My 2001 XJ8 (86,000 miles) has an intermittent starting problem. Sometimes I turn the key and all the lights come on but the engine won't start.
It doesn't crank.

I took it to the dealer about 1 yr ago and they charged me $600US for a diagnosis that didn't find anything. They told me the next
diagnostics test is $2400US but they don't guarantee that it will find the problem.

I have been driving a lot more since then, I didn't have any problems for about a year but in the last 3 weeks it has happened about 4 times.
It won't start, then I keep turning the ignition sometimes it takes 10 times and then starts and it's like nothing happened.
All the lights in the dashboard are coming on intermittently & the cigarette lighter works intermittently as well. Could all of these
issues be related? I read somewhere that it could be the power studs?

I plan on taking it in to the dealer again but would like some feedback to give them, if anyone knows anything I would
greatly appreciate it. I have a client that is a Jag mechanic at the dealer that I am taking it in to & hopefully he will give me a straight answer.

Thanks in advance for your help.
Patricia

 

I'm thinking the transponder key is bad or going. Do you have more than one key? Try the other for a while if you do. I have two keys, but one was completely dead when I got the car. It will turn the ignition and everything lights up, but no crank. These keys can go bad with age.

 

AND SOME WERE NOT GIVEN TO THE DEALER WHEN A KEY WAS REPROGRAMMED AND ALL KEYS NOT AVAIL ARE DELETED. AND THE EXCTIER RING SHOULD MEASURE 33.4 OHMS WHEN CHECKED

 

if not the key, ignition switch??

 

I bet it needs new contacts in the starter. If you are not comfortable with this repair, just buy a new starter and install. To test your starter makes sure you have 12V at the B+ then with the key in the start position, you should have a low voltage at the small wire at the solenoid. If you have those two things the car will turn over. If you have those two things and it doesn't turn over, you need a new starter!

 

$600 for the diagnostic to come up with no results? Are you kidding me? The car should report back with the problem, I'd be shocked if they don't have an internal computer system that records all faults like the BMWs did.

Anyway, short of some insane electrical gremlins, there's NO reason why they shouldn't have been able too find it in that amount of time (I'll assume $150 labor, so 4hrs. Even $200/hr gives them 3 hrs). Ask them what all they tested so you don't duplicate them. Post them up here. If some of the more advanced guys say it looks like they tested most of the stuff, go back and test some of it yourself. Make sure to recover your money from them if it was something that you find, as that sounds like robbery to me.

 

Aside from the battery connections, the "power studs" you are asking about probably refers to the starter feed cable on the right side of your engine bay. Just inside from the fender, on the passenger's side, you will find a big cable with a rubber boot on the end. Check the connections at this point.

My guess is that your "not in park" microswitch inside the gear selector housing is not working properly. If the gear selector cable is stiff, and that becomes more noticable in cold weather, the gear selector might not be going quite far enough forward to depress the switch.

Next time the engine won't crank, try pushing the gear selector forward while you continue to hold the key in the cranking positionwith your other hand.

No guarantees, it's just something easy to test and a problem I have seen before.

 

Ah yes the saftey switch! good bet! I would start at the starter and work back to the ignition switch. No Crank problems are not that toughwith a good schematic.

 

also there is a mega fuse in the trunk the comes loose and melts left of the battery in front of the spare.. giving you intermitent no starts .. the problem isnt a security problem.. more a electrical problem make sure the P is illuminated.

 

1st checj they key when the problem happens try tapping the key on a hard surface like the jgate surroud see what it does
2nd the harness on the starter soleniod is common to have poor connection its a bit short and tends to break over time
3rd check all the power points (+) the batt is in the trunk in the xk8 so the batt cable goes from rear to front it makes its way inside the car in the trans tunnel area the through bolt gets loose over time its on the pass wide its easy to spot when the ar is lifted,also check the one on the pass side of the engine bay by the cool box (were the ecm goes)
hope that helps

 

Thanks so much for your help. I hadn't had the problem again for a while so I didn't come back to the site. But I have the problem again. I'm headed to the dealer and they said they won't be charging me, but I am going to let them know what you suggested. Thanks again. Patricia

 

C: Thanks so much for your help. I hadn't had the problem again for a while so I didn't come back to the site. But I have the problem again. I'm headed to the dealer and they said they won't be charging me, but I am going to let them know what you suggested. Thanks again. Patricia

 

I had the same problem. . . had to turn the key over and over to get the car to start. My mechanic replaced the key transponder ring a.k.a. "exciter ring" part lja2668ab. No reprogramming of keys needed. Car starting first time key is turned every time.

 

I have a 2000 xj8 which will intermittently not crank. Everything works but the starter. I find that removing then replacing the "ignition+" relay in the large fusebox on the driver side engine compartment will allow it to start every time. You might try this. It is the relay closest to the center of the car. If it works then we have the same problem and we can communicate on progress toward a solution.

Letting the car sit for 30 minutes also works. My dealer is working on a solution.

 

Same thing here...Exactly. Most times starts no problem. Then when I least expect it and I am late for something...I turn the key, everything lights up on the dash...and just the soft click of a relay emanating from somewhere under the passenger side dash. No turns at all. Try as many times as I want but it won't crank. Jiggle the shifter...The key. The brake pedal...Nada! Then I let it sit for about 30 minutes and it cranks right up like nothing happened. The dealer can't find it and I can't find it. If anyone here finds it, can you share it with the rest of us because it is apparently quite contagious.
Thanks
Sal

 

Hi Sal,

Next time this happens try two things: First remove the key and then lock the doors with the remote then unlock them. See if it starts. If not, under the hood on the driver side open the larger of two fuse boxes. Remove then replace the relay closest to the center of the car. See if it will start. Let me know wether either of these things works.

 

Nzelak, thanks for responding to my post. As it happens, I have tried both of those procedures a few times before. It seemed to me that the "lock-unlock" thing worked once or twice, but now in hindsight, I think it might have just been a coincidence. The problem appeared again two days ago and I tried everything "fob-related" and then I removed the starter relay, cleaned the contacts on both the relay and the socket. I even switched the relay with one of the others of the same type in the fuse box. It just wouldn't start. Got disgusted and went back in the house for thirty minutes and...when I went back out, she started right up. Shut it off, went inside for ten minutes, came back out...nothing. She sat there all day Sunday and turned right over this morning. If I take it to the dealer, she runs perfectly and they can't find it. No codes either. I even went so far as to have them make a new key and reprogram the ECU last month. ($250) Still no improvement. This is making me nuts.

Sal

 

wish someone would come up with something. mines been doing this for a year now. 99 xjr. looks good but i can't drive it anywhere. just sits in driveway.

 

I traded mine in on (of all things) a new xf.
the start problem would not go away no matter how much money I poured into it. Good luck guys.