Was driving on interstate today and the red warning came on the cluster (Low Coolant Level). Knowing these cars are super sensitive to low coolant/overheating, I decided to turn the a/c off and limp home (I did not see any warnings around overheating motor.)

Once home and after about 4 hours to let it cool down, I release the coolant reservoir cap. It gave that telltale hiss as in when something is under pressure. Upon inspection the reservoir, the coolant was indeed below the cool/cold minimum, but still plenty in the reservoir. I will get new coolant and top up tomorrow.

My question here is...is this a slow march to a new water pump (or other failed part?) I did not see any fluid on the floor beneath the car or in the engine bay. Though, I will say I could not see down in front of the motor.

Thanks in advance to any guidance that can be provided.

 

the splash guards under the car are in the way and you probably won't see any coolant until you take a flash light or your phones flash light and shine it under the car.You're going to have to remove the splash guards in order to see the coolant leak and where it's coming from.My car had the same problem just a month ago and I had to take it to the dealership and they just went ahead and replaced all belts and hoses and installed a new water pump for around $2,900+

You probably can get a mechanic from somewhere to do it cheaper than that if you get them the right parts but hey,my downfall of paying this much can be your blessing if you can find a cheaper mechanic.My list of service right here can save you a lot of money cause it got all the part numbers listed on here that you can order that they repaired my Jaguar with to fix my leak no matter where it was coming from.Another thing,You say theirs coolant in your reservoir,but guess what...Is their coolant in your radiator?With that said,don't blow a head gasket or warp a piston in your engine.Make sure that radiator gets full cause u can top off the coolant while the jag running and if it keeps sucking it down from the reservoir while the car is running,that means your coolant level is very low in the radiator and that shouldn't be happening since you're doing that,so it's leaking somewhere and you're going to have to keep doing that if you don't get it fixed and i'm not even trying to sound cruel about it

 

front and rear coolant lines. probably just do both. intake manifold comes off so its pretty much a thousand-dollar job. mine:
5 hours labor $763
aj89664 front pipe $70
aj814007 rear pipe $122
aj811713 intake gaskets $120, looks like there's eight of the same part here, makes sense
jlm209723 coolant $32
subtotal $1107, not too bad really.

both my leaks were visible from the top though. you could see coolant leaking out of a couple places on the front piping, and there are telltale signs in the back on top of the transmission housing. i guess the pump too if you can't see the leak anywhere.

 

The front pipe is notorious for leakage at the seam and replacing the rear pipe, while the intake is off is prudent. The rear pipe is considerably more difficult to remove and replace, but is still the best way to go. I was quoted $800 from an Indy for both pipes, but I don't think the intake gaskets were included. Your price seems to be in the ballpark.

 

Ok, so I had this same thing happen on my XK several years back. Coolant low warning, here is what I did. I topped it off with distilled water like I have done with every car I have ever owned. Coolant a little low, put some water in. It isn't much.

Watched it like a hawk for a while and noticed I had some drippy drip on the floor, so I took it into my dealer to review (I was under CPO warranty at the time). Turned out it was a lower hose that wasn't covered by warranty. No sweat, fix that ****, they put one in for $230 or so. Problem fixed, no water pump, no entire cooling system replacement.

Don't overreact, my 2012 would lose some coolant even after the hose replacement. I had 3 pressure tests performed by 2 different dealers and it passed all the tests. Years later and my coolant has not gone down anymore despite me smelling coolant every time I park it in the garage. Seems to have stabilized on it's own.

 

Action I would take would be to rent a pressure tester from the auto parts store. Add Fluorescent dye, warm the engine to op temp so the dye flows and pressure test it once it cools. Remove the under scuttle first. The guys who posted earlier gave you clues where to look.

 

That's so interesting to hear. I had my water pump replaced earlier this year and I still smell coolant every time I park in the garage. The first time I took it back they said they found a small leak on a hose and fixed it and good to go. The second time I went back in they couldn't find any leak. Coolant level has not gone down, no drips on the ground, so I just don't worry about it.

 

Carealtor, I too had my water pump replaced at about 12,000 miles after smelling coolant and losing very little coolant (but still losing some). After the pump replacement, all seemed well until after about 1,000 miles, I noticed some loss of coolant again. I drive very little, but keep a keen eye on the notch in the reservoir for any coolant loss. Sure enough, it was losing very little, but losing some. There is no noticeable coolant smell. I had Jaguar check it and they found the front outlet pipe (Part # AJ89664) seeping coolant into the valley under the intake. I drive locally and only add a few ounces after 500 miles or so. Jaguar quoted me $1200 for that one pipe. As I only drive locally, I check my coolant level each time I take a drive.