I don't think the H9 will fit in the bucket. I took a quick measurement of my 2011. Assuming the bucket is the same part still for 2013, it will only fit up to about 380mm. The H9's look to be about 400mm. The H8's are about 360mm and the gap is about 10mm on each end.

That issue, combined with no real evidence of an advantage when using H9, would make me stick with the H8 and definitely AGM type.

 

OK, many thanks that is helpful, Rothwell - thank you !

 

OK, finally a positve update. The Jaguar tech who is sometimes here flew in and collected the battery to see if we can salvage it, as it was new just a few weeks ago. Seems a long shot though, as even with correct jump (negative to ground) nothing. But you never know. This chap is clearly pretty good (as per his referral), as he found a small oil leak deep underneath, near the alternator (no local had spotted that) but also did not immediately say you need a new alternator. We know we have to check it, once we have enough juice to start it and so forth. But even if the alternator has been impacted by oil he knows enough about these cars (and the Range Rovers - same engine?) to say he would like to see if the alternator can be repaired, cleaned up etc. I cant wait as my ears are ringing from my old E class wagon... He was efficient, quick, knowledgable and polite. After 2 weeks of the opposite - thank goodness, ... BTW - here is something else I learned, I had been looking at an MB S class hybrid (W222) vs. the Jag X351. A new S400 hybrid battery - a mere $15,000. And, so far at least, no way of shpping such to a repair shop in USA. Im sticking with the jag. He was impressed I had it under covers and so forth... Thanks everyone for your support and advice.

 

Update: -

My battery has been saved by the knowledgeable Jag tech who flew in. He is coming round later today to install and we shall see what else needs doing. I will update as we go. While the battery may not live long, perhaps it will - we shall see, but it just goes to show my gut call on saying "no" to 2 local techs who quickly said you need a new battery and a new alternator ($1,300 +) was unsurprisingly correct, so far. I've always found the knee jerk part replacement techs fail my interviews....

But as I say we shall see. Encouraging ,so far.

 

OK, so the old battery would not hold a charge and is dead to the world... So...

The new batteries arrived on the boat yesterday. (7 weeks to get the right battery) One of the other things about living here is how packages are handled. You think UPS is bad... The techs here tell me often batteries are "dropped" on the dock when they arrive. So anyway the H8 AGM's arrived yesterday (H9 went missing and did not...) but wait for it...., the measured voltages on the 2 new H8 AGM batteries are 12.2 and 12.45. I've asked him to trickle charge the 12.45 one and I will buy that. BUT, my question is 12.45 too low? Does it indicate it has been dropped or mishandled? the H8 AGM here is $412... my alternative is to buy a non AGM for like $200 and use that until we fix the car, but the possible alternator issues may more likely kill the non AGM faster... Any thoughts? Thank you...

 

QUietness, the one battery being at 12.45 VDC is not a concern to me. Yes, it is a little low in charge, but that is not that bad. Batteries that have sat will undergo what is called "self discharge". So, they will lose a little bit of charge just sitting there. Yes, it is a very slow process, but how long had it taken the battery to get to you? How long had it sat on a shelf prior to that? The battery sitting for 3 months would not be unheard of. Besides, if the battery was damaged, it would most likely take out a cell. There are six of them in the battery. If that had happened, you would have immediately seen the voltage drop to around 10.5 VDC and then over the course of a day or so, it would have pretty much dropped to 0 VDC as it took out the other cells. So, again, I would not worry too much about the battery. Hence why I say to get a good warrantee as it will more than likely pay for itself where you are. This is where I would almost say to have a second battery that sits on a shelf. That way, one battery goes dead, you charge up the one that was on the shelf to get it back to 100% and then drop that in the car to then swap out the failed one so it then gets to sit on the shelf. This is probably a cheaper method than trying to deal with renting a car or having a second car that only gets used as you are waiting on parts.

 

Thanks, Thermo. Good advice. They are morons. After 7 weeks, went to get the battery today. Turns out they shipped in an AGM H7 by mistake. No H8s came in. Que an excericse in Buddhist non judgment. And this is by far the best battery place here!!! So the plan is he has an H8 lead acid that is not AGM, that is currently at 12.64 V. He s charging that now and I will install that on the agreement he will sell me an H8 AGM when they finally arrive and allow me full replacement value back towards the H8 (or H9) it from the lead acid H8 I will put in now. That might actually work to my advantage as it means as we repair the car I have a temporary battery... Living here.... and human beings...!!! wow.

