The tow truck driver came and asked me what was wrong with the car - I told him there was NO coolant so it couldn't be started, he said that he needed to move it so he could get it on his flat bed (there is an overhanging tree in the way). He insisted that it wouldn't hurt the car to start it up and drive it out onto the street -- I said NO, there's no way he's going to start my car with no coolant, he said it wouldn't hurt the car -- when I refused to let him start it, he wasn't too happy, but since it was parked on a slope he decided to just roll it out to the street -- he did that with no problem and didn't have to start the car. It's now at the mechanic's shop, and I'm waiting to hear from him re: estimate. He said that the plug that goes into the crossover might not be available and if not he'll have to get the entire harness -- OMG! His assistant suggested using dielectric grease. The other tube he said he'd have to get from Jaguar -- that sounds expensive! Oh well, that's what I get for messing up this simple project. Sure hope he can fix it today so I can hit the road tomorrow.

 

Mike
My Indy mechanic charged me for 0.5 hrs to change the Crossover (Outlet) pipe & 2 hrs to replace the Thermostat Housing (that included removing/reinstalling the Intake Manifold).

he did not want to take a chance with breaking the plastic intake manifold when trying to remove the 2 rear bolts of the thermostat housing since the intake manifold was in the way.

So the total labor came to 2.5 hours and the labor cost was $150.

I also have a problem with all these plastic connectors that are on most of these hoses and wire harnesses. A lot of the times I knew how they work, but still have a hard time disconnecting them. I guess that the plastic is not very flexiable.

Jim Lombardi

 

I didn't mention this before, but when I took the crossover pipe off, it looked virtually new! I'll bet it was replaced within the last couple of years. The thermostat tower looks a lot older and much worse for the wear! You can see drips down the side of it and puddles of coolant at the base. I don't mind replacing both parts, at least then I know when they were last replaced.

BTW I'm expecting my mechanic to charge me a lot more the $150, still waiting for the bad news!

 

Good news -- my mechanic will fix my car for under $400 (to me that's good news) but the better news is he'll have it done by the end of the day today so I can still head out of town tomorrow!!!! I'm stoked!

 

Mike
It looks like the Coolant sensor electrical connector is part of the Left forward Harness (part# LNF3120CC from JEPC catalog -- LNF3120BC might be a similar harness on Ebay - item number 271164195326).

There is a used engine bay wiring harness driver /left forward on Ebay - listing number 160837916741.

See if you can spot the Coolant sensor electrical connector in the photo of the harness.

You should ask your mechanic to try to get a used harness - looks like 1998 thru 2003 use this same harness.

Hope this helps.

Jim Lombardi

 

Mike
I think this Ebay listing is the one (Engine Right Side harness from the ECU) item number 140384025503:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/89bs82yhey...0Connector.jpg

I placed a red arrow next to the black and the grey (possible connector you need??).

Jim Lombardi

 

Jim -- everything you've posted here has been of great help to me.

Bad news -- my mechanic called and wanted another $900 in parts! He orders the parts from the local Jaguar dealer. I talked to him for quite a while and we decided to have him put on about $100 worth of parts and I'd order the rest of them eventhough that would mean taking the intake off again. I found the remaining "$800" worth of parts at Welsh for $199 plus shipping, so with the labor to put them on I'll still save $400. Some of the prices he got from the dealer were unconscionable -- Intake manifold gaskets (need 8) were quoted to him for $10.85 ea., Welsh's price is $3.50 ea. He also was quoted $43.85 ea. (again, need 8) for the O ring kit (part #JLM20291) but Welsh has them for $16.95 ea. He wanted over $70 for each of the heater hoses, but I ordered them from Welsh for about $35 for the pair! I'm getting the car back tomorrow and will take it to Wisconsin, where the new parts will be delivered, and might have them installed up there.

All in all, I'm going to pay the mechanic a little under $500 for today's work - and I feel good about it, I trust this guy and don't feel like he's ripping me off. I just wasn't interested in paying the dealer prices for those parts!

 

Mike
My Indy mechanic reused the existing Intake Manifold Gaskets without any problems so far (April 2011). Especially since I did not expect him to remove it.

He is a very talented mechanic and never seems to have any problems at all with any of the repairs that he does.

He makes all look so easy when he removes all of these hose and wiring connections.

Jim Lombardi

 

Jim, that gives me a lot of peace of mind. Thanks again.

 

Did you ever figure out where the coolant was leaking from?

I noticed a similar problem with my car last year. The coolant level would be down and I'd top it off. This would happen maybe once every week or so. Then it got worse, but I still couldn't figure out where is was leaking. So I tried a radiator pressure tester and found the problem; which is where I'm am today. There was a leak in the radiator coolant overflow tank, in the back; which you couldn't see, but after pressurizing the system it would spit coolant out on the firewall near the power brake booster. It was a crack in the tank; which is kind of weird (at least to me) to see something like that. There isn't anything even close that would come in contact with it. Maybe just a bad part?

