B " have a premium attached ! 😀

Thanks for that Jim. Having trawled the 'net for several hours it seems that a new badge is the only option. I was really hoping to find a " stick on " insert that would stick in/over the " holder," that would have been cheaper and easier than a whole new badge. It seems that these things are available for other marques but not for Jaguar. So it seems that I will have to bite the bullet and spend what seems a lot of money just for a badge 😢. Having accepted that this solution is the only option I still don't know how to remove the old badge and fit the new one. Anyone ?

Noticed today that the Boot Lid Badge on my X100 4 litre is a bit odd to say the least. Looks like someone has removed ( stolen ) the actual badge bit, the round " holder " is still there but all it's showing is a shiny dome, not what I want. A search on the net has shown that there are a few new ones around but at around £60 a go, a bit heavy. I was hoping to find on a stick on decal which would fit into the " holder " but no luck there at all. So three questions. 1. Anyone know a source for a decal to fit into the " holder. " 2. A source for a new badge at less than £60, I don't mind second hand. 3. If I am forced into a new badge does anyone know how to remove and refit. To be clear it is the round badge on top of the Boot Lid which says " Jaguar 4 Litre, " if anyone has the Part Number that may be useful too. Thanks everyone.

Even if you can't open either door due to mechanical problem in the locks either charge or replace the battery and then you should be back to normal and be able to unlock the doors by using the key fob.Unless you have a new - ish " smart charger " I would recommend disconnecting the battery before connecting the charger.

A quick update. After leaving the garage noticed a squeal from the Alternator Belt area at certain revs. Took it back to fix and it turned out that the Pulley which came with the re manufactured Alternator was ever so slightly different so it was trying to push the Belt off. Moral is very simple - save yourself work and/or hassle and check very carefully that the new Pulley is identical to the old one.. If in doubt put the old Pulley on to the new Alternator.

XK 8 Faulty Alternator – Symptoms And Cure. I suffered this last week and it was a little confusing so I thought that I’d post my experience here in the hope that it might help and reassure anyone else that develops the same problem. The car had been standing for a week and on starting up I noticed that the Odometer/mpg display was flickering, at this point everything else seemed normal, no fault indications. Then I noticed that the Voltmeter had gone up to 17 Volts, the first time ever that I had seen this go over the top dead centre position. I tested the battery voltage with a digital meter whilst the engine was running, this fluctuated from around 11 Volts up to 17 Volts, something wasn’t right. On looking more closely at things this is what I discovered :- There was no indication of Alternator failed or failing – this confused me more than I usually am. Odometer/mpg display – flickering and going from normal brightness to very low brightness and then to very bright. All other lights flickering. Traction Control Fail message. Stability Control Fail message. Gearbox Fault message. ABS Failed indication. Autodrop on windows behaving even worse than usual ! Indicators “ Ticker “ making abnormal noises, double tick, fast tick and normal tick, usually the dashboard indicator not showing, not sure if the indicators were working or not, I didn’t check. Gearstick locked in “ Park, “ on pressing the brake pedal the clicking that indicates that the unlocking solenoid was working was not there. I resolved this temporally by stopping and then restarting the engine. If this hadn’t worked I would have had to remove the TORX screw adjacent to the Gearstick and mechanically released the lock by pressing the lever under here. When driving ( don’t risk things by driving any further than you absolutely have to ) engine RPM was sluggish to respond and seemed that it may have been limited. There may have been more indications that I didn’t notice but this is more than enough to be going on with – I was already in full panic mode and didn’t need any top up of stress juice……….. A little later, having calmed down, rational thought kicked in and I exercised some of the few remaining grey cells that I still have. It seemed to me that a faulty Alternator was the cause of all these problems, probably the Regulator Pack. I think that it was still providing some charge, hence no Alternator warning light, and even at times too much charge but that the charging voltage probably had a fair bit of unwanted AC voltage along with the very desirable and much needed DC…….. I went with this diagnosis and did some searching for a replacement Alternator. I found that there are a few options :- Non-OEM Re Manufactured exchange guaranteed for two years – about £120 Non-OEM new guaranteed for two years – about £145 Original part, not sure about the guarantee – about £190 I went for the Non-OEM re manufactured one as not only was it the cheapest AND guaranteed but it was also immediately available locally. My local indy obtained and fitted this for me, took two hours in labour costs. Panic over ! Everything back to normal. The car that is, not that sure about me! If you ever get similar confusing symptoms bear these notes in mind and don’t immediately roll up your sleeves and reach for the razor blades, you may find that things are not as bad as they appear, I hope that, like me, you will be lucky.