 

OK, so the H8 is in and the car is locked and it starts no problem, but it is only measuring 12.0 V at the battery with the engne on. So, not good.. We found an oil leak for the valve cover gaskets (near the alternator) and the tech believes the alternator will have been damaged by that. He is debating whether to replace or (if poss.) repair it. Grounds seem good, he says. He also suggests replacing that valve cover gaskets on my superhcharged 6 is no small job. As he says that the inijectors also need to come out when doing (or to be able to do) the valve covers. He is an excellent tech by reputation locally (every one says he is the best here) but admits he has not done this before on a supercharged 6, and thet have limited tools e.g. no lift. He works regularly on Jags and RR's (and also Porsche, BMW etc.). So how big of a job is replacing the valve covers on an X351 SS6?? - and I assume this is the right time to replace the plastc coolant pipes with AL + water pump coolant tank too etc. etc.

 

Plenty of YouTube videos showing the process of removing the valve cover. You must get the special pulling tool for the injectors. They may all come out easily, or they all may fight your mechanic to the death.

Better to replace the plastic valve cover if you are going to take it off for the seal because the plastic gets brittle with age.

 

I agree, and I would like to use the opportunity to do as much other preventative maintenance that is sensible as possiblle.

 

Quietness, watch this video, this will give you an idea of what needs to happen to get to the valve cover. Just have to picture the engine in the vehicle.


If you have the valve covers done, may want to atleast ponder doing a walnut cleaning of the intake. Lots of stuff can build up on the intake due to direct injection. Granted, with the limited tools, may make it a no go. Granted, a bit of carb cleaner may get a majority and make a nice improvement.

 

Brilliant - thanks. I am watching it now. 2 of the coils melted on that one...! Wow, sure thankful that is not my engine. And that coolant crossover pipe with the big hole... This is quite an education... Good idea about the intake. I think I maybe need to make a list of everything that could / would be a good idea to consider. And then fly a very experienced tech in!! Who doesn't want to be somewhere very warm in December !!! All expenses paid...

 

I found that using a powerful heat gun worked very well to soften the tar-like build up on the valves to be able to scrape most of it off and then use a solvent like carb cleaner to get the remaining off.

 

lotuse, I will have to keep that in mind. I am thinking for the 100K mile service, I may pull the intake, clean the intake runners and then do the coolant pipes while I have everything apart.

 

OK, apologies for being off the forum for so long.... Challengng few months.

So I have to replace the valve cover gaskets. 2013, 3.0 litre, 6 cylinder Supercharged, 35k miles.

What would be the +/ - expected labour on that? And what else would you look to do when you are in there?

Thanks...

 

I don't know the book hours, but is that what you're looking for? If not, there are plenty of YouTube videos for the vehicles with this same engine to show you what's involved. I will tell you it's a good sized job to get the valve covers off because the fuel injectors always seem to give problems even with the correct removal tool.

 

Thanks - yes I've heard it is a big job as the supercharger has to come off etc.. I'm wondering how big a job it is, in terms of labor cost to see if Iam being quoted correctly eg $750. And also what else could be done preventatively while in there..

 

$750 sounds pretty reasonable to me. I second Lotusprites's YouTube suggestion. Here is one featuring your engine. The reviewer does failure analysis of many engines, mostly caused by misuse or neglect. While not applicable to your situation, it may be beneficial to see the complexities involved in removing the valve covers, particularly the one on the right side.

 

While you are in there, take a look at your coolant parts, stub for the water pump, and anything else that looks aged and replace them, as well as the rear coolant crossover. V6 is easier and more forgiving. I paid $4k all in for my 5.0 valve covers replacement both banks, supercharger removal, coolant tubes installation, but about $1.1k was the injectors that failed after putting the thing back together. OEM injectors are overpriced, if I did it again I would have asked my indy to get a set of 8 from FCPEuro and just swap them at the same time.

 

Some good news, the tech just called and advised the intakes are spotless, no carbon build up at all... He says the car is A1, but he is still checking everything... The supercharger connector is rattling / loose, and as that is a known issue that will need doing too.