Been dreading this but it appears the time has come. I've had a very small, intermittent issue with the disappearing coolant and the pressure test I ran gave indication of a slight leak coming from above the transmission bell housing. I've looked before, but the configuration seemed to be out of stock everywhere I checked. It had been the inconvenient once a month add a cup or two of coolant kind of issue so I just kept my eye on it. The car's been setting a few weeks due to nasty weather and today I threw the charger on to top up the battery. Came home and started her up and walked into the house only to return to a low coolant warning and a rather significant puddle of orange originating from under a spot directly below the overflow tank. I pulled the cowl and checked the tank for leaks and the top end is dry, definitely appears to be coming from down in the depths below the air intake and overflow.
Does anyone know where I should start looking for in-stock Hose and can I get confirmation on the part number for a 01 XJ8 Base. Saw conflicting numbers before and never could find it available. Beyond that I'm open to ideas on a fix if one's been figured for this mess.

 

Have you tried sng Barratt, a forum sponsor? They offer a 10%discount to forum members.

 

It might also be the heater hoses that run under the intake manifold. Consider replacing all the hoses, crossover pipe and thermostat housing (with aluminum) for peace of mind.

 

Yep that is what I had. The hoses under the intakt aren't hard to change... Just fiddly. Do the thermostathousing at the same time and you'll have peace of mind.

My 3.2l V8 was peeing it out when warm. Was a tiny little split in a hose.

To check, remove the plastic engine covers and see if there is water between both cylinder banks. If there is water in the V, then the hoses and or thermostathousing are leaking.

 

I'll check under the header but everything around the throttle body and under the back side cowling piece is dry. If I look down the inside edge of the overflow tank I can see the ground and the puddle that forms. Way too much leakage this time to not have some kind of overspray or sign on top if it's the heater hoses. As for the general advise, thanks. I replaced the crossover, thermostat housing, belts and water pump a couple years ago when I re-did the timing and got all the aluminum that was available. Didn't have the leak then or I'd have probably done that too while it was down. This one may be the last straw, on top of previous work, I've replaced the fans, front shock bushings, had the ABS unit repair done and had just finished replacing fuel pump & filter and rebuilding the back end of the fuel lines when it starts snowing. Get her off the street for a few weeks to let the weather turn, start it up and this goes. Car hasn't had 10 miles put on it since before Christmas. But it sure looks sexy sitting in the driveway.

 

The reason I am asking this question under this topic is I was changing my Octopus hose when I broke this pipe/hose. I have a pretty good image of the part I need. As you can see the hose or pipe is attached to the purge control valve and it is ribbed and goes to a connector on top of the manifold and appears to run under the supercharger and attaches to a sensor on the left valve cover. It is located under the long plastic cover that sits near the firewall and has a hole for the coolant fill cap. I have been searching for this part or just a part number for two months and my 2001 XJR has sat idle because of it.

 

left valve cover only has one fitting ... part load breather hose connects to it.

the diagrams at jaguarclassicparts.com would have shown it.

 

Thanks for the reply. As I mentioned it 'appears' to go to the left valve cover. I would have to remove the supercharger to find that out which I really don't want to. The pipe/hose I referenced; see image; gets clipped to a connector that is located in the back of the engine. It is the same type connector that the coolant reserve tank uses and that type connector broke. If I could find this part I can just snap it in there at the rear of the engine just above the manifold. The upper part of the hose is in good shape and that's the end that connects to the Purge Control Valve on the firewall. I have attached .PDF that might help. It is line 3, page 1, in the diagram. I would really like a part number or where I can get one.

 

I finally found my part. AJ84879

 

I really need some direction here. I need to order an Octopus Hose for a NON-SUPERCHARGED '01 XJ8. I've contacted SNG Barratt and after confirming VIN they told me they don't have the part in stock, but did give me a part #. I've found the part number online in a dozen places for less than 70.00 (first red flag). Most also describe the part as a "Lower Radiator Hose" (second red flag). It looks as complicated as the octopus with 5 ports but they all have spring clips showing in pics, and there's a section of larger radiator size hose worked in. All the DIY's and my own inspection tell me that I'm dealing with Norma Clips and the hoses are smaller, but at the same time they indicate having to remove the SC. SNG B asked if I had a supercharger, but this hose doesn't look like anything I've been looking at in posts on the procedure. Can anyone confirm the proper part number for '01 XJ8.

 

This *should* be the correct part number:

W0133-1656883