Hey Guys:

Had my 1998 XJ8 VdP parked in 9 degrees F weather for two days - took a little longer than usual to turn over and start. Next trip, it took over twenty seconds for the car to start after turning over, and "engine failsafe mode" came on (looked a little dim on the display, as though the battery was dying).

Has anyone experienced this? I do not have a code reader.

Thanks for any help!

 

these cars are VERY sensitive to voltage, your extended crank on the battery may have weakened it quite a bit. hopefully your alternator has recharged it and you are good to go now. Has the issue repeated itself or was it a 1 time thing?

If you battery is 5 or more years old you could probably replace it and be good to go also

 

Hey, thanks. That's a helpful post.

No, the problem did not repeat itself. I read all the posts on here that discussed this issue, and it was scary. That was a REALLY cold morning. I did check the voltage on the battery when I bought the car last year, and it was fine. I will now check again. I see that the XJ8 batteries are expensive - around $280 was the price I saw.

 

I don't remember the company but when my battery went out there were 2 options, OEM for lots of money and aftermarket for $200. the OEM one had a 1 year warranty and the $200 one had a 5 year warranty. I went with the $200 dollar one and haven't had a problem in 4 years. It even started the car up on the first try after major engine work and having not been started in 10 weeks

 

Hi
The Walmart brand Everstart Maxx-49N battery we purchased for our 2001 XJ8 is performing very well (Nov 2009 for $80). It is not an exact fit as the Original battery, but it does fit into the battery tray ok (3 year full replacement warantee).

This a powerful battery. Test 2 months ago showed 14.4 volts. Label show full replacement 3 years - 930 CCA at 32 degress and 850 CCA at 0 degrees (most batteries CCA rating are measured amps at 0 degrees for 30 seconds).

In Oct 2006 I bought a Walmart everstart battery for our 1990 Acura Legend ($65). No problems so far, very powerful, Acura always starts immediately.

Gaudin Jaguar Parts website sell Jaguar (I believe it is the Interstate brand that is what our local Jaguar parts dept indicated) part# LRA1250AA for $158.44 (MSRP $195) plus shipping - This battery has 720 CCA rating and 106 ah - I pretty sure it is the same as model MTP 49h8 on Interstate battery site Sugg Retail $173.95 (85 months). Price at our local Jaguar Dealer was $189.

Our original Jaguar Battery was also part# LRA1250AA label shows 680 CCA rating and 90 ah. Its lasted 8 years and 3 months.

Jim Lombardi

 

Pep Boys, Advance, NAPA, and AutoZone all sell batteries in the $125. to $150. range for the X-308. I have seen sales at Zone and Advance for something around $ 90. TO $100. but NEVER when I actually need a battery!