Hi all,

I screwed up by constantly procrastinating and not filling my mostly idle xkr due to a lot of work and other reasons... Result is i started my XK this morning to give it a wash in the driveway, started right away no problem, let it run for 20 minutes without any issue.

After an afternoon in the sun, came back to start it again but it won't comply. First time it did this to me, i didn't use a power wash and i'm almost certain the problem comes from my old fuel (more than 2 years... yes the car is very rarely used) and i was kind of expecting this problem to happen.

The car always started every week or so during these 2 years, no engine light or weird sounds, i have multiple cars and work from home so i rarely took it out hence the old fuel.

Now i tried to put 5 liters (i only have a small gerry can) from a gas station but it is still cranking but not starting. Please don't tell me i have to purge the fuel system ? Can i just add (more than 5 liters) fuel or should i do something else ?

Thanks for your help.

 

I don't think fuel will go off between morning and afternoon, more likely something else has gone wrong such as your fuel pumps dying - they certainly don't like being pickled in old fuel.

Add a bottle of fuel injector cleaner to the tank and your fuel should be fine. Have a look at this thread for information on what else to check, including fuel pressure at the Schrader valve and your inertia switch:-

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...e-help-156713/

 

Mine started and ran fine on 8 year old fuel with 10% ethanol.
So I don't think this should be an issue?

 

20 minutes, should be warm but gotta ask. Is it turning over normal speed? IOW its not bore wash right?

If not, check fuel delivery. Find Schrader valve on fuel rail. Verify its pressurized.

No pressure? Pray that the inertia switch tripped (can't think of its proper name). Reset it, try again.

I just spent all afternoon on a job from hell on my toyota, so a bit brain dead ;-). Someone else on here can describe how to check for spark.

John

J

 

I know it seems odd that the fuel could have gone bad between the morning and the afternoon but i have no other logical explanation, it could be odd too that the fuel pump have gone south (especially if there are two of them although one can be faulty for months without noticing)

Not familiar with the other test, i'll read that thread, thanks. I will try the fuel injector cleaner, thanks for the advice. What is the rationale for it solving the fuel issue ?

 

Wow 8 years ?! I don't know i always read eveywhere that fuel goes bad after a few months and you have to put fuel stabilizer before the winter if the car stays still etc...
Mine is 5% Ethanol (98 octane)

 

I checked the bore wash problem, they always mention that it happens when you do a very short (like 1 / 2 min) start and then stop the engine again, mine ran for 20min.

That said, i don't know if multiple failed start attempts can't also cause cause it or simply flood the engine...

 

Could easily be bore wash.

 

I'm sure you've already read this but, there are posts about curing bore wash without pulling a spark plug. Something about holding gas pedal floored while cranking. Look it up, fuzzy memory for me.

John

 

Problem solved : it was indeed the bore wash problem ! A big thanks to @Johnken @JagV8

Unbelievable crappy engineering here honestly, i love jags and mine in particular but having trouble starting a luxury grand tourer because you basically flooded the engine by "only" using it 20 minutes is awful and i don't understand why it has never happened to me before, i own the XK since 2018 and what i did is "standard procedure" in my book.

For those reading this because they are experiencing the same issue, here is how to resolve it without removing any sparkplugs.

- Floor the throttle until activating the downshift button situated under the throttle pedal and crank for 10s non stop : the car won't start because it won't send fuel to injectors, this is the procedure put in place by Jaguar to resolve the bore wash problem. By not sending fuel into the combustion chamber, you will basically get rid of the excess fuel that is preventing it from starting. Bore wash = flooded engine.
- Do it a second time but this time gently lift your feet from the throttle pedal : the car will then send fuel to the engine and should start. If it doesn't maybe repeat #1 again, if still no success you might have a different issue or check in other threads, i'm no expert on this subject just relating my experience and what worked for me.

Here is a video from the wonderful to the garage youtube channel explaining the procedure :

 

I very much doubt that bore wash occurred after 20 min. run time. Even if the thermostat was wide open the engine should have reached a high enough temp. But repeatedly attempting to start a cold engine could certainly be a problem.

 

Agreed but that doesn't explain why it wouldn't start in the first place.

Unless it's a combination of 2 problems : old fuel causing ignition problem at first, then borewash preventing it from starting after adding new fuel.

 

Did you check your air filter for water after washing the car? I washed my '97 the other day and experienced stumbling and shaking for awhile thereafter.

Talk about lazy (me)...It went away and I haven't had time to check it out. But I'm sure that I got water in the air cleaner box or related environs. The intake sticks out near the right front wheel and in my case I washed the wheels so I'm sure that I doused the airbox.

Air filter would be my first stop to suss out a starting problem after a car wash.

 

Maybe water through the louvers getting down to the plugs. I had that happen. Only starts after evaporation of said water.

 

Can't rule out the water related problem due to the washing, especially since it's an XKR with 2 big holes in the bonnet but honestly I doubt it :

- No pressure was applied, i wash my car by hand and very gently.
- I wash my car every month or so, never had this issue before
- If the low amount of water used to wash the car can cause this problem then it means it's unusable in the rain, which let's be honest would be VERY IRONIC for a british car lol.
- I drove my car many times under the rain, sometimes heavy rain and never had any issue.

I guess i'll have my answer next time i'll wash it, i'll check my airbox and coils for any trace of humidity after washing just in case.

 

Old petrol starts can deteriorate and leave a sticky residue behind - the fuel injector cleaner will help to clean that up if you suspect your fuel has gone off. Its a good idea to add some to your fuel from time to time anyway, especially if you use the cheaper supermarket type fuel.

 

Ok i'll try that, i guess my 25yo injectors could do with a bit of a cleaning process. I usually deal with that by putting premium fuel only from the best gas stations. All the additives are worth it for the cars you care about in my opinion.