So now I'll have to find a tank. Any recommendations? The part number on the tank is XW43-8A080-AD.

 

My thermostat tower had a crack in it and was leaking. As it got worse, it started to splatter on top of the manifold, which led me to do this work. I won't know until next month when I get the car back on the road if it took care of the problem -- I started another thread about the problems I'm now having!

 

I posted on my '03 XJ8 leaking coolant several months ago when this thread started. I haven't been driving the Jag since then using my Camaro instead but my wife has been taking it to work. She works a mile from the house and drives there and back 4 times a week.

The upshot is i hadn't looked at the jag until last weekend and discovered that the coolant reservoir was waaaaay down, not empty just very low. After refilling i decided it was time to get this fixed once and for all.

Today i took the old girl to Jaguar San Diego and had them do a pressure test on the cooling system. $75 later the problem was traced to the crossover pipe and the bypass pipe. They were both leaking but the coolant drips were seen at the back of the engine not the front as you might expect. They wanted $463 to replace both parts and re-fill with coolant.

After i told the service manager that i had already changed the Thermo housing myself, he suggested that this was straightforward to do myself and save myself some money.

I ordered the crossover pipe on ebay from Coventry West ( it was $12 cheaper to do it through Ebay than direct from their website and that is with the shipping). The bypass pipe i got on Amazon for $7.00 and free shipping as an amazon prime member.

I'm assuming you got you car back and running Old Mike, last update was end of march. I also hit the same problems as you trying to remove the thermo housing back bolts. I found the only way to do it was with an 8mm crowsfoot wrench that fitted on to a 1/4 inch socket extension. Like you i also broke the overflow pipe that goes from the rad to the expansion tank. That cost $25 to replace, i'll be very carefull this time if i have to move it.

cheers

Blair

 

I got mine all fixed -- one thing that puzzles me is how you got the back bolt out with the crows foot. Seems to me that the bolt is too long to come out without removing the manifold.

 

I didn't have to remove the manifold. Long extension on a Quarter inch drive worked perfectly.

 

Mike, the back bolt appears to be too long but does in fact come out without removing the mani. You have to wiggle it a bit but the threads are fully disengaged and you can remove it at an angle.

I had tried various 8mm wrenches and small socket sets until i read somewhere on here that the crowsfoot with an extension was the way to go.

Glad you got your car back and running.

 

Thanks, I'll remember that next time! LOL

 

It is better to fix it before the trip. A small leak can cost you an engine if you get stuck in traffic. Change EVERY hose on the radiator, heater etc. The small hard plastic lines, new water pump. The engine will go a LONG time if you don't ever let it get hot.

 

I did get it fixed, and replaced the lines and hoses, including the two heater hoses.

 

Having same coolant smell issue here!
I've replaced almost every hose, the thermostat and new metal housing, the plastic manifold and still having a faint smell, nothing like before the work but after 4 weeks, I had a low coolant warning last night and had to top off the over flow tank. It was almost empty. I can find no leaks so I guess I'll have a pressure test. The only thing I didn't replace was pump. When we were in there, we saw no visible leaks.

 

You should also replace the pressure cap...this is a service item
Also make sure that you do not have the two small black plastic bleed hoses crossed over at the expansion tank.

Correct orientation is....at the front of the tank, the upper hose goes to the left fender and down into the atmospheric catch tank.
The lower of the two goes over tot he cam cover and along to the left side of the radiator.
On the side of the expansion tank the third plastic pipe runs along the cam cover and connects to the thermo tower as a bleed hose.
Don't make the mistake of overfilling the expansion tank, it should be just below the base of the filler neck, otherwise it just gets purged out the catch tank down in the front left wheel area.

If you have a constant low level, you may need to have a 'sniffer' test done which detects hydrocarbons in the coolant.
This is usually the result of a leaking head gasket.....pays to check.

When you say..."almost every hose" did this include the two heater hoses that run under the intake manifold?
You obviously don't have a leak inside the car....you'd know about it ;o)
Have you checked the hoses at the bottom of the expansion tank that connects the heater valve and pump and the little hoses that connect tot he throttle body?

That leaves only one other possibly remote internal leak and that is from the transmision oil cooler in the left tank of the rad.
very rare to get a leak here but just keep it in mind as it's possible for coolant to migrate to the transmision oil in this fashion.
Be safe in the knowledge that these are a very well designed system as long as they are maintained properly.
And this is where it all seems to come undone....nothing is done correctly until a problem strikes....An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure ;o]