Hi All, new 2015 F-Type R owner here - haven't had a chance to formally introduce myself, nor have I had the chance to get through even one tank of gas, and we have a problem lol.

Started the car yesterday, fired up fine, backed it out into the driveway to let it warm up and shut it down to let it cool and check the oil level. All good. Went to head out for a nice Saturday drive and... nothing. Lights come on, radio comes on, won't start. New to these cars so not familiar with all the sounds they normally make on startup, but there's a distinct clackety-buzzing sound when I try to start. Videos:

Inside the car (you can hear the dull 'buzz' sound)

Outside the car (very faint but you can hear the 'buzz', sounds a bit more mechanical)

Not sure if that 'buzz' is a normal thing. Battery 'seems' ok, removed it and took to Advance Auto, they tested it and the report said it was good. Around 12.7 volts, 784 CCA. I've had it in the garage and almost always hooked up to a CTEK charger. Have read the battery threads here, and that batteries can be 'finicky' with these cars, but my gut so far says it's not the battery. It is a Jaguar battery, not sure if it's the original however.

Thoughts:
1) could be the battery going bad, despite the Advance Auto test saying it's ok? CTEK is hooked up now, watching how quickly it progresses up the scale, so far started on 2, and has progressed to 3 in a few minutes, has remained at 3 for maybe 15-20 minutes so far. Will update on how it progresses, it had been hooked up to the charger for a full week prior to Saturday, so I would think it would ramp up pretty quickly on the scale. Maybe not?

2) Starter - could be the starter has siezed, or starter solenoid stuck. Is this a common thing on these cars? Does the old 'solenoid/starter tap' work on these?

3) Fuse/connections near battery - connections are tight in the flat box to the right of the battery, haven't dug out my meter yet to test continuity between the fuses, that's next.

4) Some other electrical gremlin? Anything else come to mind that I could check?

Don't know much about these cars but I'm a DIYer, last thing I want to do is put this thing on a flatbed and haul it off to the shop, but that might be the reality!

Any help/insight/things to try would be tremendously appreciated, thank you all,

Brad

 

Couldn't really hear much on the videos but if the battery is the original it could well be due for replacement. I've had batteries tested as "okay" by shops and found that replacing it anyway fixed my problems. I'm not convinced the battery is the cause of your problem, though, I'd expect even a failing battery when fully charged to do more when attempting to start.

 

It would be a big coincidence if you happened to run out of fuel then, perhaps unless you're on a slope. But my fuel gauge has been defective since day one, and I ran out of gas showing about the same level you have. If it is empty, there are directions in the manual on fueling and restarting.

 

The parts store test definitely isn't conclusive, but was a good first step. Actually, I'd have started with the CTEK, then tried jumping it at the engine terminals.
Past that, it's probably the starter or solenoid. I'm not at the car and I can't remember off the top of my head, but you may have to replace the starter itself, either way.
Easy enough to check and/or test if you get joy when you by-pass it.

(Greetings from a Wilton/Darien past)

 

Wow interesting - so if the car runs out of fuel it disables the starter? Reminds me of my old 73 911 I had years ago, stumbled and shut off while driving. Fiddled with it for a good 1/2 hour before I happened to tap the fuel gauge, dropped from 1/4 tank to below E I'll take a look, thank you.

 

Yeah I'm not convinced either, but I'm holding onto hope as that's only a $200 fix Let's see what leaving it on the CTEK all day does. Thanks for the reply!

 

Yeah CTEK will be on all day, or for as long as it takes for it to read full. Forgot to mention I did try to jump the car, both at the front terminals and the actual battery terminals in the rear. When hooking up the positive I could hear my old 4runner's motor lug down a bit. But no change, car wouldn't do a thing - that's probably what worries me the most.

Starters/solenoids known to fail on these cars? (i.e. car has 23k miles)

Appreciate the help!

 

Hmmm, I can't answer that. I was doing 80 in the left lane when the engine died. I didn't try restarting it until I had fuel in it.

 

Quick update:CTEK charger made it past phase 4 to 6, reconditioning mode, which is good news except... no start. Tried hooking up my bluetooth OBD2 adapter and checking fault codes on Torque, nothing there. Checked continuity across the big 400amp starter fuse as well as the rest of them in the flat box at the bottom near the battery, all fine. Beginning to think it's the starter - next is to get underneath the car and check voltage at the solenoid, maybe bang on things a bit. Anything else I'm missing so far?

 

Here are a couple shots from under the Passenger Front, that may help you identify what you are looking for/at. The pics are from when I installed my Cats/Downpipes.

Good luck.

DC

 

Also...Here is a link to a document I put on my drive that has the Starter info and troubleshooting. Should help you resolve your issue.

Starter Info

DC

 

Thanks DC very helpful - I actually have the full workshop manual (huge) for the car and found that section (or something very similar) that you attached. Haven't crawled under there yet, but would I be able to access the starter to bang on it a bit without removing the cats?

 

Oh yes...You can see it / get to it easily with Cats in place. No issues...It is right next to it though...just to the right. (The Cat is shown in place in the 2nd photo)

DC

 

Not sure about this car, but I've had others where the car won't even try to start if the transmission is slightly out of Park (or it thinks it is).

 

While this doesn't sound like your issue ... as a notation - really, really try to avoid running out of gas. Gas cools the fuel pump, so running out is a easy way to fry one. It's even highlighted in the Owners' Manual, so you've probably been warned for warranty purposes. (For those still in warranty.)

 

Yes, well, I wasn't sure at that point my fuel gauge was off. But I never got a low fuel warning, fuel gauge was just above red. I followed the manual's directions (add at minimum of 2 gallons, turn ignition on, wait 5 min, start engine.) It started right up, no issues. I had been suspicious previously when it said I had 48 miles to empty - and it took 18.6 gallons to fill (18.5 is the listed capacity, I think.)

This year, the fuel gauge no longer goes below 1/2 full, so the trip odometer is currently my fuel gauge.

FYI, it conked out gracefully. I was in the left lane, and it just died. I was able to drift across the lanes and come to a stop in the breakdown lane uneventfully.

 

I was thinking of something along those lines - wiggled the shifter stalk etc. while trying to start, but not sure if that's really doing anything. Did you do anything in particular to remedy the situation in those other cars? The P is lit - I have manually put the car into neutral via that lever, not sure if I should try starting the car with that up :/

What a kick in the *** this is - I have maybe 200 miles of ownership on the thing and it refuses to go. Maybe it's pissed? At least it was a really fun 200 miles

 

We have no history of solenoid or starter motor failures on this forum as far as I know. Failure in either of those is very unlikely. But I agree that this is either a battery issue (the fact that you were unable to jump-start the car is not conclusive) or it may be an issue with P/N interlock - misalignment...? Just to check: have you tried starting in both P and N, foot firmly on the brake pedal?

 

Neutral Safety Switch? In other cars, you can get around a bad switch by turning on the ignition and putting the gear selector in neutral before trying to start the car. I'm not sure if that works on the F-Type (mine's not home at the moment to play with).

 

Another thing to check is the main cable that goes from the boot where the battery is, to the engine bay. (Runs along the RH side of the exhaust) The connectors are right down there in the grit and road salt.

Another thing to check is the security/tightness of any braided ground cables. @Therock88 pictures one in his second photo.