Just found a pic of my sons long gone 06 Yaris V5 and that DOES list the number of seats - confused or what !

Please do Steve, will be interested to hear the outcome. I don't have copies of any of my long sold cars Log Books but I do seem to think that the Number Of Seats on these older log books did have entries, or am I just going senile ? ! To try and reassure myself I've just googled Number of Seats issue and the only definite comment I can find is that some V5's do have number of seats listed and some don't. I can't find any reason why this so I remain, as ever, terminally confused........

On my 1998 XK8 the " Number Of Seats Including Driver " is left blank, no entry at all. This is in both the Vehicle Details and New Keepers Details sections of the V5. It is the same on the V5 for my other car, so it would seem that the Irish " V5," or their equivalent, is different so I can't help. Maybe any Irish members on here could comment and help you.

Could try Auto Reserve, they have a lot of stuff and all their used parts are tested and guaranteed, I've found them very good. Follow the link for details. Good luck. https://www.autoreservejaguar.com/jaguar-parts.html

Whatever you decide on enjoy the search - hope you find what you want.

I bought my XK8 a few years ago from a friend who upgraded to an XKR. I prefer the looks and the analogue instruments of the XK8 but there is no doubt that the XKR has a bit of an edge in performance. I also like the " flappy paddles " of the XKR but whether or not I would use these on a regular basis is another matter, the older I get the lazier I become ! Certainly prefer a hard-top. A soft-top sounds appealing but I've owned convertibles in the past and found that once the novelty wears off the roof tends to stay closed for most of the time. As a hard-top provides more comfort, despite an occasional urge to go for a convertible, I'd resist this and stick with a solid tin roof ! So far me it's all down to personal preference. I'm sure that you are aware of the potential costs of running either of these cars. The XKR, which is 10 years younger than my XK8, doesn't seem to be any better, or worse, for reliability and the odd faults and in fact seems worse for underbody corrosion issues than my XK8. Right now I'd keep my XK8 but as we both grow older I'd certainly consider an " R, " never had a Supercharged car so maybe that itch will have to be scratched at some point...

Looks like you have better prices there than we have here ! Took me a while to find this one so I was just pleased to find it. Since then I've been told that Ford use the same stuff so a visit to a Ford dealer may give you some results.

I use this in mine. It's about £10 a litre and I buy from Opie oils here in the UK, ( via eBay )a reliable and respected supplier of oils and fluids. Whether or not it's available in the US is of course another matter. Opie will send to the US but I dread to think what the cost may be. Motul Inugel Optimal Coolant / Antifreeze OAT Orange Nitrite free, amine free, phosphate free, borate free, silicate free. Color Visual Orange fluo Density at 20°C/68°F ASTM D4052 1.056 PH ASTM D1287 8.4 Initial crystalization ASTM D1177 -27.5°C/-17.5°F Freezing Protection -37°C Pour Point ASTM D97 -32.5°C/-26.5°F Boiling Temperature 134°C/273°F (+1.5 bar) Alkalinity Reserve ASTM D1121 2.4 mg KOH/g

Fingers crossed for you Jeff. I believe that the cable from the gearstick to the Rotary switch has to be adjusted correctly as well so it may be worthwhile googling the procedure to do this, especially as your gearstick seems to be loose. Pretty sure I found instructions somewhere on how to do this when I was researching the problem. I've also read that the Switch underneath the Gearstick can cause a similar problem and given that your gearstick itself seems to have a problem that may be worth a look too. Lets us all know how you get on, the more knowledge we have the better able we all can be to keep things going ! Meanwhile - Happy Christmas !