Hi All - Appreciate any guidance here as I'm at my wit's end.

My 2006 Jaguar X-type (original key fob, new battery, 3.0, 130K) has mostly been a dream, save for a leaky oil pan, and thane other problem I wrote about, but every random once in a while it just would not respond to the key turning the ignition. Just total silence - no lights, nothing. Try again and it works.

December 1-ish 2021, I come back from lunch and it isn't responding - no lights, no sounds, but this time it won't come back at all, ever. I get it towed to my local mechanic who has worked on other cars for me just fine. They call with a diagnosis about a week later, saying it's something electrical as one of the onboard computers is dead, and they'll have it done soon.

Weeks go by, no word, I call and they say their guy has COVID and is out for a while. Weeks go by and I call again and they say they're short-staffed. More weeks, this time their guy had a car accident. More weeks go by and they say they're working on it and will let me know. Months go by. I am forgetting it's even in the shop.

Finally they say they have ordered the part. Then the part doesn't work, so they're sending it to Atlanta, shouldn't be long. Then Atlanta can't fix it and we're stuck. Basically they need to source this electrical computer thingy that's out and causes all the other systems to not work, according to them.

I already know I'm dumb and should have done something sooner, and that they're idiots, I know, I feel stupid already. I am not an aggressive person and apparently it is easy take advantage of me.

Anybody have any idea what to do from here? I know this is all vague but that's what I know.

I can see my car in their garage along with like nine other cars they're working on, so I know it's there. At least it's not out in the lot in the elements.

Thanks

 

Luis, because they are talking about a module, odds are, they are talking about the ECU. To give you a bit of background so you can understand what is going on, when you turn the key to your car to start it, around the key is a sensor (antenna) that picks up a radio signal that your keyfob creates. This is a long string of characters that identifies the key. This number then gets shuttled up to the instrument cluster to be checked against the list of acceptable keys there and then if it passes there, it goes on to the ECU where the characters get looked at again to decide whether to allow the engine to start or not. This is where not having a computer connected to the car as you attempt to start it can make fixing this issue hard to figure out. Now, one check you could have done was to look at the center console of your car when this was goign on and seeing if a red light came on when you attempted to start the car. If so, then your key is not even making it past the instrument cluster. Various members have fought your battle and it is a 50/50 call as to whether it is the instrument cluster or the ECU that has failed, causing the no start condition. This is where the red light can be helpful. A few member simply found the instrument cluster lost the programming of what keys were acceptable. Once they got the keys reprogrammed, all was good.

As for what to do, I guess it is a question of how bad do you need to drive the car. If not, then you can let them continue to fix it. If you have come to the point that you are ready to take the car somewhere else, I would talk with the shop before hand to let them know that they may be getting a car that is not 100% intact. hate to see you pull it from the current place, haul it to a second place, just to have them find the car in pieces and say "we are not accepting that". Some shops are understanding about a situation like you are in, others just don't care.

I guess I would start with being a bit more aggressive in nagging the repair place. You do not need to be rude, but once a week, give them a call, ask "how is it going". After say a month or so of this, then you can start with lines like, "if you can't fix it, then please let me know so I can take it somewhere that can". It is not going ot make them happy, but at the same time, they have to understand that you would like to have your car.

 

Thanks for your clear response. Comparing your description to what he shop told me it definitely sounds like the ECU.

The last time I spoke with the shop they basically said they weren't sure what to do since the replacement part didn't work and they said they were hard to locate since they aren't being manufactured anymore.

Not sure if this is true but either way, does anyone have an idea where to source one for a 2006?

Thanks